St Pancras Inn

For a one-night solo stop in London, this worked out really well. St Pancras Inn is right by the station, which made getting around and travelling on very convenient. The room was clean and good value, and the staff were welcoming and professional. A good short-stay option.

The location is very close to the train station, but I had a really poor stay. The air conditioning was broken and blew hot air into an already 23°C room, and the hotel offered neither a fix nor compensation. The bed had dark hairs in it, so the room wasn’t very clean. Other guests showed reception photos of mold in their rooms and apparently got no solution either. There’s no sound insulation: I could hear guests, reception and road traffic the whole time, even with earplugs.

The staff made a big impression on me. I arrived late and exhausted after booking in advance for just one night, and the gentleman at reception helped with my bag and went out of his way to assist. Everyone was professional, kind and reassuring. If you ring reception from your own phone, they’ll bring up a hairdryer, since there isn’t one in the room. There was also a bottle of water waiting when I checked in, which I appreciated. My room was small, with a Single Bed (twin sized bed for American travellers), but the bed was comfortable, softer than the one in the 4 star hotel I’d been staying at all week on a business trip abroad. Seriously, it was the most comfortable thing I’d sat on in 5 days. The bathroom was nicely designed for its size. The shower had good pressure, with a choice of rain head or handheld hose, and adjustable pressure on the handheld one. Very relaxing. It’s a little hotel near King’s Cross and St Pancras international station, best suited to travellers who want an affordable room for the night rather than a vacation hotel. It’s close to the tube too, and would also be a reasonable base for exploring London on a budget. They offer breakfast for a fee, though I didn’t try it. I don’t have my own photos, but the picture I found online of my exact room matched what I expected. Thank you so much St Pancras Inn!

Please avoid booking the ‘compact double’. It felt like a dungeon, with nothing in the room besides the bed and nowhere to put anything except on it. There’s no lounge or sitting area in the hotel either. I couldn’t recommend it less. Don’t make my mistake.