Great Scotland Yard Hotel, part of Hyatt

The staff were warm and welcoming every time we came back to the hotel. We had one of the best hotel stays of our Europe trip. It's a five-star place with a distinctive historical feel in Westminster, London. The location is especially handy for first-time visitors, since most major sights are walkable and you hardly need a taxi. We easily walked to Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, the River Thames, the London Eye, the British Museum, and the National Gallery. Highly recommended.

The suite was wonderfully spacious, and the hotel has lovely spaces filled with history and artwork. The staff were meticulous about service and the small details. Big Ben is visible from the main road, and it's a great base for getting around London on foot, including Victoria, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square and Covent Garden. It's also not far from Trafalgar Square. I absolutely love this hotel and will be back.

Our room was really comfortable and lived up to what we'd hoped for. Gabriel deserves a big thank you for making check-in easy and looking after us throughout our stay. He also gave us some brilliant ideas for future trips, which was a thoughtful touch. Lara made checkout quick and simple too. The service was spot on, and we're already looking forward to coming back to the Great Scotland Yard Hotel.

The location, building and room were all a 10/10. The room was amazingly clean and comfortable. Everything else was a 2/10, and I've had much better stays at budget hotels. I never really felt welcome. Two staff members were chatting at the desk when we arrived with our bags, and we had to interrupt them to get their attention. They seemed to change their attitude only after pulling up my booking. The staff were friendly enough, but the greeting felt dismissive. My membership wasn't attached to the booking, so I missed out on all its perks. Breakfast was another letdown. The waiter was rude and dismissive, some tables were offered more coffee while we weren't, and our finished plates sat there for 15 minutes. We eventually gave up and went to Pret for a drink. Nobody asked how the food was. My pancakes looked like Tesco value toaster ones, nothing like what I'd expect at this level, although the full English at the next table looked good. We'd mentioned that it was my birthday. Usually a hotel leaves something in the room, but this was the first time in 20 years of birthday trips that nothing was done. The bar staff were friendly and attentive, though, like reception, I had to make an effort to get noticed after standing there for a while.