I just spent perhaps the worst night in any hotel I've ever stayed in. My hotel in the Bloomsbury area of London was The Garth hotel on Gowan st. I made the reservation on line several weeks earlier for a single room. I checked in last night, room #15, close to the door to the main entrance. This room is not fit for human occupation, the single bed was too short (I'm just under 6'), there was only a single towel, no shampoo, no cups for brushing teeth, but there was one coffee cup. No closet or anywhere to hang clothes(I had a 4 night reservation), the shower temperature was not regulated, either very cold or very hot, the very small TV was on a shelf high on a wall so that when the TV was on the picture was distorted because of the viewing angle. No windows to open or look out of, except for a small bathroom window, the breakfast was very poor. I don't know about any other rooms at this hotel because I was told it was sold out. I checked out this morning, thankfully was able to find a nice hotel within walking distance of this disaster. Remember, Garth Hotel on Gowan st. Stay away!
Posted by
PA
2738 posts
While one cannot assume Trip Adviser reviews are always fully accurate, the fact that over 1/2 of the reviews of the Garth - 80 out of 159 - rated it "Terrible" should make one think before reserving.
Posted by
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
8293 posts
Yes, I read those bad reviews, too. I would not have stayed at the Garth after reading them but maybe the OP didn't research enough. Gower Street is a good location, though, and I seem to remember seeing a lot of hotels on the street. I stayed at the Ridgemont once and found it fine for my purposes.
Posted by
169 posts
The takeaway from this post is not that this is a bad hotel, but rather that the Op likely didn't check out the reviews on tripadvisor or other sites. Additionally, he is condeming an entire hotel based on his impression of one room for one night. Regardless, these negative reviews would be better if there was some context to them. What was promised that convinced this person to make a reservation in the first place for 4 nights, versus what was found when he checked in. He also states that he only saw one room which is the one he was in, but also says the hotel was sold out. So clearly other people didn't have a problem and or he is saying to stay away from a hotel but he is basing that on one room. Lastly, it seems he was able to check out after 1 night even though he made a reservation for 4 - so at least the hotel let him do that. It would also be helpful to know the rate for the room. My sense is that would also provide some context.
I have no idea about this hotel at all, but if you are going to write a negative review don't generalize.
Posted by
San Francisco/Marin County
9420 posts
Per Larry's post I can assume Vince is correct... that this hotel is terrible.
Posted by
victoria, Canada
11507 posts
WOW.. this hotel was rated in 956 th place out of 1052 hotels reviewed on tripadvisor in London.. that has GOT to tell people something..
I know some folks distrust reviews on ta.. but in this case I sincerely doubt those 159 people who were reviewing this place are all lieing.
Would not stay there for free.. last few reviews.. someone mentioned "bedbugs" and "mushrooms under the sink".
Vince , would love to know which hotel you moved to.. I am looking for a budget hotel fpr next May , and as long as its clean and has a private ensuite I am open to ideas!
Thanks for posting your report here, very helpful .. however.. I hope you post it on the review site on this webpage too.. as some posters only trust the RS site.
Posted by
Nashville, TN, USA
3752 posts
Hi Pat! I think you should post your request for a budget hotel on a new thread. I think you will get a lot of answers. Quite a few people on this Forum stay at budget hotels in London. I would say, don't rule out hostels. You can get a family room for not much money, and the hostels now are pretty nice!
Posted by
victoria, Canada
11507 posts
Thanks Rebecca ,, just did !!