Stayed here w/ my mom in Sept 2005 – sorry for the late review! Booked as part of a go-today package ($1360 airfare from NYC & 6 nights hotel for 2 people - great deal), so I’m not sure what the normal rates are.

Room: Excellent. Decent-sized studio apt. Clean-line Ikea-type birch/chrome/green glass look throughout (some of the “official” Expedia pics are of a different property). I liked the décor – I would have suffocated in ruffled chintz. The kitchenette is very small but has everything needed for 4 people, plus small fridge (no freezer!), stovetop, toaster & electric kettle. Continental breakfast was left in the fridge for us every day – cereal, milk, juice, croissants, jam & butter. The bathroom is small but nice, with a great shower but FYI tub is high. No grab bars, but the heated towel rack is close. We used both the bed & fold-out sofa – for 2 people it was good, for more than that you’d be very cramped. Bonus: not only cable tv, but CD & DVD players. Kitchen table is small, and there are 2 chairs, not 4. There’s a desk as well, & shelves above. Closet is small; chest of drawers was ample. FYI: If you can’t find the hairdryer etc, try looking in that chest. Overall room condition was very good, except for the windows. They don’t open all the way, with some of the latches meant to limit how far they open being broken. That got irritating, especially as the room could get warm, even in September. (I don’t think there was A/C).

Location: Very good! On a residential street about 5 minutes’ south of Gloucester Rd tube stop (within zone 1), with several tube lines including the Piccadilly, it’s maybe 30 minutes from central London. That stop also has a mini-mall including Waitrose (that’s an upscale grocery), plus several restaurants & a post office. Maybe 10 minutes east is the Sth Kensington stop, and between the two of you are a ton of restaurants should you feel disinclined to cook. Plus a Tesco (Metro? Express? More groceries), coffee shops, internet cafes, and oh yes, the auto showrooms…[sigh] You’re also maybe 10-20 minutes walk from the V&A, Natural History Museum, Hyde Park, Kensington Palace etc. We wandered home around 11-midnight and felt very safe.

Misc - you do get some noise from the street. We were 4 floors up and facing the front; not sure how the other rooms are.
- Staff was mostly eastern European; their English was anything from iffy to very good. But they were all helpful. We didn’t like out first room location (right next to reception!) and they moved us immediately.
- The elevator is definitely the smallest on the planet! Pack light!
- For some reason there’s no maid service Sunday, but they still leave breakfast.

If I could get it at a decent price, I’d definitely stay here again.

I gave this a 5 rating keeping in mind the budget/reasonable price of the hotel. It was great for what the star rating is. It is true that this is an older, but keep in mind it's a recently remodeled building. The furnishings might be "ikea-ish" but they are modern and CLEAN. (A key point in my experiences in budget London travel...) Service was OUTSTANDING. Due to weather issues, Virgin did not get our luggage on the flight with us and the staff did a great job of delivering it as soon as it arrived.

We were on a front facing room where the only disadvantage if in the room during the day, was the primary school/child care playground just across the street. I forgot how much kids can scream on a playground...but if you were mostly out of the room during the day, like we were, it wasn't an issue. There was also a kitchenette and fridge which was so convenient, being on a budget.

It was about a 5 min. walk to the tube stop. There were convenience stores, post office, internet cafe, cash machines, pubs and restaurants all nearby en route to the tube. Quite convenient.(Not to mention Lamborghini and Land Rover dealerships in the neighborhood. This gives you an idea of the type of location it is.)

Continental breakfast was a bit crowded and the food was basic in selection but good and the staff was quite pleasant.

I really enjoyed this hotel as it was clean, comfortable and in an EXCELLENT location. We found a great package deal on expedia for this.

The location is the best thing about this hotel. Our family of four stayed for a week in a room which would be ideal for two persons, so we were a bit cramped when the sofa bed was out.

The room was tidy and clean, and the main bed was great. Loved the breakfast and the more-than-ample supply of towels. However, the bathroom definitely needed work to make it look nice, the shower leaked near the window, the basin tap didn't work well, and the kitchen was small.
We had the same problems with the windows - didn't open much, if at all, and pretty useless in the heat. And we also found the lifts cramped and slow, and the washing machine slow, as others have mentioned.

However, having said all that, the reasonable room rate and the closeness to the tube stations, a SUPERB bookshop, supermarkets, restaurants, and a very good pub around the corner mean that we'd definitely come back here next time we come to London. (Not to mention the Lamborghini and Maserati showrooms close by.)

My husband and I stayed overnight last week. We were upgraded from a studio apartment to a 2 bedroom apartment! We of course didn't need all that space but it felt good to have a space for the afternoon and evening and a separate space for the night.

The rooms were as follows:

Living room with kitchen area: The sofa was very comfortable, although I doubt it would be to sleep on (as it turns into a bed). The kitchen had a fridge (no freezer), oven, microwave, sink, several cupboards with basic pots, pans, cutlery, china. You also have a kettle (with complementary tea/coffee) and a toaster. TV was ok...15 channels. DVD player was a nice touch. CD player didn't work too well...actually scratched one of our new CDs. The chairs were incredibly uncomfortable but was quickly sorted by taking one of the cushions from the sofa ;)

Double bedroom: very nice mattress, iron and ironing board in the closet, hairdryer available. There is also a ceiling fan to help you cool down if necessary.

Second bedroom with bunk beds: we of course didn't use this room but the mattresses seem good, room was very small though

Bathroom: It was clean, plenty of towels, nice sink but not much space to put your toiletries.

Alltogether it was a nice stay and it was great to be able to eat whenever we felt like it .Windows don't open much and they're very old so cold and noise come through a lot! I would ask to be at the back of the building if you're a light sleeper as the building is on fairly busy road.

The apartments are marked as 4 stars on some websites. I would consider it a 3 or 3+...not more than that. It's clean and comfortable but not luxurious.