Last weekend I went to stay in London with my dad for four nights in the Mornington Hotel. It is a Best Western Hotel, although each of the companies hotels is independantly owned and operated.
Dad booked the room over the internet. He booked a twin room for four nights. There was a special offer available, four nights for the price of three, and he paid around £200 for the room, including breakfast. The reason he chose this hotel was partly due to the offer and partly due to its location.
The hotel is located in central London, close to Hyde Park. It is about 2 minutes walk from Lancaster Gate underground station. Buses pass by frequently, and a taxi from Leicester Square cost us £9.
We arrived in Kings Cross station and took the tube to Lancaster Gate. The man in the ticket office at Lancaster gate station gave us directions to the hotel, simply go right from the station and take the second right. There were several hotels on the street and none of them stood out as looking particularly special, although the Mornington was easily identified by a sign in large letters over the entrance.
Flowers greeted us in pots on the steps and we entered into a cosy and welcoming reception. The receptionist greeted us with a
friendly smile and sorted our room keys very quickly.
We went up to our room in a very small lift which would only just hold us and our cases. This could have been due in part to the fact that I am 8 months pregnant and my dad is a very large person, but never the less the lift was very small.
Our room was easy to find as it was facing the lift on the first floor. We opened the door entered into a lounge area. There was a small bathroom, and upstairs above the bathroom was a bedroom that looked down over the lounge area.
The bedroom contained a double bed, bedside cupboards and a larger tv on a trolley. There was a further pulldown cupboard type bed in the lounge area.
The bathroom had a bath with a shower attachment, toilet and basin, and there were white fluffy towels, tissues, soap and minature bubble bath. There was also a wall mounted hair dryer, although it was not very powerful and I was glad to have taken my own.
Tea, coffee and hot chocolate was provided in little sachets with two mugs and spoons, and a small kettle, which took ages to boil enough water to make two cups, but was usable all the same.
Writing paper and envelopes with the hotels logo were also provided, along with various booklets and information about the hotel's services.
I decided to sleep in the bedroom and left my Dad to the pull out bed. The double bed was actually two singles pushed together, and each bed was made with a sheet over the mattress, and a thin duvet, the whole bed being then covered by a bedspread. There were two plump pillows on the bed and a spare one in the wardrobe.
Dads bed was supplied with a duvet and a pillow, although no sheet, so i passed him the sheet from the other side of my bed and he made his bed.
The beds were extremely comfortable, more so than my own bed at home, but I found it almost impossible to sleep due to the immense heat of the room. It was not warm weather, but the room was unbearably warm through the night. This was the case for the duration of the stay.
The hotel was a quiet, peaceful place all evening and through the night, although I could hear people passing down the corridor outside, this did not bother me as nobody was making any excessive noise.
Breakfast was included in the price we paid for the room and was served on a help yourself basis in the basement breakfast room between 7 and 10 am. (On Sunday breakfast was 30 minutes later). We went for breakfast quite early, and found a wonderful choice of food to suit all diets and tastes.
There was everything ranging from bacon, sausage, eggs, tomatoes etc, to cereals. There were bread rolls and sandwhich fillings, a selection of dried fruits, even a large bowl of yoghurt to help yourself to. There was also sliced bread and a toaster so you could make your own toast. Everything was well labelled and well layed out so it was simple to find what you wanted. There was tea and coffee making facilities, freshly squeezed orange juice, milk, and even skimmed milk.
The breakfast room had a pleasant country feel to it and was a welcoming place to go each morning. It was strictly no smoking, if you wished to smoke, a sign informed you that you could do so in the library bar close to reception where fresh coffee and tea were served complimentary throughout the day until 4pm when the bar opened to serve alcohol.
We sat in the bar one evening for a drink, and although it was slightly pricey, it was not overly expensive. A good range of drinks was available and a short list of food, such as nachos and sandwhiches. Newspapers were available to read, and several magazines and leaflets.
The only problems we had with our stay at the hotel was that when we retired to our room te second night, we found that the sheets had been taken from dads bed and no new ones had been provided. We made do with him sleeping on the spare duvet and it wasn't too much of an inconvenience. Also we were given clean cups and spoons for tea and coffee, but the tea and coffee itself was not replenished, so we quickly ran out.
The television in our room allowed us to watch channels one to five, as well as several news channels and sky one. There were also a few radio stations to listen to through the television. Movies and adult channels were available for a price of £4.50.
The hotel offers a laundry service, although it seemed very expensive to me, with the cheapest items to wash being pants at 50p each. A same day service was also available for a 75% surcharge. We did not use this service, but i thought it was worth mentioning its availability.
The hotel doesn't serve any other meals although a ten minute walk takes you to Queensway, where a wide range of restaurants can be found, or you there is a pub just round the corner which served absolutely gorgeous food and the prices were quite reasonable.
I don't think the hotel was paricularly family orientated, but I don't think staying with children would have been a problem, apart from the temperature of the room being too high. I didn't see any young children there, but there were a few older children, maybe aged 8 or so, who seemed to be enjoying their stay as much as everyone else.
I found the Mornington Hotel to be a very pleasant and cosy place to stay, and despite a few minor problems I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again. It was great value for money, in a superb location, and it was very welcoming. The staff were pleasant, friendly and helpful, and I felt that we were made to feel at home. Over all an enjoyable experience and I would recommend it to all.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Best Western Mornington is 5 minutes from Lancaster Gate and Paddington Tube and train ... more
services. The Heathrow Express train terminal is a short walk away. This central London hotel has fully equipped rooms with a Scandinavian feel. They are complemente...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
The Best Western Mornington Hotel is a fine Victorian building in the heart of London It ... more
is very close to the tubes and buses which makes this hotel a perfect location whether you are travelling on business pleasure or both Our elegantly re designed ...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
The Best Western Mornington is ideally located very close to the Tube for both tourists ... more
and shopaholics!Lancaster Gate Paddington Tube and Transport services are 5 minutes away and the Heathrow Express Terminal is a short walk.Lovely central London hot...
Close to the tubes and buses in the heart of London. Our elegantly re designed interior ... more
and fully equipped, comfortable bedrooms are complemented by our intimate Library Bar which serves drinks and light snacks. Please note that whilst we only have a b...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
Close to the tubes and buses in the heart of London. Our elegantly re designed interior ... more
and fully equipped, comfortable bedrooms are complemented by our intimate Library Bar which serves drinks and light snacks. Please note that whilst we only have a b...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
exceptional by (11%):
very helpful by (89%):
