Feb 2012, stayed here twice.

The service here is the best I've had in Vietnam. The receptionist (nickname is Martin) is incredibly friendly and extreamly helpful. He catered for my late and early arrivals/ depatures with a smile, organised early checkins, tours, transportation, great cheap places to eat, what to do what not to do, etc.

The rooms are great, a little out of my backpacking price range, because there were two beds (I only needed one ;) , TV with cable, a computer, free coffee, etc. But it gets pretty comfortable and something I certainly got used to.

Recommended.

As the hotel is located in a quiet pedestrian street, my parents and I had some difficulties finding it. However when we arrived, we were welcome by truly wonderful staff, who made our stay quite special. Through them, we arranged a cruise to Halong bay, train tickets to Hue and tickets for the Puppet Theatre Show. Some may say that most hotels in Vietnam provide this service, but that was not the case in other cities that we visited. The rooms were new, spacious and very comfortable and breakfast was excellent. We could not have wished for a better location, right in the city centre and 30 seconds (literally) from St Joseph Cathedral. Again, I canno't stress enough how friendly the staff were. My mum, greeted with a hug every morning, loved it!

I was prompted to write this review to somehow express my thanks especially to Martin but also the rest of the staff at the Splendid Star 2, now the Splendid Star Grand, for our truely warm welcome. We travelled to Hanoi with my two children, aged 6 and 7 and the Splendid Star was our first stop in a strange new place. Martin immeidately made us feel welcome and offered sound advice on how to navigate Hanoi safetly. We returned three times on our travels and each time my children were so excited about going back to 'Martin's' they literally ran down the road and in the door. His friendly manner made their stay so special and for this, I will be forever grateful as this in turn set the tone for the rest of our fabulous holiday in Vietnam. The welcome drinks were continuous, the hotel clean, comfortable and although a little squishy with the extra bed in the room was spacious enough for our family of 4. Breakfast was off the menu, delicious and plentiful and the location excellent for exploring the old quarter. A lot of the hotels in this part of Hanoi are located on the main street, the Splendid Star is one street back which made it a much quieter location, even with the cathedral bells as these were muffled and we did not hear them every night. So thanks again to Martin and the Splendid Star - I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone wanting to explore Hanoi, we had a great stay made extra special by the fabulous staff.

The Splendid Star Grand also know as Splendid Star No 2 is great value for money with the most helpfull staff around. The location is right in the old quarter of Hanoi. Absolutely nothing is too much trouble for the great people here. The breakfast is good and the rooms spacious and nice and clean and quiet for Hanoi because the Hotel is in a laneway away from the traffic My family stayed in Tet for a total period of 6 nights . The hotel booked our train tickets to Sapa and escorted us to and from the station helping with luggage and the storage of suitcases etc. Only downside was a leaky toilet similar to mine at home. The staff is to complemented on its very helpful attitude to its guests. Thanks Martin and comany. Wilma ,Australia