More about Barcelo Brighton Old Ship Hotel
Very good location
by A TripAdvisor Member
I stayed at the Old Ship in April 2004 and was very pleased with the hotel in general. I would go back again. My room was at the back of the hotel (no nice view), but then I didn't spend much time in my room either. Bathroom was perfect - modern and very clean. Bed was comfortable. Location is perfect, facing the sea and near "The Lanes" and Brighton Pier.
The breakfast buffet was very good, though expensive by Canadian standards (11 pounds). Staff was not that great - front desk did not even know where the Brighton Centre was located (which I found out was only 5 block away !).
Dirty Old Ship
by TripAdvisor Member ACoop
Just held a 2-day conference at the old ship and was very disappointed. I was advised the place had been recently renovated but did not see any evidence of this. Shabby curtains with holes hanging from dirty windows, grubby wallpaper and carpets and check the radiators out must be twenty years or more since these last saw a paintbrush. Entrance is gloomy and poorly illuminated with overall decor of rooms, lobby and landings of the lowest standard. Price is extortionate when compared with continental hotels clearly the management don’t believe in investing in the property. One plus point, breakfast was quite good and so it should be at these prices. My advice, find somewhere else to stay.
Do not expect too much from an OLD SHIP HOTEL. Not too impressed!
by A TripAdvisor Member
From day one, I was not pleased with the Hotel itself. Don't get me wrong, the staff try as much as possible to please you but unfortunately, the Hotel is not one of the best. To start with, too much smoking is allowed and the smell lingers on well after. Hotel does not provide services for someone with small kids. The first room I stayed in was on top of a bar - I complained because of too much noise - up to 5:00am at times!!
Second room - no better, because the thermostat in the room was malfunctioning, hence kept room temperature above desert conditions!!
Foodwise, I love the breakfasts, but the menu card needs some major changes for dinner.
Locationwise - perfect.
Personnelwise - some of the staff need a major overhaul in terms of people management. Especially reception staff.
Cleanliness - manage the no smoking requirement well. Smokers outside and well away from Hotel.
Hotel from Hell
by A TripAdvisor Member
This was an apalling weekend. We were shown 5 rooms before I settled upon the 'best' of a poor bunch. The room was shabby and dirty and the windows filthy and in need of some paint. The sea view would have been lovely if we had been able to see out of the dirty windows. The empty restaurant, at 7.30 p.m. told us that they had no room for us. They soon changed their minds when I said that I would check with the Manager about that! Dinner was a complete non-event. I didn't enjoy any of the courses. There was a fire alarm in the middle of dinner and we were all chucked out into the wet, cold, windy night for 30 minutes. At breakfast next day we were greeted by the 'hostess' of the day who asked us whether we had stayed there before. I'd stayed there 50 years ago - nothing much had changed! She said that we were about to be surprised by the magnificent breakfast. There were no yoghourts, no fresh fruit, no cereal bowls, no milk. Cold, hot food. Underdone cold toast. A request for freshly made and browned toast brought back the same as the original. Finally we filled in our visitors' comments form. A representative contacted me about a week later with profuse apologies. He said that a letter was in the post with something in it for us. Has anyone seen the letter? We certainly haven't!
Stay here if you want your room burgled
by A TripAdvisor Member
When my husband and I stayed here, we had our room broken into, and along with various belongings, they took our car keys before proceeding to the NCP car park next door to steal our car. Our suspicions that burglary wasn't a rare occurence at the hotel were roused when the manager was able to tell us how the thieves access our bedroom window via fire escapes/flat roofs around the hotel. We tried to get some kind of compensation but were refused. This could be put down to bad luck, but in the space of three months the same thing has happened to two other people I know, staying at different times. This hotel has a real security problem-and even worse-knows about it, and has done NOTHING to fix it.
Dubious but extremely happy!
by TripAdvisor Member bubblewac
This hotel was booked as a treat for me buy some friends. When reading previous reviews I become very dubious about my impending stay!
When we arrived at the hotel inside has recently been refurbished and it was lovely. The reception staff were very helpful and friendly. We had a sea front room and the rooms were clean and well presented. I was a bit worried about the noise from from down below as we were on the second room, but there is glazing and it was surprisingly quiet.
The hotel is based right next to the lanes so we had fun wandering around looking in the shops and sampling the delights of the bars and restaurants. To end the night, we retreated to the Hotel Bar. It was reasonably priced and quite relaxing to sit in. As I was with a group of friends, it was handy that the bar stayed open to residents till the early hours! The night porter was very effective at only letting residents in!!!
We only had breakfast at the hotel, it is buffet style with lots and lots of choice - not just your cooked English!
Overall, an excellent stay in this hotel, would recommend for anyone looking for a good hotel in the hub of the action.
A lot better than expected!
by A TripAdvisor Member
We stayed at The Old Ship for 2 nights and despite being very apprehensive after reading some of the previous reviews was mostly very impressed. The room was spacious and clean, however we had paid for a Sea View and found that the windows were very dirty which did some what spoil this. The bathroom was also large and clean.
We found the hotel interior very welcoming with a large lobby area and plenty of seating. The hotel bar was nice and stayed open late for residents. The staff were very helpful and friendly. We had both breakfast and evening meals at the restaurant which were lovelyand the buffet breakfast has a great selection!
It was definately the location though which made this hotel. Right by the Lanes, the seafront and The Pier, you could walk everywhere.
Overall I would definately recommend this hotel to others and visit again.
Excellent Stay
by A TripAdvisor Member
We were really dubious about this hotel after reading some of the comments here however we were attending a friends birthday and stayed for a long weekend, we figured it was a place to stay at the very least.
There was absloutely no reason to worry.
Reception - clean, airy and the staff very accomodating and friendly.
Bar - didnt use it, we are in Brighton and having visited before new the bars and restaurants there, some of which are excellent.
Restaurant - Only had breakfast there, buffet style, hot with a good selection
Room - Larger than expected, partial sea view if you had a long neck but a lovely view of the Thistle Hotel (joke). The room was clean (after comments on here we inspected everything!). Only complaints were that the windows were dirty on the outside so couldnt see much out (with the view it was a blessing) and the net curtains needed a bit of a wash. Other than that it was squeeky clean and looked recently referb'd.
Bathroom - No complaints, strong shower, nice shower gel etc and extremely clean. Our maid said hi to us each morning.
Lift - On the small side and not for the faint hearted!
We stayed on the fourth floor.
All in all an excellent stay especially as we got it at a budget price and would go back in an instant.
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