Sofitel London Gatwick Hotel

I spent one night at this hotel. Given any reasonable alternative, I would not stay again. The hotel is connected by enclosed walkway directly to the North Terminal. My flight from the continent arrived after dark and my connecting flight left the following morning. After reading Trip Advisor reviews of hotels near, but not at, the airport, I decided that the questionable quality, hassle, inconvenience, and expense of leaving the airport, then returning so soon, made a stay at the airport reasonable. I booked my room directly with the hotel at its own website. Payment in full was due immediately upon booking. The no refund, no change, no cancel rate was US$225 (incl. tax). This is a better deal than the standard rate of about US$380 (incl tax), but no bargain. The room was worth about $85. The staff at reception were indifferent. My 4th floor room was worn. The only clock in the room is part of the TV and it had the wrong time and no way to reset it. Staff didn’t know how to correct the time, either! You would think that at an airport hotel, having the correct time displayed might be important! Although the hotel heavily advertises its special “My Bed” including big signs in the walkway leading to the hotel, my bed was lumpy -- I’ve had better at Motel 6! The pull knob on the bath tub spout that redirects water to the shower was broken. The minibar refrigerator is of the type that automatically charges you if you simply lift a product from the shelf. Of the 2 elevators serving my side of the hotel, one was permanently out of service. When it was time for me to depart the hotel for the airport in the morning about 10:00 the second elevator was also out of service, but no way for me to know! I stood there like a dummy for fully 5 minutes before I decided it wasn’t operating. At reception, I complained about the elevator. They didn’t seem to care, pointing out that it was out of service for vacuuming and cleaning! The hotel is undergoing renovation. There are clouds of dust and noise in the lobby. Next time, I’ll try the other hotel at the airport.

It's been nearly 2 months since the management change. The common areas have improved significantly since the previous reviews. Internet access is expensive at 20 GBP/24 hrs. Oriental restaurant is still great. Room is good but unusual spice/potpourri smell not savory. I'd stay here again for sure.

I stayed overnight in the Sofitel Gatwick as I had to attend a meeting in outer London the next morning. After arriving after a stressful flight, the check-in staff were polite, and checked me in quickly. The room was spotless, and well laid out, with a great view of the airport runway/taxiway (so this is definitely a hotel for aviation fans!). To make it better, the soundproofing in the rooms mean that you hear little or no airplane noise. The bed was extremely comfortable, and the bathroom clean and stocked with shower gel, shampoo, ample towels etc. The shower in my room was extremely powerful, which was perfect way to wake up! Check-out was as efficient and pleasant as check-in and the concierge was happy to hold my luggage while I attended my meeting. The downsides are the refurbishment taking place in the reception area (but this wont be going on forever) and the fact that there is little to do in Gatwick itself. However, I'd imagine most of the Sofitel's traffic is from one-nighters, and for anyone doing a stop over, or needing to do business in London and fly out after, I would not hesitate to recommend the Sofitel.

The Le Meridien is now a Sofitel - and in the process of undergoing some very LOUD renovations in the public areas. Be sure to ask for a room that does NOT overlook the hotel's atrium, or you will be listenting to the construction noise. Otherwise, the rooms are still a tad shabby, the food still average at best; but the location (connected to the North terminal) can't be beat!

I travel frequently through Europe and this is the firt time I have give a TERRIBLE review. This hotel just changed hands in late October from the reasonably acceptable Le Meridian to a Sofitel hotel. Pro: Convenient to Gatwick Airport (via walkway) Cons: Just about everything!!!. Understaffed. Extensive ongoing construction (4 months worth, so they say) Bad smells in hallways.(unidentifiable) Sewage smell in bathroom. Two of three restaurants under construction. Had to enter through some rat maze of a basement passageage way. Only two elevators working (small, all for only 160 pounds) Stay someplace else, Hilton or anywhere!!!

We stopped here for a night after being on the road for two weeks as a family of four. We chose the hotel as we had an early flight out the next day and wanted to be organised. The location is undoutably the best feature of the hotel, great to drop off the hire car and walk straight across (all under shelter whilst raining) to the departure lounge. Also the bell desk was very accomodating and helpful. That's about where it ended for us. The room was acceptable, however the toilet didn't work properly - and at 11 pm when we discovered this there was no help or suggestions - we just had to put up with it and go to the reception toilet if needed! The food was bordering on average in the restaurant, the service was impersonal and the prices high. The hotel is expensive for what it offers so we will try another nearby hotel next time.

We stayed here for one night prior to an early morning flight the next day. Their were four of us in two rooms. This is a top quality hotel in a very convenient location and the perfect start to our holiday.

Le Meridien Gatwick combines the best of the Le Meridien chain with the worst of airport hotels. Its strongest selling point is convenience, which helps one overlook some significant problems. Good points: 1. The hotel enjoys a great location at (not nearby or close to --- but actually at) North Terminal in one of the world's best airports, London Gatwick. The terminal is no more than 5 minutes on foot. The railway station at South Terminal is no more than 15 minutes via foot and the inter-terminal elevated train. Depending on destination, points in central London are 35 to 50 minutes by train. 2. The bell staff work hard and are one of the best features of the hotel. They respond promptly and do their job thoroughly. They stood out against a background of correct, but usually inattentive service. 3. Rooms are very clean and well-appointed, but somewhat small for the price. 4. Rooms are very quiet and well insulated from the airport noise. We could see planes taking off, but could not hear a sound. Weaknesses: 1. Reception staff are friendly enough, but poorly trained. The room was not available when we arrived at 8 a.m., but one was ready by 9:15 a.m. -- not bad. However, the reception clerk tried to charge an additional 60 pounds if we occupied the room before 3:00 p.m., confusing the "day rate" with an early occupancy of a reserved room that was ready for the guest. It took a supervisor to straighten this out. 2. Like staff in many English hotels, English is not their native language. At Le Meridien, however, it seems that English language skills were noticeably lower than at other major hotels in the Gatwick area. For example, an English client was unable to explain to a hotel operator that he wanted his call to be connected to our room. We observed similar problems in reception staff and waiters. They seemed to be conversant enough in English to handle only the simplest transactions. 3. Price gouging for phone service reaches new heights (or depths): 20 pounds per day for high-speed wireless internet access from the room; 1.50 pounds "connection charge" for a toll-free number. 4. Restaurant food is generally above average but very expensive. We paid almost 40 pounds for soup, salad, bottled water, and coffee for two people. 5. The bathroom delivered so-called hot water that was 40 degrees (c) at best -- not enough for a truly satisfying bath or shower. Water pressure in the upper floors of the hotel was a problem, with just enough pressure to force water up and out of the shower head. We noticed these problems at 5:00 a.m., and they were as bad at other times during the day. 6. The hotel appears to be losing the battle to maintain its high-traffic areas like the lobby. Although spacious, the lobby looks shabby: torn, unrepaired carpet; stained carpet; scuff marks and gouged paint on walls, collections of dust in corners. This shows a lack of attention to detail -- not a good point for a hotel.

This is the 3rd time in the past year I've stayed at this hotel so obviously I'm very pleased with it. Convenient for dropping off your bags, taking the Express into Victorial Station & exploring beyond. Terminal shops & restaurants also add to convenience. Staff was especially helpful when my roomate had her passport & credit cards stolen in London - quickly forwarded faxed messages etc., very sympathetic. Only criticism is that early check-in is expensive.

I had a long lay over at Gatwick, knew I was going to be hideously jet-lagged and had a deal that meant I could keep the room until later the following day, hence I chose this over other less expensive options. The hotel is very beautiful, airy with marble and very nice decor. The room was absolutely fine, nothing outstanding, but comfortable and spacioius enough for me. The air conditioning took a bit of figuring out, but I got there. One odd thing, the sign pointing you back to the lifts on my floor, pointed the wrong way, meaning I ended up going up a dead end. Room service is incredibly expensive. £12 for a burger, what?! The Chinese Restaurant on the ground floor on the other hand is excellent. It has a quality of food that I would even recommend it, if it was on a city centre high street, let alone in the "captive audience" of an airport. Breakfast buffet was adequate, I'd have liked a bit more space between the tables. Service from all the staff I encountered could not be faulted. Would I stay there again? It was very nice, but I don't think it is worth the rack rate. If I have a long lay over, I might look for the same deal as the one I got, otherwise there are less expensive options for your airport layover.