Gresham Hotel

I agree with most of the comments already made about this hotel. The hotel has: 1. dirty rooms, especially bath room. Shower was mouldy, rest of bath room dirty. 2. unfriendly staff, who are willing to kick you out of the hotel if you complain 3. small beds. Bed was only 1.90 metres long, whereas at least 2.00 metres is standard. My husband did not fit in this bed!

Just a small holiday to visit London, since we have got a baby coming up in July and will not have a Summer holiday this year. We arrived at about 2:30 pm. The owner threw the key at us and mentioned room 240 on the 4th floor. Strange thing, the numbers in the elevator just numbered up from 202 tot 239. Some additional room? At our arrival on the 4th floor there was this trolley of the cleaning lady who hardly spoke any English. The room was not clean yet and we could leave our luggage in front of the door to the room. Come back in about an hour. We trembled to the door of the chamber avoiding the loose ends of the carpet on the floor. On our way down we discussed that the room ought to be available after 1:00 pm according to the information. When we got in the room two hours later, we had a bit of a shock. Strange stains everywhere. A bed that was not long enough to fit in, for a person with a length of 1.90 meters (6'4"). The room was dark, since the curtain was closed and guess what, we could not even open it, since the curtain was a 'bit' damaged. The tv-set appeared to be a laugh, since an in-room antenna is being used and you probably have a better view in some third world countries. One had to step into the shower to close the door of the bathroom, since the bathroom is that small. In the bathroom there were several surprises. The lamp was broken and we found the remains underneath the sink. The electricity wires were open and touchable in the bathroom. The shower was an exquised location for a biological researcher. Never did I see so many forms of mould on the large quantities of chalk which were present on the shower head. Great detail was the situation of the tiles in the batroom. Several had been broken and the remains were put back on their places with some glue and kit.Even an artist like Gaudi, who used to work with tiles, would have had tears in his eyes because of the result. In case of a fire, you probably would not have any chance to leave this hotel alife, since the trolley of the cleaning ladies was left behind in the hallway on several occasions during the night. The breakfast was great. After our first night we got up for breakfast and there were some sandwiches to make toast. Just after half an hour the other items for breakfast were brought in. It appeared that they had not realized what time it was. And since we were the only guests that were up for breakfast... Anyway communication was hardly possible, since the people spoke hardly English. Best thing that probably could have happened to us, was that the owner made his threats come true. We complained about the situation we had found in our room and he threatened us that he could kick us out if we did not stop our complaining. Anyway, after several complaints to our travel agent, we were transferred to another hotel. Thank God!

I was so worried about going to the hotel after I read the reviews but the two rooms I booked were fine. I booked two twin rooms. My room was on the second floor. It was small with two single beds, a small toilet/shower room, wardrobe, dressing table with portable tv, hairdryer and kettle. The second room was was on the ground floor at the back and was slightly larger but didn't have a hairdryer but did have an extra storage area. This room only had a skylight and a window onto the corridor. The rooms were clean although, some descaler needs to be used on the showers and the covers on the beds could do with a wash but the sheets and towels were clean. The staff were very helpful. They are all foreign but the reception staff are fluent in English. it is only the cleaners that can speak broken English. The continental breakfast consisted of cornflakes, weetabix, orange, apple and grapefuit juices, various pastries, muffins, bread and jam, tea and coffee. There were toasters available should you want to use them. You could eat an unlimited amount and was very nice. There are plenty of places to eat out in the eveing near the hotel as the hotel does not have a restaurant. We paid just under £24 each from a last minute booking website a week before we went. I think the price is about right for what you get. Of course there are nicer places but you also pay more. I would stay at the Gresham again should I ever have the misfortune to have to go to London again!

Awful. It stinks. The room (212) was dirty. So were the sheets both inner and outer. Toilet was not flushed and had urine in and a ring around the water line as it had been left like that for some time. Toilet seat was wooden and cracked. Shower rusty, dirty and full of mildew. I didn't check if it worked and there was no bath. No window locks and I was only one floor up with a drainpipe and sill outside - easy to get in. Furniture broken. Carpet dirty. Bar closed. There was no way I was getting in the bed - it was covered in stains and had hair etc on it. I'd rather sleep rough. I am not bothered about the size of the room - but incase you are, it was tiny and so was the telly. I stayed there for approximately 5 minutes. I complained and said I wanted a refund as my room was not fit for purpose. I got nowhere. I was told to talk to the Manager in the morning, but there was no way I was staying. They offered to 'upgrade me' but were going to charge me for it! Unbelievable paying MORE to stay in this pigsty. No way it is a 3 star - I've stayed in a 1 star that was miles better. I will be contacting Environmental Health. Its so dirty I can only imagine what the kitchens are like. Another guest attempted to cancel while I was there. I went to the Stylotel about 4 doors away. It is £50 a night and is modern and clean - and you don't feel like you need to be sheep dipped after a night there. The staff are lovely at the Stylotel - its not posh - but it is nice, clean and quite new - they have a website. I've stayed before. The bathrooms are those all plastic type wetrooms you get in IBIS hotels. Small - but hygienic. Laminate floors in the bedrooms and clean sheets. They told me that lots of people come to them having left the Gresham. The Gresham IS cheap yet manages to be massively overpriced. There are better, cleaner hotels for £25. It is a terrible place - never go - I have never stayed anywhere worse. Hotels in the area that are better are Caesar, Queens Gdns £60 a night. Stylotel, Sussex Gdns £50 (£60 a double) and Ramada Hyde Park which is lovely and I have got that before for £52 (and they forgot to charge for parking :) ).

Did you know there are 3 hotels in London with VERY SIMILAR names?? I didn't find out that this was the hotel I'd inadvertently booked myself into (thru travel agent) until 2wks before my trip. *sigh* oh well. After reading all the scathing reviews I had prepared myself mentally for a shock... well, it wasn't as big of a shock as I'd expected. Ok, it was a little too grubby with mysterious stains on carpet and on outer bed covers (but not the actual sheets themselves), crusty bathroom scum, saw a cockroach running across my room, towels weren't replaced (instead they were re-folded onto my bed to LOOK as if replaced), and the lift brokedown the day after I'd arrive. Customer service was non-existent and the staff had poor grasp of the English language and the local area. Other than that, the hotel suited my needs - close to a train/tube station, and a place just to shower and sleep. My youth and independence stood me in good stead at this hotel (I dragged and carried my luggage and backpack down 6 flights of stairs). Definitely, won't go back there again. But then you do get what you pay for.

Whilst this hotel is well located and near Paddington Station, it is in severe need of a good clean and requires a maintenance programme - do not believe the claim that it has recently been refurbished. The beds and towels are clean - but that's about it! Carpets are filthy, all bedroom fittings are dirty and if your room has a microwave etc - you will have to battle the dust and grime to use them. The bathroom was disgusting and the shower head was so rusted and covered in limescale that it could not be used - and try having a bath without a bath plug. All of this is complemented by discoloured sealant (orange/brown) everywhere! If you do visit, do not pay in advance since the manager and employees (all with limited English) will not give a refund if you decide to fnd alternative accommodation. I know that this is not the most expensive hotel in London but it is not too much to expect the facilities to be clean!

This was my first trip to London and my last. The basement room with no view and odd odors was not to my expectations. The room while larger than expected had water stained curtains for the very high and short basement type windows. The room was not decorated at all and the beds were worn out and very uncomfortable. The furniture was all very cheap and worn. The 13" television had poor reception and was too small to enjoy the 4 available stations. The room was usable as was the bathroom but multiple small maintenance issues existed. I had to use a flashlight to use the restroom facilities in the restaurant area due to a faulty light. The open bar as stated in the ad was never opened during the 6 night stay. The breakfast service was fine due to a very friendly waitress that was also the cleaning person. The hotel lacked in cleaning and overall mainteneance. Had we been in the US we would have moved to a much nicer facility. The clerks were initially nice and helpful but did not remain that way. They had made a mistake in the booking and had us staying only 5 nights when we had booked 6. They were very rude to us at this point and actually harrassed my 2 kids as they went out. We showed the reservation confirmation showing 6 nights but they remained rude and harrassing to my family. They also did not clean the room on the last nights stay. I do not know what the typical hotel in the UK is like but this hotel would never stay open in the US with the maintenace, cleanliness and attitude problems that currently exist.

My husband and I stayed here last February and wanted to let folks know that it is a totally decent place to stay. The rooms are the typical European small, but well-decorated, clean, and complete with electric teapot. They included coffee and a continental breakfast. It's close to the Paddington tube stop which makes it incredibly convenient for touring London.

I was horrified when I read the reviews but it seems to me that some have unrealistic expectations. Sure, I've stayed at better hotels with bigger rooms and more facilities - but not at this price. This is a good value, clean and well cared for hotel. The staff were friendly, helpful and do speak English! The location is superb. I would certainly use it again.

Unfortunately I had read the previous comments only after I had made a firm reservation via HRS (where I thought to have made a bargain at GBP 55 a night for a nice place). Luckily I was thus pre-warned, when visiting the hotel for 4 days in October 2004. Downside: Most of the points mentioned by previous comments were true: the rugs may have been vacuum cleaned, but still were stained with black stripes. Also I did not want to know what kind of spots there were on the bedspread... Upon arrival I had asked for a quiet room. It turned out that they had planned to put us in a windowless basement room! I objected and was re-booked with no further problem. Next day the receptionist asked with a big smile how we liked the room, for she especially took personal care that we got a larger, clean room! I was surprised: If this was supposed to be "a larger room", what do other rooms look like?! Our room was tiny and you had the choice of either closing the door to the hall or open the small closet on the other side of the room by moving the 2 beds sideways one way or the other! Doing that, we too have made the experience, that sweets from previous visitors were still under the bed - for another 2 days ... The room was indeed newly painted, but still equipped with the old worn-off furniture from the early 80s (my guess). Besides I never liked the (not only) British customs of using thin (synthetic) blankets with just a sheet instead of proper duvets / continental quilts. Up-side: Staff was friendly and all spoke English very well (though were not native speakers) and tried to accomodate visitors. The bathroom was spottlessly clean and all towels were changed daily. Breakfast was ok if you like it frugal (just toast or buns with artificial jam, portioned muesli or croissant). Although they had difficulties in keeping up getting enough clean dishes out in peak times, there were no plastic cups etc around and everything was neat and tidy in the breakfast room. The hotel is located very conveniently to Paddington Station, Heathrow Express and various busses to the city center. Fazit: I'm a regular visitor to London and have yet to find a hotel that is worth its price. Compared to prices, size and quality of rooms I've seen this year alone in Hotel Russell, Raddisson Edwardian, Holiday Inn Express etc. my rating for The Gresham is more favourable than I would rate the same performance in a hotel in Germany.