DoubleTree by Hilton London Excel
Last weekend, my dad came to London for our trip to Funny Girl, and we stayed at the DoubleTree by Hilton London Excel.
The weekend started with confusion as we actually went to the wrong hotel first (DoubleTree by Hilton London Docklands) - apparently the two hotels are often confused as they both have Docklands in the name or address. After a cab ride with a pretty rude driver, we made it to the right hotel, in the Docklands area near the Excel exhibition centre.
It's a pretty handy location tube-wise, taking about 30 minutes to get into central London.
However, I've stayed in this area a couple of times and it's worth being aware that although the area is 'accessible' time-wise, you actually are a bit out on a limb. When we got back from the theatre at gone 11pm, the short route back to our hotel from Prince Regent DLR station was closed, so we had to walk all the way around the Excel which is extremely poorly lit and doesn't feel safe.
At night, the area is a ghost town so do be aware of this if booking to stay in one of the many hotels clustered around here.
As for the hotel itself, it was exactly what I've come to expect from the chain, having stayed at three or four of their hotels in the last year: clean and comfortable, with great staff.
A little DoubleTree trademark are the fresh walnut cookies on arrival, which are often still warm. The room was big and bright, with twin beds that were both big and comfortable. I did find it frustrating that the bedside lights couldn't be operated separately: they were either both on, or both off.
I slept so, so well and the bathroom was clean and warm with all the usual toiletries and soft towels.
Breakfast the next morning was wonderful, in traditional buffet style, with tea, coffee and toast brought to your table.
There was a huge selection of hot and cold foods, including about six different juices as well as a range of smoothies and yoghurt and granola mixes. Our breakfasts were £10 each on top of our room, which isn't too bad in comparison to other, similar London hotels.
Overall, I had a great stay at the hotel, and would recommend it in terms of comfort and distance into central, but do be aware of the the points I made on location if you're staying alone!
The weekend started with confusion as we actually went to the wrong hotel first (DoubleTree by Hilton London Docklands) - apparently the two hotels are often confused as they both have Docklands in the name or address. After a cab ride with a pretty rude driver, we made it to the right hotel, in the Docklands area near the Excel exhibition centre.
It's a pretty handy location tube-wise, taking about 30 minutes to get into central London.
However, I've stayed in this area a couple of times and it's worth being aware that although the area is 'accessible' time-wise, you actually are a bit out on a limb. When we got back from the theatre at gone 11pm, the short route back to our hotel from Prince Regent DLR station was closed, so we had to walk all the way around the Excel which is extremely poorly lit and doesn't feel safe.
At night, the area is a ghost town so do be aware of this if booking to stay in one of the many hotels clustered around here.
As for the hotel itself, it was exactly what I've come to expect from the chain, having stayed at three or four of their hotels in the last year: clean and comfortable, with great staff.
A little DoubleTree trademark are the fresh walnut cookies on arrival, which are often still warm. The room was big and bright, with twin beds that were both big and comfortable. I did find it frustrating that the bedside lights couldn't be operated separately: they were either both on, or both off.
I slept so, so well and the bathroom was clean and warm with all the usual toiletries and soft towels.
Breakfast the next morning was wonderful, in traditional buffet style, with tea, coffee and toast brought to your table.
There was a huge selection of hot and cold foods, including about six different juices as well as a range of smoothies and yoghurt and granola mixes. Our breakfasts were £10 each on top of our room, which isn't too bad in comparison to other, similar London hotels.
Overall, I had a great stay at the hotel, and would recommend it in terms of comfort and distance into central, but do be aware of the the points I made on location if you're staying alone!
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