Tourist Hotel, Antwerp

...my recent stay at the Tourist Hotel in Antwerp.

The Tourist Hotel is a 2/3 star hotel (depending on which website you consult) across the road from Antwerp's main railway station. I stayed there for three nights in August. We booked the hotel via a special offer in the Metro. We were attracted to it as it was very reasonable. We paid £135 per person for Eurostar travel and three nights accommodation (the deal was to get three nights ...
...I can say about Antwerp's Tourist Hotel was that it was a place to sleep and wash, as it was not very welcoming to spend any more time than that in the hotel room. There is supposed to be bar with specialty beers according to the website but why stay there when there are a million nicer places to spend an evening especially the jazz cafe near the cathedral. The Tourist Hotel was just about okay for what we paid for it via the special offer but I ... more

When does a hotel go from being basic to being a bit of a dive. I pondered this question on my recent stay at the Tourist Hotel in Antwerp.

The Tourist Hotel is a 2/3 star hotel (depending on which website you consult) across the road from Antwerp's main railway station. I stayed there for three nights in August. We booked the hotel via a special offer in the Metro. We were attracted to it as it was very reasonable. We paid £135 per person for Eurostar travel and three nights accommodation (the deal was to get three nights for the price of one).We were not too bothered about the hotel as it was a place to sleep, eat breakfast and wash as we were going to explore Antwerp not sit in a hotel.

The hotel as stated is in a block just across from the railway station so it was ultra easy to find. Our first impressions were good as the lobby seemed basic but clean and the staff were ultra friendly. Our room was not ready so we were able to store our luggage in a room just behind reception.

Upstairs in our room our experience was not so good. We were located on the third floor facing the railway station. The room seemed fairly secure and was entered by a key card. We had asked for a twin room (two separate beds rather than a big bed. They had asked us when checking in so we felt reassured). Imagine our surprise to see what looked liked a double bed in a shoe box of a room. On further exploration it was a twin bed as the mattresses were separate, as were the sheets and blankets with a shared quilt on top. I had a quick survey of the room. It was narrow with the bed in the middle, a chest of drawers and a wardrobe. Above head hight was a TV which we never switched on so I can not comment on the reception or range of channels. The bed cover was multi coloured and the walls pink with a faded brown carpet. It seemed clean but small and basic so I felt satisfied if not overwhelmed by the the room.

In the corner was the en suite bathroom with a door that did not quite shut properly. On first inspection it seemed not too bad but looking closely it was not quite up to standard. The bath had a handheld shower with mixer taps with nowhere to actually mount the shower so you had to have a semi shower semi bath. The plug did not quite fit and there was no shower curtain either so you had to be very careful or you would soak the whole bathroom. We were left two hand towels and a bath towel so had to ask the cleaning lady next day for an extra bath towel which we did receive. The wash basin had sen better days as it had a big chip and crack in it. Walking to the window it seemed that the curtains in the same pattern as the quilt cover should have been in the bathroom as they were a plasticy material which did not feel nice at all.

The worst was to come when my companion pointed out some black splodges below a painting on the wall. She thought these might have been crushed mosquitoes. Not very nice at all. From then on iIam sure I felt itchy during my stay although may have been psychological. I did remove the brown blanket from my bed just in case and just slept in the sheet. However I did come back with three or four bites on my legs but can not prove this was due to the hotel or not. However the room was cleaned to a semi decent standard by the maids each day.

Each night we did get a semi decent nights sleep but each night we were also woken up in the early hours by our fellow residents. We were next to a larger room, which was home to a British stag do the first night then various continental school children the next two nights. Perhaps these are the types of clients the hotel does not mind as they are less likely to complain. You are not too bothered about the hotel if you are away for the first time away from your parents.

The breakfast in the morning was just about passable, if you had earplugs due to the techno music being played. It was continental with an emphasis on bread. There were some nice crusty rolls and little sweet brioche like rolls and a good selection of spreads along with some processed cheese and "interesting" looking meat. Cereal was on offer washed down with tea, coffees or juice that was obviously made from powder or concentrates. It was marginally better than the breakfasts I have had in Belgian youth hostels.

All I can say about Antwerp's Tourist Hotel was that it was a place to sleep and wash, as it was not very welcoming to spend any more time than that in the hotel room. There is supposed to be bar with specialty beers according to the website but why stay there when there are a million nicer places to spend an evening especially the jazz cafe near the cathedral. The Tourist Hotel was just about okay for what we paid for it via the special offer but I would not pay 75 euros for a double room per night. It also makes me wary of booking a 2 star hotel again. I have noticed that the Tourist hotel has been removed from the Great getaways offer in the Metro perhaps due to customers complaints. Avoid the Tourist Hotel unless you are a 16 year old and know no better.

http://www.antwerptouristhotel.com/

Pelinkaasstraat 20-22,
Antwerpen,
Belgium m 

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