8 Fitzrovia: Cathedral Quarter

The hotel itself is lovely, with roomy rooms, comfortable beds, a nice breakfast, and mostly friendly, helpful staff. But outside noise and music kept me awake. I managed only about two hours of sleep the first night, even with my noise-cancelling headphones, then got woken by the bin lorry collecting glass bottles.

The staff made our visit feel easy from the moment we arrived. It was busy in the lobby shortly before the 3pm check-in, but Chris greeted us warmly and got us sorted quickly. When we mentioned in passing that it was my birthday, he kindly gave us both breakfast, which was especially welcome with our hangovers. We came back after exploring the city and Chris was still at the main desk, greeting us just as warmly again. That really made a difference. We were in Belfast for the first time, and this is easily one of the best Premier Inns I’ve stayed in. Our standard twin was clean, spacious, and had everything we needed. The location in the heart of cathedral quarter was perfect, with lots of bars, restaurants, and shops nearby. Great for tourists.

We’ve stayed here twice before, and this time our first room and then the replacement both had a foul bathroom smell. Debbie and Jake at reception were very helpful and found us a third room that smelled fresh. The hotel is in a prime location, and we had a great stay overall, with a clean, comfortable room, a good breakfast, and lovely staff. We also used the luggage store, which was quick, easy, and really convenient.

We ended up spending one evening in a coffee shop because we couldn’t get a table anywhere in Belfast, despite having paid for dinner both nights as part of our meal deal. Reception had told me the restaurant was usually quiet, and offered to book us for 7pm. When we arrived, there was no booking; a staff member crossly said they could squeeze us in at 8pm, but there was nowhere to sit while we waited. The restaurant staff were unpleasant and the atmosphere was poor. The next morning breakfast was chaotic too, with too little food on the hot counter, a broken coffee machine, and, in my view, not enough staff. On leaving I tried to book a table for later, but the bar staff said everything was full and shrugged when I asked what we should do with the children. She suggested asking reception for a refund. I know I should have booked earlier, but the hotel could see our meal booking and had taken our payment. We would have been happy to eat at another time, even 3pm, when the restaurant was only a quarter full. If we’d been told the day before that it was fully booked, we could have planned differently. I asked reception for a refund for the meals and am still waiting. The room was large but quite dark, and had a strange bathroom smell. On Saturday afternoon there was no heating. The room phone didn’t work, so I reported it to reception on our way out. They said they’d sort it, but hours later it was still cold. I went back twice more and got the same response. It eventually came on, but we had to sit under blankets while it warmed up. I spoke to the manager on Sunday. He apologized and said he’d speak with staff about the heating, but said the dinner problem was basically my fault for not booking. By then I was in tears from frustration and upset over what had been an awful weekend; my husband and grandchildren were upset too. We’d paid extra for 11am early check-in, yet arrived at 12.20pm and the room wasn’t ready. The poor service ruined our weekend away with our grandchildren. I can’t recommend this hotel. Even its good location doesn’t make up for our experience.