The Ritz

Stayed at the Ritz while traveling with my wife for our Christmas vacation. We spent a week at Claridges and decided to extend our trip and try a different hotel. This was our first time at the Ritz and we throughly enjoyed our stay. Our room was spacious, well kept, provided huge amounts of closet space, and the bed was extremely comfortable. The bathroom was a well laid out marble clad affair typical of 5 star hotels with an enormous deep soaking tub and separate shower. The hotel's location is hard to beat - you are at the bottom of Bond St and within walking distance of just about every major sight in London. There is a tube station located less than 1 block from the hotel.

In short, the hotel is the epitome of old world elegance you can find in few other places. Many older grand hotels have pictures on the website that make the common areas look amazing but in reality they are tired and have been subjected to renovations of varying quality. The common areas of the Ritz live up to the hype and then some. They didn't spare anything when they renovated the place. The dress code (which requires a tie at dinner and in the bar in the evenings) contributes to the general old world ambience of the place. Frankly it was rather refreshing to see people dressing up for dinner/drinks especially given the general splendor of the common areas. The dining room is truly one of the most grand (and well done--not to big, not to small) hotel dining rooms I have been in. I wasn't wearing a tie when we checked in the hotel (or when my wife and I entered/exited the hotel during the day) and didn't feel, nor did the hotel make me feel, the least bit awkward. I did wear a coat and tie to dinner because (like many nice restaurants) the hotel requires it (since when is this unusual or onerous?). I found the service very personal and not the least bit snobby or condescending. For example, during afternoon tea our waiter provided us with an extra plate sandwiches/tea cakes to take to the room when my wife told the waiter how much she enjoyed them. The hotel also obtained dinner reservations at the times and places we asked for (something other hotels seem to have a hard time doing). They also got us on guest lists for several of the bars in the surrounding area so we avoided any wait for a table. In short they did what they were supposed to: make our stay enjoyable. The cons: I thought tea here, while wonderful, wasn't any better than other places in London (the Lanesborough, Claridges, etc.). So if you don't get a reservation (I couldn't until I stayed at the hotel) there are plenty of other equally good options. The bar isn't a see and be seen type of place (as the bar at Claridges appears to be) but that was fine with us. If you are looking for a hip bar scene this isn't the place. It was, however, a nice place to get a well made drink after a long day of seeing the city--never had to wait for a table and the service was great. Frankly we got exactly what we expected from the hotel--gorgeous grand common areas in which to eat and drink, a quiet bar that makes good drinks, a well appointed room, and exceptional service.

Comparing American luxury hotels with European is like comparing apples and oranges. Europe hotels simply cannot compare to the American ones.

The Ritz is nice but it would probably not be considered a 5 star in America. As with all of Europe, it's showing its age (in good ways and bad.) I suspect Europeans have lower standards for cleanliness and wear. Where do I start?

BATHROOM

-Spacious for Europe. Marble. Towel warmer seemed to leak natural gas. I stayed in two rooms and management didn't seem to think this was a problem. Don't smoke in the bathroom. BTw, who in Europe thinks that those glass partitions are superior to shower curtains. Slow drains. Faucet in one room had hot AND cold faucets making any attempt to wash with WARM water rather difficult and painful at times. Hairdryer was quite humorous to see and was probably was one of the first ones ever made.

BEDS

-Spacious again for European standards. Bed is a joke. Very soft. Too soft. Kinda like a bed that was new in the Eisenhower administration.

ROOM

-Worn. Telephones were outdated although internet was available. In Hospitality Suite, no printer avaible to print items

SERVICE

-Honestly, not bad but you get the stinkeye if you walk thru their precious lobby not wearing a suit and tie. Few of the staff are below 50. Same with the guests. At 37, I was probably the youngest person there. They are attentive to your needs but unless you're in suit and tie, they seem a bit wary of you. I would deem service good and it would be better if they didn't have this insipid looping video on their TV (channel 2, I believe) saying essentially how awesome they are. On a down note as well, urgency doesn't seem to be their focus whether at check -in/out or at the concierge.

OVERALL

This place is OK but loses points for not seeing it needs to improve (especially in "American" (if not global) terms. If you think you are going to be staying at a place similar to Ritz Carlton, Bellagio, Mandarin Oriental or Four Seasons, I got news for you...you're won't be.

I have just returned from a weekend break to celebrate my 40th birthday at the Ritz hotel. We are a family of 4 with children aged 15 and 12 yrs. I have to say that from the moment we got there this hotel had the wow factor! There was a card and a birthday cake in my room upon check in. Everything was taken care of and the staff were wondefull. Our package included a junior suite, breakfast and we also booked afternoon tea on the day of my birthday. The room was lovely and the bathroom huge. The breakfast was delighful with a delicious selection and is served in the ritz restaurant with all it's beautiful surroundings. Afternoon tea was served in the palm court and again there was plenty of choice i highly recommed this for a special occasion. Room service arrived exactly at the requested time but i have to mention the jewel of the Ritz - Tony the concierge, he provided us with excellent tickets for a show and also recommended and booked us a table at an excellent restaurant again at a moments notice, nothing was impossible or too much trouble for him. Despite this being a 5 star hotel the children were welcomed which we have not always found in the past with this type of hotel, every night milk and cakes were left for them and all the staff went out of their way to speak to them. We wanted to do some shopping on our last day so after we checked out we left our luggage in the hotel and they were placed in the car for us, when we returned to the hotel the car was brought to the front with all our belongings ready to leave. We really did have a fantastic 3 night stay here and cant wait to return. I shall expect my husband to take me to the Ritz for every birthday and as he enjoyed it so much himself i think i am in with a good chance !!!