Superb location, reasonable prices, high speed wireless and wired internet throughout, on - site parking
Disadvantages:
Looks quite grotty from the outside
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
**** See update at end
Where possible, when travelling to London, I try to avoid staying, but there are occasions when I can't. Preferring to use the car rather than the train, I tend to elect to stay on the outskirts and take the train in, although having used a hotel in Harrow, this time I wanted something different!
Hotels in the price / location category with the words "decent" and "affordable" usable at the same time are relatively few and far between.
***LOCATION*** Easily accessible from the M4 & M1 motorways, the hotel is situated on the edge of Ealing Common, and is about 2 minutes walking from Ealing Common Tube station. The hotel has ample on-site free parking with a rear entrance to the hotel reception, saves you traipsing around the street with your luggage.
You would be forgiven if your first assumption of this hotel is that it is more reminiscent of an age old block of flats common in most city centres. Its façade, hammered by years of traffic passing by on the main road a few yards away mean the seventies style building is grimy on the outside.
On our first arrival there we encountered a mass evacuation through a false fire alert, followed by discovering the hotel had no record of our booking on what was the busiest night in London (Chelsea playing Liverpool in the European Cup), and having searched over 350 outlets, we were a little stunned to discover that this place actually had rooms available. Luckily, my colleague had printed the booking confirmation, and rooms were "found" for us, despite them being fully booked.
***CHECK-IN*** The first time we stayed problematic because of the booking error, the second time, everything went smoothly, completion of the registration document with name, home address and car registration, a quick swipe of the credit card and you are despatched with your room key (or should I say card?), the whole process took about 5 minutes, and there always seem to be plenty of staff around in case it gets busy.
***THE ROOMS*** The inside of this hotel belies initial impressions. The rooms are reasonably spacious offering floors with a pleasant combination of black & white tiles and carpet, an open cupboard area with trouser press; a double bed, colour TV, desk area with chair, and the usual assortment of teas/coffees with kettle & cups.
All rooms also offer the little seen, but marvellously effective "Quadriga" system that provides movies and music on demand through your TV, or a High speed wired connection for your laptop. In addition, there is also BT Open Zone (Wireless internet) throughout the hotel.
The bathrooms are small but functional providing bath/shower and towels big enough to go almost twice around my ample frame.
The lighting in the room is superb, offering a range of independently operated soft lamps and bright spotlights.
***EATING*** Breakfast is the usual buffet affair, although I must confess after several years of staying regularly in hotels I do tend to prefer the "cook to order" offering; but with 189 rooms, and a budget "lodge" next door where clients can eat, cooking to order for over 300 people could be somewhat problematic.
Food on offer includes a wide range of cold meats and cheeses, juices, fresh fruit, cereals, fresh pastries and yogurts, plus the usual cooked selection of bacon, sausage, scrambled & fried eggs, beans, mushrooms and hash browns.
On our first stay there, for our evening meal, we partook of the facilities at the nearby Harvester; and there are several other eateries within easy walking distance of the hotel. On the second occasion however, not being very well, I opted for room service (prices ranging from around £6 for sandwich style meals up to £18 for sirloin steak). I opted for the Chicken Cabonara with bacon and cheese sauce and a large slice of Ciabatta garlic bread. Arriving hot within about 20 minutes of ordering, it was very tasty and the plate was efficiently collected from outside my door within half hour of leaving it.
The meal cost £12.50 with a drink, and there is no additional loading for taking advantage of room service.
Customers can also take advantage of the room service menu in the bar, offering a range of food from sandwiches to steak, with curry, chilli and burgers in between, or they can use the restaurant where an additional (and somewhat pricier) menu is on offer.
***DRINKS*** In common with most hotels there is a bar on site, and drinks, although slightly higher in cost compared to what I would pay at home, are considerably cheaper than hotels in central London. I paid £3.25 for a Courvoisier Brandy, compared to a price tag of £7.50 in the Radisson Edwardian Kenilworth we stayed in the night before. A half pint of Orange juice cost £1.25.
***LEISURE FACILITIES*** There aren't at this particular outlet, but that said, with only about a 30 minute tube run into central London, you can be forgiven, if travelling for pleasure, if you have other things on your mind.
***COST*** Rack rates start from £145, although we had our room for £84 B&B the first time, and £87 the second. We booked through an agent, but sites such as www.laterooms.com and www.activehotels.com should have affordable offers with discounts off the displayed rack rates.
And for breathtakingly priced weekend breaks, you could do much worse than visit Ramada Jarvis's own website, www.ramada.co.uk, I have had some ridiculously cheap deals at their outlets in other locations across the UK.
There is also a lodge alongside the hotel offering budget accommodation, we spoke to three people sharing a room, and it was costing them £22 a night; guests can take advantage of the hotels eating facilities.
***CONFERENCE FACILITIES*** The hotel offers 9 conference rooms with modern connectivity, the largest room holding up to 200 people.
***MY VERDICT*** Our first visit here left a bitter taste in our mouths because of the booking mix-up; nevertheless they did come up trumps for us, and their rooms are clean and functional with good entertainment facilities.
Personally, their on-site parking coupled with their proximity to the motorway network and the London tube system (c30 mins into central London) makes them an ideal choice for business & Leisure travellers wishing to control costs, yet still requiring decent home comforts and good food.
My advice: if you want to stay here, BOOK EARLY; on both our visits, the hotel has been near enough filled to capacity.
Update: July 06 While I stand by everything I have said about this hotel, having now used it more times than I care to remember, a word of caution. If the weather is very hot as it has been recently, then the rooms at the RJ Ealing become almost unbearable as they do not have air conditioning - and although fans are supplied, their effectiveness is not great in 20+ temperatures.
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Quality of Facilities
Good
Family Friendly
Good
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