As I was working at a convention at Excel this weekend this hotel is certainly perfectly situated within a 3 min walk. I arrived Friday evening and was met with a completely soulless and uninspired welcome. The room (I was on the 9th floor) was spacious and certainly clean on arrival. I've stayed in several Novotel's recently, but the design here again is lacking in any individuality and feels very oppressive. A large bathroom, lighting was adequate, and for some odd reason the designer felt there was a priority for an electric opaque panel that could allow your guest to watch you shower if they wanted?! Thankfully I was alone, i wouldn't have wanted to share as every time the bathroom is in use the entire room lights up as the light bleeds through the floor to ceiling panel. The bathroom seemed lacking in any toiletries, and had nothing in the shower cubicle so I had to use the hand soap (I normally pack my own but other experiences in this chain gave sufficient toiletry options). In the morning I discovered the drain was blocked and so I partially flooded the bathroom as I hadn't fully noticed, it took nearly 10 minutes for the water to eventually run away. A call to reception got this fixed for my return that evening. Frustratingly as a tea drinker I am always baffled as to how coffee drinkers get so many options, but I only get 2 satchets of breakfast tea. Prob in 7/10 hotels I now stay in housekeeping always fail to acknowledge that I have only drunk tea and don't bother to replenish, something I only discovered as I woke up at 5am. Is it really that hard when they have replaced the milk? My room was warm upon arrival, so I dialled the control off. I woke several times in the morning due to the heat, opening the window made little difference as there is no air flow and just the sound of outside units whirring. I turned the control off but it made no difference and after a weekend its stifling, not helped when housekeeping leave the mirror light on which generates yet more heat. The bar was a miserable experience, the staff are completely unwelcoming, barely speak to you, don't listen to your order and seem unable to even acknowledge you. 2 friends came to meet me on Saturday night and had the same experience so we opted to go to another hotel bar for drinks and food instead. On arrival I had asked for the wine list/bar menu, but was told what I was given was completely outdated and incorrect...so why is it not replaced? Breakfast was OK, again just lacking in any form of customer engagement. All in all it was a functional space with a comfy bed but in this area it comes at a premium. It's a spacious hotel that just lacks any warmth, either in the decor OR in the customer interaction from the staff. I stay in several of the other chain's hotels up and down the country so was a little surprised by this experience, I won't be staying here again on my next visit to Excel.
Very Good
74 Reviews