We stayed at the Amhurst Hotel in March of 2011 for 4 nights in the basic double room. As per their website, they are a "self catering hotel" which means that you have access to a kitchen stocked with utensils, pots, silverware, etc. to cook your meals, but the hotel does not serve meals. One of the main reasons my husband and I chose to stay here was for this reason- the next cheapest hotel that served breakfast was 15-20 extra pounds per night, hardly worth the extra money for one meal I can easily prepare myself. Also note, that you will need to bring your own shampoo, soap, etc. They do provide linens for the bed and bath towels. Before my stay I had a few questions about the provided amenities and called the phone number listed on the hotel's website, the manager was very friendly and helpful (and the call from the US cost hardly anything using skype).

Our room was clean and included a tv, tea kettle, mini fridge, and a sink. I brought my laptop from the US and needed a converter to plug it into the wall, the hotel had multiple converters of different sizes for you to borrow for your stay which was very convenient. I never had issues connecting to the internet during my stay. There's a grocery store 5 minutes up the road- a very convenient place to run in and get some groceries to cook dinner or grab a microwaveable dinner if you are looking for a really cheap and quick meal. There's a bus stop right in front of the hotel, a rail station and a tube station very close by. It is about a 30 ride into the middle of London from the hotel, not terrible.

When you arrive, there's a door bell you can ring for assistance. Everyone we met were very pleasant and helpful. When we arrived to check in, we met the groundskeeper Jeff who offered to make us tea and entertained us in the garden while they got our room ready. All the staff were happy to suggest places to eat, popular and little known attractions, and help give directions on how to get to these places.

People have commented that the showers never worked, but during our stay they worked fine. You had to let the water run for a few minutes to get hot water, but that's common to older buildings - and a minor inconvenience in my opinion. The neighborhood looked a little rough when we arrived, but we never had any problems, and often returned to the hotel late in the night. If someone was on the street at night, they never paid us any mind.

During our stay, we never had any issues and very much enjoyed ourselves. It was a joy to wake up each morning to children playing at the girls school next door, which helped create a peaceful, lighthearted atmosphere each morning. A friend of mine stayed in a hostel in the center of London and spent the same amount of money for a bunk in a shared room with no tv, etc. that my husband and I did to stay in our room. The hotel was always very quiet and relaxing, apparently quite the opposite from her experience in the hostel. I would stay at this hotel again in a heartbeat.

I can not understand why this hotel has so many negative reviews. I feel that the reason why many people have such differing experiences lies solely on their personalities and their level of preparedness. Successful traveling requires a little research and preparation. With this, I feel that most people should have a very nice experience. I hope this review will help someone.