Town Hall Hotel – Shoreditch

The building is cool, the location is great, and the Tube station is a quick walk away. The rooms are pretty big, though the bathroom layout has a wall that’s barely fogged out. WiFi kept having problems during our stay and was out for a significant amount of time twice. I stayed there about a year ago, so the details are hard to remember, but I wouldn’t mind staying again if I had to.

The Council Chamber room worked brilliantly for the wedding we shot, with a full house of guests and plenty of room for everyone. The Town Hall Hotel is such a beautiful space, with a great location and amazing light and backdrops for photos. The front steps are perfect for confetti shots, group portraits, and pictures of the bride and groom. Staff were lovely and attentive all day. If you’re thinking of getting married here, go for it. We can’t wait to come back next year. :)

We had a huge, spotless room and a very big kitchen with everything we needed, including a Nespresso machine. I’ve read some poor reviews and honestly can’t imagine why. At check-in they asked if we wanted to be charged a housekeepers’ tip; we said we’d leave cash, and they didn’t charge us. The £100 deposit was back in my account within 24 hours of checkout. Reception staff were very nice and helpful. Our bathroom leaked a little above the toilet, and they had another room ready for us, but we liked our room and the leak wasn’t an issue, so we stayed put. It isn’t in central London, but I think it’s perfectly located. Hackney is an amazing neighborhood, and Brodway Market is within a 15-minute walk.

We left feeling that our wedding stay had been badly let down by the staff. The hotel itself is beautiful and charming, but service was almost nonexistent, and we felt pressured to pay a 5% fee said to go to staff. The hotel knew when we booked that we were celebrating our wedding. Still, nobody acknowledged it or helped my wife at check-in, where she was left at reception with her dress on her lap. No one offered to take her bags and dress to the room, and there was no card, note, or glass of prosecco to mark the occasion. We hadn't expected anything, but our family at a nearby five-star hotel were welcomed with fizz that kept being topped up and treats for the children. This was the opposite. Although we'd booked a suite, ours was in the basement while many suites were upstairs. It was spacious, but felt like little thought had gone into placing the bride there, especially with photos being taken. After the wedding, we came back with lots of belongings and got no greeting or offer of help from the person at the desk. Check-out was the same. We raised everything with the operations manager, Paval, after the stay. The reply was a generic apology that didn't address our points; our follow-up was ignored. They later offered a £100 refund, but five months on it still hadn't arrived. There are better five-star hotels in London. This special occasion was tainted, and I'd book elsewhere.