Kensington Rooms

Dirty, the bed duvets were dirty with orangish stains (pee or …). Carpet floor was dirty. The hotel corridor was smelly (cigarettes). The water was only cold. My friend coming with me did not have water at all in the bathrooms. Equipment in the bathroom is too old or broken. Windows isolation is dramatically bad (cold). The curtains originallu white were greyish-​blackish due to the dirt, and were torn. Do not go there, a way too expensive for what it is
Only the location is great.

We asked for a ground floor room, just to discover that even that involved us dragging our heavy luggage up two short flights of stairs. We moved three times and paid a higher price, before we found a room with a bathtub, working TV with remote, and wifi. The safe was not usable, since it was closed, and the wifi was a CONSTANT source of interruption and irritation for us. Only four devices could be attached to the wifi, so two devices were unusable. When the maids cleaned up, they left bags of garbage and piles of dirty linens and towels by the stairs for hours. Next time, I will make the reservations personally.

A real-​life Fawlty Towers, lacking only John Cleese!
My personal policy is to post only positive reviews, but in this case I think warning others off is a greater good and will make an exception. This place was comically terrible. It became a running joke for us to find the upside among the assortment of snafus here. «There’s NOT a construction site just outside the window!» «There AREN’T bedbugs!» «The water temperature DOESN’T fluctuate randomly!» Seriously, I have never stayed someplace this bad for more than $ 40 before. If you can possibly find someplace else, stay there instead.

Highlights of my stay at the Kensington Rooms included:
— The «No Unauthorized Entry: See Manager» sign taped to my hotel room door when I arrived
— The room that smelled of mold and cigarette smoke, despite being billed as nonsmoking (strongest in the bathroom)
— The mildewed and rusting showers
— The non-​working tea kettle that was not replaced for 24 hours, after one visit to the lobby and two calls
— The repeated fire alarms Saturday morning
To its credit, my room was not robbed, and the front desk people were polite.

Kein Licht, und kein Wasser… Mehr brauche ich wohl nicht zu schreiben.
Schlechtestes Hotel in dem ich je war.

Even though my room was tiny, I appreciated the fact that this hotel was modern, the staff was friendly, and it was fantastically located. We don’t need much when traveling, and Kensington Rooms Hotel had what we needed. They’re very practical and resourceful. Totally going to stay here again.

«Inexpensive, minimalist accommodations in central London»
I was a little worried about a hotel costing ~US$ 100 including taxes a night in SW London, but this place was fine. Clean all around, friendly help at the front desk (literally went out of their way to help me), free wifi in lobby, comfy (albeit twin-​sized) bed, TV in room, etc. It was definitely minimalist– there was barely any space in the room (I was amused at the cheap venetian blinds and single styrofoam cup in the bathroom), but for one person staying alone and not requiring luxury, it was totally fine. Location wasn’t quite central, but it was a quick walk to the Natural History Museum, and a longer (but doable) walk to Kensington Gardens or Harrod’s.
There is wifi in the rooms, too, but it’s not free.
I’d happily stay here again. Closest tube station is Gloucester Street, on the Piccadilly line, which also goes to Heathrow, King’s Cross, etc.

We stayed here for 3 nights on a trip to London. There is not much to say, except that although the room was small, it was clean and the bed was comfortable. That is really all you need, especially when you are just there to sleep and nothing more. No extras or frills, except that there is an electric kettle in the room with complementary tea each day. We had plenty of hot water for our showers. There is wifi access in the lounge. The fourth star is for location — only a 5 minute walk to the Gloucester Road tube station, with access to 3 lines (Piccadilly, Circle, and District). This was a big seling point for us, as we could get to all tourist attractions, and the airport, very quickly.

Das Hotel liegt im Südosten der Stadt, mit der tube/​U-​Bahn ist man aber schnell in der Innenstadt, fußläufig liegt es ca. 10 Gehminuten westlich des Harrods.
Das Hotel wirkt von außen sauber und hell, hat eine große trendy erscheinende Lobby, aber es hakt manchmal im Detail. Die Einzelzimmer (z.B. 201) sind für Japaner oder kleinere Menschen konzipiert, es ist dort nicht möglich, ohne Bandscheiben-​Vorfall-​Gefahr die Toilette zu benutzen. Auch die Zimmertür geht bei einigen Einzelzimmern gar nicht ganz auf, weil sie dann schon an das Bett stößt. Die Zimmer zur Cromwell-​Road (Hauptverkehrsstraße) können sehr laut sein, — auf jeden Fall auf einem Zimmer zur Seite oder nach hinten bestehen.
Die Zimmer an sich sind klein, aber modern eingerichtet, einige Bäder/​Duschen ließen sich sicherlich noch besser putzen, sodaß nicht alle weißen Fugen zwischen den Fliesen schwarz oder dunkel erscheinen
In manchen Zimmern ist der Fön ca. 30 cm über dem Fußboden montiert, was für größere Menschen kein Vorteil sein muß.
Es gibt ca. 10 TV-​Programme, alle englisch.
Wenn die Zimmer kleine Safes aufweisen (nicht alle), sind diese oft nicht fest montiert, sondern stehen im Schrank (sodaß jede Hanswurst den einfach samt Inhalt mitnehmen kann)
Frühstück gibt es im Basement, sauber und nett hergerichtet, als Brot steht ausschließlich Toast zur Verfügung, welches man mit Marmelade oder abgepacktem Schmelzkäse bestreichen kann. Freunde von Wurst oder Scheibenkäse werden hier nicht fündig. Joghurts, Obst, Müsli ergänzen aber die Frühstücksbandbreite, ebenso Croissants und Schokocroissants, verhungern muß also niemand.
Mini-​Einzelzimmer gibt es ab ca. 69 Pfund, größere — auch als Doppelzimmer geeignete Zimmer muß man ca. 100 – 120 Pfund rechnen.
Da in London das Preisniveau für Hotelzimmer sehr hoch ist, gibt es in London zahlreiche Hotels, die mehr kosten und weniger bieten.
Auf der gegenüberliegenden Strassenseite befindet sich ein Internetcafe

I stayed here at the beginning of 2005, and it was my first time in Europe. It was very trendy and cute, and although I never went to the bar, it looked like a bright fun place to hang out. There was great, contemporary, often designer art, all over the place, which was nice.
As for the hotel rooms, it was small but cozy, with a bizarre bathroom, small bed, tiny TV, and a «please make up room» door hanger that said «bring the hoover, missus.» It was great for me traveling alone, but would have been too small for anyone else to stay with me. If I were traveling alone, I might stay here again for its cheerfulness and nice location, but if I were traveling with someone else, I’d probably look for more princely accommodations.

Urban Hangout Suite
Traveling frequently to London I found it difficult to find a reasonable priced, comfortable, clean and stylish hotel. I have stayed now in the Kensington rooms three times and I absolutely love it. The rooms are rather large for the price, the bathrooms are ok. The interior decoration is a lovely mix of old and new furniture. The beds are big and comfortable. And I simply loved the simple breakfast and the free wireless Lan access in the rooms. Will be back soon !