Royal National Hotel

( 3 stars , London , United Kingdom )

I stayed in the Royal National for three nights on a school trip. This meant we spend hardly any time in the hotel but overall I found the room clean, comfortable and the staff was friendly. The main problem for me was that on the first night I found it hard to sleep as my room was situated beside the busy road this meant noises from traffic were heard in my room all night, but my the second night I was used to it and found it barely noticeable.

The only good thing about this place was location. The beds were horrible and when we ask the staff for assistance nothing was done. The rooms were hot and stuffy. There rooms are very noisy from the traffic, and tons of college kids were everywhere. It would have been better to pay extra for a better room and bed!

We got a couple of free nights from our airline, wish we had paid and stayed elsewhere. There were three of us, two adults and one 9 year-old. Not really a kid-friendly place. Aside from the location, there is not much good to say: it was hot and the room was hot (no air-conditioning), the room overlooked a busy road and road noise lasted all night, there were several hundred college students and they were noisy, and the service at the guest relations desk was deplorable. There was a a''continentala'' breakfast included for the a''freea'' rooms, this is really did not measure up as a meal in any manner. If you had paid for the rooms the breakfast was slightly more edible, barely. To make matters worse, my parents joined us and had to pay more.

Got there and had to prove that we had rooms even though we had booked and paid 9 months in advance, staff at reception not helpful at all, they couldnt care less about you and your check in, even the porters would not help when I asked for assistance on checking my flight schedule. They only give minimum information. Good thing my husband lost some cash on the floor at the very busy reception and nobody picked it up after half an hour. What a treat! You get what you pay for and make the most of it, great location and walking distance to Russell Square tube station. Huge place, fairly clean and tidy, just as the pictures of the room portrays.

We had reserved a double room and got a triple. Three bunk size beds!! Husband and I had to sleep alone. No washcloths, no batteries in remote control for T.V., suitcase table broken, and phone didn't work. When we complained about all this, they took care of it right away. The only good thing I can say about this hotel is that the people were very nice. Housekeeping not good. Bathtub never cleaned the entire 5 days we were there. Pillows were horrible. So flat it took 4 pillows to make one. And they were so lumpy they felt like they had big rocks in them. We are from the USA and this was my first trip abroad, so maybe I expected too much. Guess for the price I was looking for it to at least be as nice as the Holiday Inn. Boy was I disappointed. If you go, take washcloths and pillows. The Continental Breakfast was nothing more than bread, coffee, juice, and cereal. Not very appetizing.

does not provide the service advertised. Staff very unfriendly, hotel rooms have bad housekeeping

I've stayed at this hotel under two different sets of conditions, one as part of a booking with a Contiki Tour, and two as an individual booking. With Contiki you get a better/cheaper rate, but not breakfast, and you have to use those 'wand' keys that you have to turn in everytime you leave the hotel. It's a hassle. The rooms are fine for their purpose. They're a safe place to sleep, rest, and get cleaned up. The cafe downstairs has good, well priced food. So over all it's fine. With a direct booking you get breakfast included with your stay, which is usually and 'english' breakfast buffet. Along with a real key you can keep with you. It's located near an underground station and is walking distance to the British Museum.

The only 1 good thing about Royal National Hotel is the location! If you are on a budget for your trip to London, YOU CAN DO BETTER financially than what this place has to offer! Due to its size, it is almost a convention center for all athletes or as one rater stated a "BAND CAMP"! Service? You mean there is service here? My husband and I stayed 7 days and our bed linens, bathrooms, and trash were only changed 1-2 times during this period. The rooms are small, walls are thin, bathrooms are dirty but moderate in size. So really doesnt matter when you dont plan on spending much time in them. Your choice if you want to have the stigma attached in your brain of how dirty these rooms possibly are! Does this place pass London Health inspections? The staff is almost like a "phantom" service, they dont exist. Dont expect a wake-up call, or any help from the front desk, Remember they are taking care of 1,999 other rooms! Dont Bother Them...? If you are American and plan on sharing the same bed, upon arrival COMMUNICATE THIS. Otherwise you will both end up in bunk beds. You get what you pay for right?

This is without doubt the worst hotel I have every stayed in. the staff are rude and unhelpful, the rooms are poorly kept and ill maintained and the ammenities are poor. Way too expensive for the quality.

It was a basic hotel, clean and centrally located. The rooms were not large by all means, but London has more to see than the hotel. The free breakfast buffet was very minimal and the cafeteria area was to small for the number of guests staying at the hotel. If you are taking a quick vacation it is a good place to stay due to location and nearness to the underground. But staying over a few days may get old. You have to pay for internet at this hotel unless you have a laptop to hit their wireless in the lobby.