The London Premier Kensington – A Review

Last month, you may remember I took a trip to London with my Mum. We spent a Friday night, Saturday night and most of Sunday enjoying the sights of one of my favourite cities, while on a short break to try on my wedding dress. It was a great weekend and a fantastic chance to reconnect with one of my closest family members, as we both lead very busy lives. It was vital that we found somewhere central, but affordable for our brief stay in the capital!

 

As this was my Mum’s treat to me, she was the one who chose the hotel – after a quick search on Booking.com, she settled for The London Premier Kensington with a fantastic deal of £210 B&B for the two nights! Right in the heart of London, five minutes from Earl’s Court tube station, the hotel was perfect for us and we couldn’t be happier!

 

After a quick flight from Edinburgh to London City, and a rather stressful navigation of the London Underground in morning rush hour, we arrived at our destination hours before the scheduled check‑in – not a problem for the staff at the London Premier Kensington. We were greeted by a friendly woman at reception who explained our rooms were not quite ready, but they were happy to hold our suitcases in a luggage room while we had a spot of lunch and explored our surroundings.

 

Upon returning after the scheduled time, we were given our room keys and directed towards the lift, so that we didn’t need to struggle with our bags. Ever fearful of being trapped between floors, the hotel lift did not ease my mind in any way – it barely fit us both in and, after the doors refused to close within the first minute, I promptly left to battle the stairs instead!

 

We’d been told at reception that our room was one of the best in the hotel, possibly something that should have been mentioned after we’d seen it, so as not to get our hopes up… Upon entering the room, I couldn’t help thinking ‘where’s the rest of it?’ I chose the side closest to the door, leaving my Mum to squeeze round the little bit of space which bordered the bed - the inclusion of a desk making this process all the more difficult. The bathroom was also tiny, with the toilet so close to the sink that you risked bashing your head off the porcelain when standing back up!

 

Noise was also a problem, with the frequent passing of tube trains on the circle and district lines a constant irritation. We also had the pleasure of listening the off key renditions of various show tunes through the adjoining wall – as we were the last room in the corridor, the singing was coming from the property next door and the hotel could do nothing. While we had a front facing room, I overheard another guest complaining that his room was rear facing and the noise of the trains was unbearable.

 

All this being said, I couldn’t fault the cleanliness of the room. The bathroom was spotless and the bed sheets were perfectly white and smelled fresh. The décor was also finished to an extremely high standard, with all fittings maintained very well. Breakfast in the morning was also very tasty with a huge supply of fresh pastries – my fav!

 

It’s unfortunate that so much relies on the location of this hotel and the size of the original building. In my opinion, the staff have done everything they can to make the best of this situation and I felt completely looked after. I’m used to wide expanses of Scottish countryside when I travel, so I suspect I may have become a bit of a ‘hotel snob’. This hotel was exactly what we needed (location, price) and I would be happy to stay again despite its downsides – at least it was close to a coop, with a supply of doughnuts and my favourite wine (on special offer too)!

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