The Leopold Hotel

The breakfast was very good, and for the price it’s hard to find a better location. It was around a 15-minute walk to the station and just a few minutes to the city hall. The hotel worked perfectly for us. The room had a fridge and kettle, and the bed was very comfortable. The rooms were clean and most of the staff were nice. The temperature was odd, swinging between cold and hot, and the in-room thermostat didn’t seem to do anything. I think it would help to put the bar and restaurant menus and opening hours in each room.

The breakfast was excellent for the price, with a good buffet, and the bar itself was good. There was no draft lemonade, though, so a lager top cost more than I expected. Sharing a few drinks made it work out okay. The bigger letdown was the food service: the bar menu was limited, and on both nights most of the options weren’t available. It came down to pizza or a starter. On the second day I ordered chicken wings, doubled up as a main, while my colleague had a fish finger sandwich. I finished my meal ten minutes before hers arrived, and nobody apologised or seemed to notice. That was the only thing that let the place down. I’d stay again, but eat dinner elsewhere. The room was nice, with a comfy bed, bath, plenty of storage, and biscuits with the tea and coffee, which was a nice touch. There was a shower issue, but it was fixed promptly. Reception staff were friendly, professional and attentive.

After our gig we went back to the hotel bar at 11pm for a drink, even though it was meant to stay open until midnight. There was no draught beer, the last two wine bottles were nearly empty, and the only staff member started clearing away the spirits at 11:30. The customers were clearly unimpressed. What a shame. We’d chosen the hotel for its great location near City Hall. It’s a lovely old building, with a warm reception and welcoming staff. The room was large and stylish, with a high, comfortable bed, good storage and a bathroom with a large shower. It was cool inside, though, and the tiled floor was very cold. Only one lift was working.

EDIT: The manager’s reply claims we discussed this separately, but nothing like that happened. I left after our final day and wrote the review, then a month later they posted this fake reply, probably to make future guests think problems get handled. It’s a facade. They clearly don’t care. We had a pretty lovely stay at this central hotel until an unpleasant situation on the last day. I had a meeting from 5pm and had asked both at check-in and on departure day if I could use the lounge. The reception staff were lovely about it. Around 11am on Sunday 2nd February, the chap on duty even showed me the room and turned on the heating. In the afternoon, I started my meeting and stepped out briefly to use the bathroom. On my way back, Letti, who was on duty, almost shouted, “You can’t use that room.” I said I’d been told I could and was in the middle of an important meeting. She said it wasn’t her who’d given permission, then let me return but said she’d come and kick me out in 30 minutes because she had to set up for the next day. She never came. I think the task wasn’t very urgent and she just enjoyed her little power trip. After the meeting I asked what was going on, and she said she needed to set up the room for something tomorrow and that I could use it if I paid her £300. It was a ridiculous encounter, and her attitude was completely different from everyone else working there. I even had coffee served in that room, and the lovely woman who brought it didn’t seem surprised that I’d asked for it there. It’s just a small lounge guests can use.