Overview

Luxury five star hotel on Russell Square. This review is for afternoon tea at the Palm Court.

Transport & Parking

The nearest tube station is Russell Square, which is not step free, which is literally just around the corner. Other nearby tube stations are Euston Square, which is step free westbound only and Euston, which is not. King's Cross is close by and from there buses stop very close to the hotel. There are several buses that stop very near to the hotel.

Access

The main entrance has 7 steps with a single handrail in the middle, see photo. When I asked I was told there was step free entrance but I didn't notice it. The entrance doors are not automatic and are large and quite heavy but there was a doorman who opened the door for me. The Palm Court, where afternoon tea was served, is accessible by 3 steps without a handrail. Most of the seating is then level but there are 3 steps with a single handrail into the garden area. Given that the hotel is recently refurbished and they have included lots of power points for people to charge the mobile phones, more thought could have been given to disabled access. The Palm Court had free standing tables and chairs as well fixed sofas. Although there are chandlers the interior in the hallway and corridors is quite low as the décor is dark colours. This contrasts to the light and bright Palm Court.

Toilets

I had to go up the 3 steps to access the accessible toilet. It is in a corridor by another restaurant. My friend visited the regular toilets and they were downstairs. The accessible toilet was spacious and clean, with grab rails and an emergency cord.

Staff

Staff were amazing. They were very friendly and helpful. The hotel is a little less formal than many other 5 star hotels, as the staff did not have a uniform. Both my friend and I found this at first a little problematic at first, as some staff were wearing a suit and others were less formal, so it was a little difficult to work out who was staff and who was customers. Service was exceptional and there were lots of offers to take photos of us, which is a lovely touch instead of having to ask staff to do it. It was my friend's birthday and they presented her with an individual birthday cake. We were not rushed but service was very efficient. Very impressive.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

Afternoon tea was delicious. The Rose Garden afternoon tea was very pretty and nicely presented. Sandwiches were delicious and had good veggie choices. The scones were impressive, plain and raspberry and rose flavours, and accompanied with jam, lemon curd and clotted cream. Pastries were very pretty and delicious. It was excellent value at £30 without alcohol. We both had a great time, it's a beautiful hotel and the food and service was impressive. There are a few minor access issues which I think could have been more creatively dealt with during the refurbishment, but overall a very pleasant visit and would be very happy to return.

Photos