| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 05/06/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 48 |
| Copyright: Other |
Product review
Make room for a run on the capital market
Kerry Webb samples a selection of London properties
With around 1,200 hotels in London alone, finding a place to stay can be a daunting prospect. Just in the borough of Westminster, there are 47,000 bed spaces, followed by Kensington and Chelsea with 20,000 bed spaces, according to the latest figures from the London Tourist Board.If money is no object, there are a wealth of options. The Churchill Inter-Continental in Portman Square boasts one of the most expensive suites in London, which costs £3,500 per night. For that you get three bedrooms with en-suite facilities, two dressing rooms, a gym, a study, dining room, extensive lounge and a kitchen.
If you’re on a budget then there are beds for as little as £16 per night. However, the quality at this end of the market can be poor. London Tourist Board managing director Paul Hopper said: “Quality is key to delivering a first-class visitor experience. London offers some of the best hotels in the world.
“However, at the lower end of the market there is still much to be done to ensure the quality and value of London’s accommodation.”
The capital has hotels to suit every taste but agents need to ascertain exactly what clients are after before recommending a particular property.
If your client is a business traveller, then access to technology could be a primary factor, while for a tourist location is likely to be paramount. Travel Weekly checked out four very different hotels to determine what you actually get for your money and who they would suit.
Boutique hotel
Cost per night: single room £187; double room £218. large garden room£375. Inclusive of VAT at 17.5%
Optional added extras: continental breakfast £10; full English breakfast£16; small bottle of mineral water£1.50; spirit shot £4.50; pot of tea delivered to your room £3; laundry £6 per shirt; car parking £21 for 12-24hrs; local fax £1 per page; telephone call 25p per unit; daily delegate rate for meetings from £175.
Hotel facilities: the hotel has 47 bedrooms, some of which have four-poster beds, including nine garden rooms, two suites and 11 studios. All rooms have air-conditioning, en-suite bathrooms, telephones, modem points, fax machines, safety deposit boxes, satellite television, mini-bar, bathrobes and hairdryers. Guest services include 24hr concierge and room service. An honourary bar is available for drinks in three lounges. The hotel only serves breakfast. Private dining is available for groups in its dining room and there’s also an extensive room-service menu.
First impressions: this hotel is like a stylish home. It’s lavishly furnished with comfortable sofas in the lounge, including open fires. The best feature of this property is its garden. French doors open onto a perfectly tended lawn where you can easily forget you are in the heart of London. The four-poster beds in the garden rooms are huge and the service is friendly yet efficient.
Sleeping in style: one of the hotel’s Garden Suite rooms
Spoilt for choice: London offers an often daunting range of properties to fit all budgets
Pension hotel
Cost per night: single £120; twins and doubles £150, including tax.
Optional added extras: room service provided by outside company, Room Service Deliveries. There is a £10 minimum food order, plus £4 service charge per restaurant; phone calls charged at 22p per unit; faxes at 50p per page.
Hotel facilities: 37 rooms and nine suites. All rooms have direct-dial telephones, fans, tea and coffee-making facilities, a fridge, small hi-fi, television, bathrobes, Escada Sports toiletries and restaurant guides. Breakfast coffee is provided from Starbucks.
First impressions: although the facade of this recently refurbished 1919 hotel and the grand entrance give the impression that this is a luxurious property, rooms are basic – but that is the principle of this hotel. Number 10 has foregone all the usual frills and add-ons, such as air-conditioning, to keep the price low. Rooms lack character but are clean and comfortable. The restaurant guide and the in-room service firm compensate for not having a restaurant or drinks licence.
Keep it simple: Number 10 aims to keep costs down
All-inclusive hotel
Cost per night: standard room £345; junior suites £525; executive suites £615. Rates inclusive of tax.
Optional added extras: long-distance calls 28p per unit; daily hire of small meeting room £500.
Hotel facilities: this small hotel has just 20 air-conditioned rooms – 16 standard rooms and four suites. The master suite has a glass ceiling. The marble bathrooms have separate shower units and most rooms have working fireplaces. The huge televisions in each room give guests access to e-mail and the Internet from a portable keybook. Rooms also have fax machines, printers and mini-bars.
First impressions: akin to a gentleman’s club is the best way to describe this property. It is the only all-inclusive hotel in London. With a discreet street entrance leading to a lift that takes guests up to the hotel itself, it feels exclusive from the start. Although the rooms are not large and are all the same, the contemporary, black and white decor is striking. The open-plan lounge and dining area is light and airy due to the glass-domed ceiling. The business centre overlooks the lounge from a balcony and offers laptops, fax machines and printers. The biggest selling point is the in-room technology which is particularly easy to use.
Chain hotel
Cost per night: Hilton’s short-break programme Escapeaway offers rates starting from £54.50 per person in August. From June through July and September the rate starts at £90, subject to availability. The rates are constantly changing but at the time of going to press, the published prices for standard rooms start at £195, a Business Advantage room from £215, an Executive room from £235 and an Executive Suite from £380.
Optional added extras: one litre bottle of mineral water £4.85; spirit shot £5.25; laundry £5.45 per shirt; day delegate rate £56 plus VAT but negotiable; telephone call starting at 59p per unit for first five units, dropping to 42p; 24hr car parking£20; two-page fax in UK £1.50.
Hotel facilities: once the £110m investment has been completed in October, it will have 1,073 rooms and will be the largest purpose-built, four-star convention hotel in Europe. It currently has 20 meeting rooms but this is being extended to 37. Its two largest banqueting rooms cater for up to 1,200. The hotel currently has 688 rooms, all bedrooms include climate control panels, television, telephone, trouser press, hairdryer, mini-bar, tea and coffee-making facilities. Its health club has a 15-metre heated indoor pool, sauna and gym. It has several restaurants including Aspects of London – said to be the highest restaurant in London from which the views are very spectacular.
First impressions: the doorman dressed in top hat and tails is a nice touch as guests enter this modern hotel. The reception is very bright and airy with glass lifts leading to the executive suites and there’s a 24hr bar and sofas near the check-in desk. The decor in the areas of the hotel that have been refurbished is colourful and contemporary, and yet make the areas still to be done stand out more – like some of the standard rooms and corridors. Once completed this hotel will be a flagship property. The Aspects restaurant is a fabulous place to eat where diners are given maps to pick out some of the city’s landmarks. While standard rooms are pretty much like any other chain hotel, the Executive Suites are very luxurious, decorated in rich coloured fabrics. The bathrooms are spacious and the lounges are ideal for entertaining – with well stocked bars and comfy sofas.
Something for everyone: rates vary to suit all pockets
Executive lounge:the property has an exclusive air