St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel London

We received our key card from the reception and used the elevator to the 3rd floor to check in into our room. We tried to locate the room but could not find it. We asked the housekeeping team where the room was but they could not find it neither….The housekeeping team helped us to go back to the reception and see what the problem was. The receptionist realized that she wrote the wrong room number on the key card. She simply crossed the wrong number on the card and wrote the correct one with the new room number, and mentioned “here you go”. Not even an eye contact and not even an apology… At this point, I knew that we were not in a ‘customer friendly’ service environment… After a few minutes inside the room, we received a cheese platter with a bottle of wine. It was a nice gesture, but no card was on the tray. We were confused as we did not know why the cheese platter was delivered, and from whom? But the worst is to come… We had dinner at the restaurant ‘Booking Office 1869’. After the main course, we wanted to ask for desert. We waited for several minutes for someone to remove the main course and take the desert order, but the waiter did not come. Since we were running out of time, we could not wait any longer. I could not ask for the bill as nobody was there. I stood up and tried to find someone to ask for the bill. I met with the hostess and asked for the bill. She asked how the dinner was and I explained our problem. She started to apologies for this inconvenience in a very pleasant manner. At the same time the waiter came and asked what the problem was… I explained again to the waiter who hardly listened to me. The hostess apologies again. The waiter suddenly asked her to leave (by showing a sign with his hand) telling her “you do not need to apologies, it is only a problem with the time”…..At this moment, I felt very embarrassed for the hostess who was also very confused, but she left as requested by the waiter. I signed the bill and left.. Problems can happen and most probably will happen. The challenge is how to find a solution and treat the issue of customer in a way that he/she can feel the empathy and the sincerity of the person who made a mistake… But in both cases, we could not feel any empathy, neither from the receptionist, not from the waiter…

I found this stay disappointing. I was promised a ‘newly refurbished’ room but my room was basic and had tired paintwork. I had a very average yet expensive massage in the spa, the check in/out staff were not particularly friendly and the bar staff I spoke to were rude and inattentive to the point that I left without getting a drink. Housekeeping were banging around in the morning and knocked on my door well before checkout which disturbed me despite me having the privacy setting on the door. The only positives for me were the location, the friendliness of some of the spa and the people who greet you at the hotel door and nice hygiene products. Would not stay again.

There were mice running around the bar area, we mentioned this to the bar staff and we were told this was a known problem and pest control had been involved but the mice were still. As someone with a phobia of mice this was really alarming. Had I known in advance that there was a problem with mice, I would have cancelled. Additionally, my room (£247 per night) had no windows or natural light. There was no plug near, the only mirror in the room, so it was impossible to style my hair. Also the room above me had a bed that squeaked. I was very unhappy and at checkout, when I mentioned this I was given points worth around £15, which in no way compensated for the distress of the mice. I don't like giving bad reviews on TripAdvisor but I think this one is warranted as had I known in advance about the mice problem I would never have booked.

On a cold windy day a friend and I popped into the hotel’s lobby area for drinks and a catch. Great destination, staff are friendly and professional and give the right level of attention. The ambiance is luxurious with lush plants and comfortable seating. We chose a vegan option from the sake selection - Pear and Orange Mille-Feuille and Tangerine Sorbet , which was delicious. I loved the Aquafaba filling between crisp sheets of pastry. Only two options for plant milk so I chose an oat milk latte, not a fan of oat milk but the latte was really good. Looking forward to my next visit.

Excellent hotel, delicious food. The staff at reception were very friendly, especially Aaron. The lounge/cafe was lovely and spacious with a high ceiling. The spa was welcome on a cold day. I wish hotels that provide slippers would have a larger pair for men! Also, the breakfast is very expensive. It works out the best value to pay the £30 which includes refills. The food and coffee were delicious though. As is so often the case now, you can’t open hotel windows as there is air conditioning. It seems a shame as sometimes you want to hear the noise and life outside. Overall a very good trip and we would visit again.