An Exceptional Hotel !
by TripAdvisor Member rkevans
I stayed in the Kensington Close Hotel in January 2003 for a week. It was the nicest stay I have ever had in London (and I was staying at a deeply discounted rate ! ) The room was large and clean, the beds were VERY comfortable, and the bathroom was spotless and actually had a usable bathtub. The hotel has excellent facilities, and is a short walk to shops and the underground. I can only imagine that some of the unfavorable reviews here are because people confused this hotel with a similarly named budget hotel. I fully intend to stay at this hotel on my future trips to London, if at all possible.
So I liked it, does that make me a bad person?
by A TripAdvisor Member
My best friend and I had a fabulous time in the Kensington Close Hotel.
Really close to the tube. More importantly, very close to restaurants and shopping! Got a deal through expedia.com so didn't have to pay the full rate, which was way more than what we paid. Rooms are tiny, but I hear that's typical of London, so I can't complain. Rooms were clean.
All the employees are awesome, didn't meet one I had a problem with.
The bar/lounge was big and comfy- hung out there a couple nights for a few drinks. Great time all around, definately would stay again (if I could get the same fantastic rate)!
Fabulous little hotel!
by A TripAdvisor Member
I stayed at the Kensington Close Hotel from 13-17 November 2003 and I was very pleased with the hotel. I originally booked online another "hotel" in an attempt to save money, but this hotel was always in the back of my head. Thank goodness as I checked out of the first hotel without staying there and booked immediately with the Kensington Close Hotel. Here's a tip: Don't book through the hotel directly, but with their website for really great rates. I saved 117 pounds by doing it this way and my rate included breakfast. I was able to check in quickly and get right up to my room. The hotel has numerous lifts so there is never a queue (unless a busload of people have arrived) to get on one. Once up at my room, I discovered I was near an exit door. As a woman traveling alone, I was concerned about this and wanted to change my room, but no free singles were available. If you can imagine the layout of the hotel with the double rooms and suites on the main corridors and the singles on the cross corridors, apparently all the singles are only to be found on these and so moving would have done nothing to improve my concern about safety. I was fortunate enough to not have to worry about safety as the hotel was quiet and there wasn't a lot of foot traffic from outside into the hotel. The rooms are small, but for me it was perfect. The bed was incredibly comfortable with a down comforter and four pillows. Each day the room was cleaned and I received clean, fresh towels. I never had a concern about the cleanliness of the hotel or my room. In fact, I would say that on this aspect, this hotel was cleaner than most US hotels I have stayed at. The temperature in the room was perfect and I slept with the window open underneath the soft and comfy comforter. The room had a safe, minibar, kettle with cups and tea/coffee, and a TV with 8 channels (one was in German). There was a pants press inside the closet, but no dresser so I left my suitcase open for storing items. As someone else noted (and I am so glad they did as I would never have thought to look), the hairdryer was inside the desk drawer. What I especially liked was how quiet the room and hotel are as I had no problem falling asleep and staying asleep. I liked, too, that they had an alarm in the TV, which was easy to set and reliable. For the little time I spent in my room, I was absolutely pleased and couldn't have asked for more. The Biz.Centre by the Concierge has 6 computer terminals to access the internet at a cost of 50p for 9 minutes. It takes coins or credit cards and I never had a problem using one or waiting to use one. There is also a small store next to this inside the hotel where you can grab a newspaper, candy, soda, or even souvenirs. I had breakfast most days at the Carvery inside the hotel, which consisted of cereal, juice, coffee/tea, toast, croissants, danish, yogurt, eggs, meat, etc. It's packed no matter what time you go and as a vegetarian, I had my Wheetabix and a croissant, but then opted for a yummy muffin and tea up at Pret a Manger at the High Street Kensington Tube station up the street. I did have a drink one night at Marloes, but it was rather quiet --- perhaps just a quiet week at the hotel. I loved the location of the hotel as I could get to and from anything quickly. This wasn't my first trip to London so I knew I wasn't looking for touristy things to do, but if you are, you are within walking distance of Notting Hill, Portobello Market, and other sites and the Tube stop (District and Circle Lines) at High Street Kensington make commuting super easy. Wait until after 9:30 am to buy your one day travelcard for a discount or even better, buy your travelcards online before going to the UK for the best rates. I had taken Heathrow Express and lugged my bags on the Tube, but for my trip home, I took a taxi to Paddington Station. There is a taxi queue across the street from the hotel as the Cophorne Tara Hotel is next door to Kensington Close. My trip was all of 7 pounds -- not bad at all. There is a Safeway market nearby (go up Wright's Lane and bear left on High Street Kensington, cross the street and it's there). Also in this area is a Starbuck's and a few small restaurants. If you bear right on High Street Kensington, there is a McDonald's, Pizza Hut, Crispins (small store with sandwiches -- think 7-11), Wagamamma, and several restaurants including Chinese, Cuban, a few pubs, etc. Of course, at the High Street Kensington Tube station is a Boots and my favorite, Marks & Spencers. There is also a cafe on Wright's Lane as well as a tea room and Thai restaurant, none of which I personally visited, but all were doing brisk business, probably due to location. Things I didn't like: Silly little things like getting up to get more OJ at breakfast and having my table cleared and given to someone else (so are the pains of traveling alone) and having minibar charges added to my bill when I didn't touch the minibar. The clerk checking me out simply asked the manager to take the charges off and it was corrected immediately. I met an American woman traveling with a friend who told me that her and her friend were sharing a Double, but that it consisted of 2 twin beds pushed together and her friend had a cold, so she wasn't terribly happy about that. I would probably share a Double with my husband, but maybe get a suite if I were going with another person, but I would definitely stay here again because of its location, clean and modern property, and price. One last note -- get a London A-Z guide either in a bookstore or Amazon.com before traveling or when you arrive to help you get around. I guarantee it will make your life easier when you don't have to continually ask for directions and visit the museums (Nationally Gallery, Tate Modern) that are free and avoid the tourist traps that are pure crap like Madame Tussauds.
Forum Posts
Kensington Close Hotel
by seewong
Anyone have stayed in this hotel before?
Comment? Is the room clean?
Re: Kensington Close Hotel
by Morjem911
Hello! Try going to www.tripadvisor.com and looking it up. I used it on my trip and the reviews were dead on.
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