Rydges Kensington Plaza Hotel

As a businessman who travels 4 -5 months of the year, this was the worst experience of my 30 year career . I stayed in the Rydges Hotel expecting a reasonable hotel (4 stars but cheap price should be a caution). I left my broom-closet of a room for about 2 hours on Saturday night only to find on my return, that my room had been robbed. The thief had stolen my laptop computer (not something one would lock away), my sunglasses and some new shirts The thief probably put everything into the shopping bag of the shirts? The response from... more

We stayed in this hotel for 5 nights - it had a real aussie feel to it. The breakfast room had vegemite on the tables!! The service was great - our room was spacious and clean with an incredibly large bathroom. Unfortunately we were in the basement which didnt appear to have airconditioning and had a bit of a smell in the hallway which we hope was only temporary. The location was good - only a short walk to the subway and the street felt very safe. It had a range of restaurants close by.

My wife and I had stayed at the Rydges in 2004 and were looking forward to returning. What a disappointment. First of all the entire front of the building was covered in scaffolding. A little bit of notice would have been nice since we had specifically requested a front room. After the less than pleasant staff got us checked in they seemed to be suprised when I informed them that the airconditioning was not working in the room. (We found out later that the airconditioning had been out in that wing for a week and they were lying to us.)... more

Great hotel very close to the Gloucester Road tube station and also the 74 bus stop. Room was fine, older style but clean and bathroom OK. Double windows stopped traffic noise even though it was on a busy road. We only had continental breakfast and thought it was one of the best we had in a hotel, lots of cereal choice and even porridge! Lots of bakery items and choice of bread for toast, juices and good choice of jams etc. Staff helpful especially reception. Public areas were very smoke filled at times but I am allergic to cigarette... more

excellent location for stay. Reception, dinningroom sitting room excellent. Reception staff helpful. Best that can be said about bedroom was it was cosy and reasonably comfortable if you do not need to spend too much time in room. Room VERY small. We expected small in London but this was ridiculous. Housecleaning staff excellent though room could have used a general clean. Marks on wallpaper and ceiling. Bathroom very nice. Breakfast excellent and staff great. Management need to pay attention to what clients... more

My friend and I wanted to meet up in London for the Easter weekend. She found this hotel, and got a terrific price (sorry, I don't remember which website.) It was great. The check-in was quick, staff were very helpful and the room was spotless. We had single rooms, next to each other, on the fourth floor facing Gloucester Road. I kept my window open and it was fine. The room and bathroom are small, but everything you need is there. I found the bed to be very comfortable. We also had drinks in the bar, which was very cosy and reasonably... more

I stayed in Rydges for 4 nights in March 2007. Got a bargain through 'lastminute' where the cost per night was nearly half that of the rack price. I was tucked into a single room on the third floor, facing Gloucester Road. The room is of adequate size (London standard) equipped with a television (7 channels), hairdryer, wardrobe, telephone, safe, tea/coffee facilities. Although the iron, ironing board and trouser press were nowhere of sight in the room, I'm pretty sure they would be happily provided by the hotel staff if necessary. The... more

As a frequent traveller to London and elsewhere, I would strongly advise avoiding this hotel. I feel so strongly about it, I even specifically registered with tripadvisor to post this review. I thought I had booked a non smoking room through my agent and had even gone to the trouble of confirming this request by phoning the hotel internationally several days before. I was then placed in an extremely small smoking room which absolutely stunk of cigarettes and mildew. When I asked to be moved, they said it was a non smoking request only... more

Not really terrible and I am sure that - depending on the budget - some folk would put up with it. I normally stay in the Millennium across the Gloucester Road - but it was full. This to me is a down at heel hotel - very small room with an even smaller shower and loo. Thankfully I could eat in Olives at the Baileys. Breakfast was "greasy spoon" stuff. Nothing worth writing about and I would not return.

Our stay was booked by our travel agent and after previous experiences with minute hotel rooms in London we were pleasantly surprised. We also had a room in the basement which was very big by London standards. We were also next to the airconditioners but they didn't bother us particularly. Like all European hotels the room was hot, so we slept with the window open and were not bothered by the airconditioners(probably because it was winter!). The toilet didn't flush very well but we learnt how to make it function! The towels were very small... more