Thistle Kensington Gardens, Boardroom

Hotel was lovely and clean. The staff are professional. The rooms is compact but for a single night stay it was plenty, even had a bath in en-suite. The only complaint is that at 08:06 this morning (a Sunday) the fire alarm went off for about 2 mins. Not long enough for anyone to start evacuating but long enough to wake you up and cause your body to flood with adrenaline and prevent you being able to return back to sleep. Now ordinarily this would be annoying or upsetting but not a big deal, more time to utilise your day, but on this occasion it was a bit more than that. This occasion was the one day in over 12 months where my husband and I could have a sleep in, no commitments, no children to care for; just a nice little break as part of a celebration weekend for my Graduation and 40th Birthday. Again, to most this isn't a big deal and as annoyed as we were, we accepted it is what it is. However, when we handed or keys back to reception at checkout we mentioned that this was disappointing we were told - with a chuckle - that yes it was due to a guest spraying deodorant or steam from their shower activating the smoke detectors and that this happens regularly! I was very disappointed and rather upset that this was common place, nothing has been done to prevent it and staff found it amusing even in the face of another guest stating that it has put a rather negative dent in the enjoyment of their stay. I get that smoke alarms need to be rather sensitive in these environments but could a sign warning guests that it's a possibility not be placed as a very minor preventative measure? So other than the possibility of a random adrenaline dump into fight or flight mode, the hotel was pleasant to stay at, clean and conveniently located.

It was a small but nice hotel. Most of the staff were very friendly, especially Eman. The hotel was quiet and peaceful. I booked a deluxe room, which was a reasonable size—slightly small, but the space under the bed was a brilliant idea for storing luggage. The bathroom could use some renovation, but it wasn’t bad. Unfortunately, the rooms did not have a fridge, even though they were deluxe. Overall, my stay was very good. However, the biggest downside was that the reception wasn’t available 24/7. I went multiple times at different hours and found no one there. Additionally, when I requested a dental kit in the morning, they told me to pick it up from the reception myself. This was inconvenient because I had to go downstairs in my pajamas, without brushing my teeth, just to get it. Room service should have delivered it to my room..