... So I started to look at the hotels on offer through the many room brokers on the Internet, and that is how I found the Ibis. I booked with them through www.virtualhotels.com and paid the standard weeknight hotel price of £45 per room. This price seemed to be pretty much the same on all ... Read review
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Your shop for business luggage like briefcases, garment carriers, suitcases, trolleycases, cabin luggage, laptop cases, backpacks and many other items from Samsonite, Antler and Jansport.
When I recently flew to the States, a schedule change resulted in my sister and I having to check in for our flights much earlier than we had originally planned. The time wasn’t that early at 7.40 in the morning, but we still had to ensure that we got down there from London and at this time the Tube workers were striking on certain days. As luck would have it, one of the days they picked was the day we needed to get to Victoria to get the Gatwick Express or alternatively Clapham to pick up one of the slower trains. Although not really needing to take the Tube, we knew that our journey could be fraught with stress due to the many people beginning their journey earlier that day.
It was possible to get a taxi there, but for the prices I was being quoted I started to wonder if it would be worth staying the night in the Gatwick area. So I started to look at the hotels on offer through the many room brokers on the Internet, and that is how I found the Ibis. I booked with them through www.virtualhotels.com and paid the standard weeknight hotel price of £45 per room. This price seemed to be pretty much the same on all the sites I looked at.
Now we had both worked long and hard for money for the trip to the USA, and did not intend to rough it too much at any point in our journey. So once in the States we wanted somewhere that we didn’t mind spending time in, but for one night at Gatwick Airport all we asked was that the room was clean, safe and comfortable. A tall order you might say as the £45 I mentioned was for the room, not per person.
In the late afternoon before our flight we took the Clapham – Brighton train, because although it takes a bit more time, the fare to the airport is almost £10 cheaper than that charged for the journey on the Gatwick Express. At the airport, the promised hotel shuttle (cost £2.50pp) was easy to locate and was not actually exclusive to any hotel so we were taken on a tour of them all before finally being dropped at the Ibis. We were confronted with a modern looking building that reminded me of the halls of residence that I used to live in at university, but undeterred we went into reception.
The very friendly receptionist greeted us politely and directed us to our room. Upon entering we were confronted with a smallish room with a double and a single bed installed in it. I had in fact asked for two singles but as the single was a proper adult bed we decided we couldn’t really complain about this. Decoration was unexciting, I think there was one picture on the wall, and an uninspiring carpet. There was some space to hang clothes, but this was limited. However this didn’t really matter to us, as we had no intention of unpacking our entire kits just for the one night.
The room did have a small satellite TV installed and there were tea and coffee making facilities, although the powdered milk that was provided was not very nice. The best part of the deal had to be the power shower that provided water as hot and hard as required. Elsewhere in the bathroom obviously there was a fully functioning loo and a sink with a large well-lit mirror. Towels were a bit scratchy and hard but of an adequate size.
Beds were made with sheets and blankets and whilst a little firm I did not find them uncomfortable, so I had a reasonable night’s sleep. It was possible to set a wake-up alarm via the telephone so this we did before we went to sleep. There were not many people staying in the hotel so it was impossible to tell how good the soundproofing is between rooms. However you can hear people outside the rooms in the corridor if they are not quiet when they are going to their rooms when the bar shuts!
Breakfast is not included in the price, when checking in vouchers are issued with your room number on it, so if you do have it, it will be added to your bill. We did not bother but I do remember that a full buffet breakfast cost £4.95 whilst a continental selection was priced at £2.95. As it was dark when we finally settled down and the hotel did not seem to be near any local eateries, we used the hotel restaurant the night we arrived. The menu was unexciting and consisted of basic dishes such as burger and chips or curry and rice. We settled for toasted cheese and ham panini sandwiches, and beer and paid nearly £12 for it. As I am in catering I found this expensive as I know the price of commodities, but the price was probably not out of the way.
Airport shuttles stop outside regularly, and if asked the duty receptionist will produce a photocopied timetable for customers to take away. The journey time to the airport takes around 15 to 30 minutes depending on how many other hotels the driver needs to stop at.
I can’t imagine wanting to spend more than a night in this place, or take someone there for a dirty weekend. However if I have an early flight in or out of Gatwick again, and just need a budget place to crash out for the night that is clean and safe I might stay there again. There are many hotels in the Gatwick area, some of which probably provide far more upmarket rooms and food than the Ibis, but personally I would rather hold on to my cash and have a good time spending it abroad.
Ibis Hotel Gatwick Airport London Road, County Oak Lane, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 9GY, England, United Kingdom
Advantages: Reasonable price - close to Gatwick airport Disadvantages: Basic facilities
Ibis Hotel Gatwick airport .
As it can be a worry getting to airports for early morning flights, I now choose the option of booking an airport hotel for the night. I did an internet search and found the Gatwick Ibis the best price for the night I wanted to stay. Approx 41 pounds per room weekends and 46 pounds weekdays. I stayed on the night 26th august for 46 pounds.
.
From Gatwick airport, courtesy coach stand, there is a free phone to the hotel ... ...minutes for the short transfer to the hotel. At check in desk you can book your transfer to the airport for the following morning. Transfers are every 30 minutes from 0500, night transfers are available on request.
.
The room itself was a rather small double bedded air conditioned room. It had TV and tea and coffee making facilities. Very clean and appeared newly decorated.
The bathroom was again small but clean with shower cabin and very efficient ...
wanderin_star 09.09.2004
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ibis Hotel Gatwick, London
