Hotel La Place - London, United Kingdom 

I stayed here for two nights in June having booked on-line and seen the pictures of the splendid spacious rooms. I was shown to a very dark , very small and dingy room in a rear extension (number 12). I refused this room and was offered another only with bad grace (we are very busy you know, we have no spare rooms, we have turned away several people already). If I had not been very tired I would have gone somewhere else. The room I was offered when I stood my ground was on the fourth floor - the lift goes only to the third - and was equally small but at least had a window giving some natural light. The web site advertises single rooms as having double beds. What is the reason for that? With a single bed the room would have been just about OK for size, having a double bed meant edging around the bed all the time to get anywhere. For two people it would have been difficult to move about the room. The fittings were tired at best, the carpet very worn, the walls needed painting as fittings had clearly been moved recently and left dirty patches on the wall and the nail holes roughly filled, the door fittings had been changed and taped over, part of the curtain fitting had become detached from the wall etc. These seem like small things but taken all together with the others I have not listed the effect was off putting. My main disappointment was that this was going to cost ?99.00 per night! The price is not justified even though it is an expensive part of town - as I was repeatedly reminded during my stay. Having said all that there were some good points: there was a new air conditioning unit, the shower was good, there was a large flat screen TV, the location is good. Apart from the one person who seemed to think I should be grateful to stay there, the people who worked there were very friendly and helpful.

We stayed one night in June 2008 and thought it very expensive for the quality offered. Our room did have a huge bed but the room was small and therefore cramped. The furniture was chipped and shabby. The bathroom was small and it was very difficult to reach the bath taps around the bath screen. The water was not particularly hot. The public hall and stairs were tired looking. The breakfast very basic. No fruit, only orange juice offered, the full breakfast was only one small sausage, two small bits of bacon and egg and mushroom. It looked quite a mean ration on the plate for the amount we were paying for the room! We had to keep asking the girl for more coffee - we didn't even get our own pot. It felt like we were paying through the nose and may as well have gone to any cheap B & B. I could not see what they got their 'silver ' award for. The croissants were good though and they were always helpful at the front desk. But I want more than that for ?70 a night each!!