Review of Sofitel London St James 5*

Arrival was not the best, concierge were not on point. (Busy laughing and chatting amongst themselves while I waited in my limo). Carried my 3 bags in from my limo as they were too occupied chatting, so when they eventually did ask if I needed help, I was rather abrupt in my response (which I cannot repeat here). Check in was good, but when I got to my room, it was clearly not what I paid for. I booked a Luxury King Room, it was neither. Bed was a queen, the mattress was old and creaky, the phone didn't work and the sofa was hard as a rock as it was a sofa bed. When I spoke to reception (i had to go down to the lobby as the phone wasn't working), I asked if I was in the correct room, they said yes. I asked them about the bed being a queen and not a king, and they said "a King room doesn't mean a king bed"… (um, yes it does, and it says so on the hotels own website). Long story short, I was room moved around 11pm to a wheelchair accessible room that night which had a king bed. I received a call from the General Manager the next morning, who was genuinely concerned about the events of the previous night. He offered to move me again to a suite for the last night of my 2 night stay, which I accepted. I packed my bags and went out for amazing steak lunch with a friend (great recommendation by the hotel concierge). My bags were moved to the suite whilst I was at lunch and I collected my new room keys at reception on my return. The suite was magnificent.! It was the "Lord Lawrence Olivier Suite" and it was the most amazing suite I have ever stayed in. The GM also sent a bottle of Champagne and a large fruit tray with compliments of the hotel. I know mistakes are made, we are all human, I guess it was my turn to have a few mistakes all happen at the same time. But what really impresses me is how mistakes are rectified. Sofitel did this perfectly. What was looking like a terrible end to my 4 weeks holiday in Europe, turned into one of the highlights of the trip. I would definitely give Sofitel London St James another "go" as their efforts to make amends and to impress was exemplary. (The in-room dining is superb, I only had a club sandwich, but it was a delicious work of art). Checkout was fast and charming, and the farewell felt genuine. I look forward to my return.