Grange City, London

We've spent only one night (7/04-8/04) in this hotel We've received room on third floor. Which was nice, view from window was breathtaking.. directly Tower of london across the street :) Bathroom was clean, well equiped, nice hair drayers in room and in bathroom. Electronic mini bar (better not to take nothing out, if u dont wnt to buy, because directly ur changed, of course u can explain it later, but it take a lot of precious time). On a weekends continental breakfast included, nice.. very tasty, a lot of range of yogurts, fruits, fruit sallads, muesli.Right on a corner is a subway (tower hill), KFC across main street. Generally its worth to visit, spend this money. Clean, clear, comfortable :)

RECEPTION: Grumpy Staff,only good staff were the Consierge. ROOM:Beautiful very nice (Double Exe) REASTAURANT: Excellant Ambience but limited Set Menu-Not a good thing.Meals not as described on menu and potatoes served raw!!! ISIS BAR: Unexperianced staff very slow(Struggled with six people at bar. Only one member of bars staff serving on a sat night. Kept charging us different prices for same thing!!! CLEANLINESS: I complained about state of bathroom several times. It never got sorted during our three day stay. Everything else was satisfactory. ROOM SEVICE: Timeliness not brilliant and food always arrived cold! HEALTH SPA/SWIMMING POOL: This facility was supurb need i say more!!! SUMMARY: I would not stay there again for a special weekend due to the fact we were lead to beleive it was a five star hotel! I believe the service i got and everything all together, this place is only worth 2star and thats only because fixtures and fittings were very nice! Every other guest i spoke to had several complaints themselves so i knew i wasn't alone!!!

Arrival at the City Grange was not the 'welcome' experience of a hotel keen to make up to a guest. An extraordinarily impatient and brusque receptionist made no eye contact, offered no help with bags and believed that a sneering swoop of the hand served as directions to the lift. A word about the foyer itself- it is brash, vulgar in its decor and, when I arrived and left the hotel, thick with stale smoke as guests appear to smoke everywhere and anywhere in the public spaces. On the way up to the room on the 11th floor, two surly members of staff completely ignored me. But to the room - after all, it was going to be 'lovely' given the problems at the Grange Holborn wasn't it? Er, no. Nasty tacky, fake wood, dark brown, dusty, small, stuffy, unclean in the corners, feeble hair dryer tethered to a drawer, UHT milk and cheap fittings. I am open mouthed at the audacity of a hotel that claims such a room as 5 star. I would be hard pushed to see it as comparable to 3 star hotels in which I have stayed. The 'spectacular luxury' claimed by the hotel certainly isn't to be found in the rooms. Perhaps the view would compensate? Looking at the Tower of London at night could lift the spirits of a frustrated traveller. And the hotel is so proud of its 'unique panoramic views' as stated on its website. On pulling the curtains, I was greeted not with the glistening Thames but the incinerators of a large office block that looked directly over my room. Certainly a 'unique' view but hardly panoramic. And then came the piece de resistance of this depressing, wretched experience - the sound of the first train thundering under my room. Yep, strangely the hotel doesn't mention that it is built directly over a railway line. And those trains are a) loud b) very regular c) finish late and d) begin very early. Dinner in the deserted, but weirdly smoke filled restaurant was unappealing, so I asked the concierge for directions to local restaurants. He was utterly uninterested and the best he could muster was a Chez Gerard, or a nasty Indian. Being in the City means there are fewer dining options, but this seemed unnecessarily uninspired. After a night accompanied by the trains, the hotel really surpassed itself in its ineptitude in the morning. There was a saga involving ordering breakfast which makes me shake my head in disbelief when I think about it several days later. Then, as I was dressing with the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door, I was interrupted by persistent banging on the door which turned out to be the window cleaner. I have rarely left a hotel with such unmitigated horror at the level of service, standard of decor, cleanliness and facilities and a sense of overwhelming feeling of being thoroughly ripped off. I got in a taxi to try to make it across London in time for the meeting that had led me to book a Grange hotel in the first place. It took 45 minutes rather than the 25 that the hotel had told me to allow and I was, as I had feared, late. A disastrous end to an utterly disastrous stay. So, in short I'd agree wholeheartedly with the hotel's promises that "Grange City represents a first for a hotel of this standard in the City" because there has never, in my experience of business travel, been such a desultory standard of hotel with the audacity to masquerade as 'five star' imposed on the unfortunate guests of EC1.

What I liked: - fine English service - great bed - high speed internet service - incredible view of the Tower of London and Tower Bridge - timely and correct room service - location location location!!!! especially for Lloyd's or other insurance business - concierge staff that would do anything to help - windows that open to let in the good crisp air What I didn't like: - the lobster bisque was AWFUL - lack of instructions on how to turn the lights on (put your hotel card in the white container right by the front door) - a long way from shopping and good places to eat - that I only had 4 nights there Remember to bring your electrical outlet converter, since the hotel has only a few converters to loan. My collegue did get one but I had to buy mine. There is a small electronics store a block or so away so don't despair if you forgot yours. The Chez Gerard restaurant nearby was not great, so if you can eat somewhere else please do. The lamb was good though... I would stay at the Grange City again, and plan to on my next trip to London.