Date of Arrival: Sunday 15 February
2015
Duration of stay: 2 Nights
Room Type: Standard Double
Average Cost: £75 per night
My rating: 3*/5
Despite having to stay at the Crowne Plaza on business, I’m guessing that the primary motivation to book a room at this hotel is an imminent flight from London Heathrow given that its conveniently located nearby all the airport terminals, (including Terminal 5); just off the M4 Motorway at Junction 4 and 2 minutes’ drive from the M25. Furthermore, Central London is approximately 20 minutes by car (well, on a good day) or there’s the option to take the Heathrow Express into the city which is accessible from the airport itself. I arrived at the hotel amidst a flurry of cabin crew which made for a rather slow check-in. That said, staff were apologetic, efficient and appeared unflustered in the face of what had become – for want of a better word – bedlam! Parking is available just outside the hotel and is charged as £12 per day. There is also an option to abandon your car for the duration of your holiday via the ‘park, stay and go’ packages.
Despite having to stay at the Crowne Plaza on business, I’m guessing that the primary motivation to book a room at this hotel is an imminent flight from London Heathrow given that its conveniently located nearby all the airport terminals, (including Terminal 5); just off the M4 Motorway at Junction 4 and 2 minutes’ drive from the M25. Furthermore, Central London is approximately 20 minutes by car (well, on a good day) or there’s the option to take the Heathrow Express into the city which is accessible from the airport itself. I arrived at the hotel amidst a flurry of cabin crew which made for a rather slow check-in. That said, staff were apologetic, efficient and appeared unflustered in the face of what had become – for want of a better word – bedlam! Parking is available just outside the hotel and is charged as £12 per day. There is also an option to abandon your car for the duration of your holiday via the ‘park, stay and go’ packages.
My
room was rather sizeable for a standard double; offering a great deal of
storage space, tea, coffee and hot chocolate making facilities, a mini bar and
rather executive-looking work station complete with ‘I’m the big boss’ pleather
swivel chair! The usual hotel gripes applied including the concept of having to
re-mortgage one’s house to afford anything from the aforementioned mini bar and
a kettle that took what seemed like hours to come to fruition! It was
refreshing however, to have access to a hair dryer that wasn’t fixed (often somewhat
precariously) within the bathroom and what’s more, one with enough power to dry
longer hair before developing arm strain! The aromatherapy kit was a thoughtful
touch and aided a particularly restful sleep – I also noted how dark and quiet
the room was which was rather surprising given the hotel’s size and proximity
to the airport. The lighting in the bedroom was a little dim but the bathroom
was appropriately garish! The latter was also kitted out with complimentary
toiletries as well as a generously-sized bath robe which unfortunately was a little
on the scratchy side; meaning that I was forced to lounge around in my jim-jams
instead! I had to contact Guest Services in order for an engineer to mend the
television which didn’t display a picture until he arrived to work his magic –
I have to say at this point, how friendly the engineer was; we had a good old
natter and as company policy is to pacify the guest’s complaint with a box of
jelly beans, he left a suitable cinema-style snack to compliment the movies
that were on the agenda for that evening. Win!
The
‘Spirit’ Health club included a gym, heated pool and spa; the latter consisting
of a sauna, steam room and jacuzzi. It was a little cramped in the gym and I
had to do my floor work off-piste but the equipment was bang up-to-date, clean
and well-maintained. I also liked that the gym was accessible between 5:00am
and 11:00pm in order to accommodate those (present company included), that wish
to exercise at what could be considered an anti-social hour! The pool was amply
sized but was unavailable the day I arrived as it was over-capacity. When it
came to dining, I thought that the wait on food was unacceptable – my companion
and I ordered an evening meal in the bar area upon our arrival and waited a
good 50 minutes before it made an entrance. I also felt that the chicken
burrito I had opted for, although tasty, was rather sparsely portioned given
its £10 price tag. There is an Indian restaurant on-site but I’m afraid that I
didn’t sample its cuisine. Breakfast fared considerably better however and it’s
fair to say that the food baby I sported well into the afternoon was a result
of the extensive selection of foodstuffs available. We’re basically talking
everything you’d want from a breakfast (or brunch if you’re the kind of person
that sleeps-in) – ok so in no particular order there were; Artisan-style breads,
pastries, a ‘muffin of the day’ (honey and bran on this occasion), Greek-style
yogurt, granola, cereals, cheeses, cold meats and fruit in addition to your
typical cooked breakfast buffet, phew! There is also a facility to whizz-up
your own smoothies and even a pancake machine which actually created teddy bear-shaped
pancakes; absolute genius don’t you think?!
Overall,
this hotel was fit for purpose – wake-up calls could be arranged to ensure that
you got up on time for your flight / meeting (delete as applicable) and
bedrooms are designed so that you achieve an optimum night’s shut-eye. Staff
were friendly and accommodating and the hotel itself was contemporary and
altogether shipshape. In short, I’d stay again but I’d eat elsewhere…
References:
*http://www.ihg.com/crowneplaza
References:
*http://www.ihg.com/crowneplaza
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