Thistle Barbican Shoreditch

Hotel

Lovely hotel. Really nice room, free lemon iced water as reception. Nice touch! We rang for more coffee, sugar etc twice and both times came within 10mins. We had room service and was delicious! Served hot and looked as good as it tasted! The pool and sauna, steam room etc is definitely worth a visit!

Decent value for money. Stayed here for one night in a deluxe double room (the standard ones don't have air conditioning). The decor was basic but it had everything needed and was very comfortable and generally clean. The food was also surprisingly good, both at room service and at breakfast. The staff were also really helpful. The downsides: The air conditioner in the room had seen better days; it was loud and dusty. We tried to go to the pool, but it was too busy so we weren't allowed in — I think it's also open to non-hotel guests which makes it crowded. From what I could see it looked nice, but it was small. As a Londoner, I didn't find it difficult to get to by bus, but I think tourists may find it a bit confusing. It's also known to be a bit of a dodgy area so I'd advise any visitors to keep their wits about them and not walk around with their phones out.

This place needs to be gutted and completely refurbished! The carpet is mouldy and smells absolutely dreadful. It’s worse in the hallways. Not too bad in the actual room, you can open the windows to let in fresh air thank God. But for the price I paid, overall, it’s pretty poor. TV is free to air, grainy and not all channels work. You can hear what your neighbour is watching/talking about. There were some good things to mention despite the shabby state of the place: the staff were friendly and housekeeping was excellent. The shower pressure was good and the water hot. There’s a safe and hairdryer. Food at the cafe was passable. Stay if you must but I’m sure there are better options around at that price point.

Spent two nights at the hotel. Had problems with our water. They change our rooms, upgraded us, and gave us free breakfast for two mornings. Nothing too much trouble. Friendly staff. Great breakfast, lots of choice. Only ten minute walk to old Street tube. Would recommend, and competitive price. Best to be in the main hotel check when booking.

Tree good hotel with belies services, we were 3, and they added an extra bed that reduced the room space and which n not comfortable condition.
The hotel is in 2 parts, prefer the one where the reception is located!.
Nice pool.

Breakfast, okay. The room lacks a window that we can open. A little run down.

Great hotel — perfect location for our one night stay near Shoreditch and reasonably priced (for a London hotel). Nice twin room with comfy beds and tea and coffee making facilities. Complimentary shortbreads were a nice touch too! The hotel also has a pool and gym — upon arrival, we spent an hour in the pool which was a great way to cool down on what had been a very hot day. I would recommend this hotel and would definitely stay here again.

Clean quiet. Very friendly staff. Comfortable bed. Good location.

Hotel good location Metro bus 5 minutes very good breakfast and varied hotel restaurant rather good child menu well pity that the pool must surely be shared with a nice personal sports club.

Very good hotel.
The staff were very friendly and helpful.

Room OK for London. Dirty carpet but otherwise fairly clean. Incredibly hot throughout with no air con and windows screwed shut. Prepare to bake if temperature is over 10 degrees. Good breakfast — a buffet style where the food is actually hot. Staff friendly and helpful.

Très bon hôtel en plein milieu de Londres. Very good standard and I loved the breakfast. Very diversified.

Room was dated but clean and a good size. Bathroom was good with a bath / shower and plenty of toiletries provided. Staff at reception were very helpful and courteous and there is plenty of choice to eat and drink on site or nearby.

Excellent hotel, service and convenience 10 minutes from the stop Barbican.

Hotel is very dated and in need of a refresh. Stayed here especially for the running machines in the gym, but 3 of the 4 machines were out of order. At the restaurant, I was asked if I'd like my chicken breast well done, medium or rare!. On the positive side, hotel was quiet, comfortable and had lots of independent bars and restaurants near by. It was also easy walking distance to my work location near Moorgate tube station. Not the best Thistle hotel in London.

Comfortable Hotel well connected with the center. Friendly staff. Cleaning OK.

Good to reach by subway. The hotel is very nice. The staff is friendly. Our room has been a little over the years and could be refurbished. It's still going. We're satisfied.

The pool and the accessibility of the monuments are appreciated.
The hotel is well framed, but the buildings are starting to date.

Very nice hotel. It has a good restaurant, eats rich and at reasonable prices. It has a very complete gym, and a swimming pool plus sauna and jacuzzi. I recommend it. It's close to the City of London.

Spacious rooms with complimentary mini bar. The rooms are rather tired and in need of refurbishment, especially the noisy air con. On the plus side, the rooms were very clean and breakfast was great. Staff very nice, especially Molly on reception. The one major blip was that we requested the mini bar was topped up after breakfast with cokes/water and this did not happen. Overall good experience, however it was a business booking… I wouldn't book it for a city break as it is clearly geared towards the business traveller.

Great Hotel Close to London City. Be prepared for extra cost of parking if going by car £30 a night outrageous when it's not a secure parking. Apart from that it is very reasonable with good rooms and good food. All the staff are very friendly and welcoming. I certainly would recommend to everyone and will choose again for our next visit to the smoke.

Survival guide for staying at Thistle Barbican: The smell: When you saw the reception and met with the lovely receptionists you think maybe this place is actually not too bad, then you enter the room, bang! The smell of fermented mould just hits you. The window: The bad smell forces you to open the window, and then you discover that the window’s conveniently broken. Room service: You pick up the 1980s phone on the night stand to call room service. It rings on and on till your ear starts burning, no one answers. You stop a housekeeper in the hallway for help. She's totally nice and lovely but cannot understand a word of English. Hygiene: By the end of the day, the air in the room gets really bad, for there's no air system and the window cannot be opened. You can chew the air. During shower, you find more mould, and more, in the shower, on the wall. The carpet has stains everywhere and some previous people's spilled drink and chewing gum still there near the window. You call the room service and reception at different times of the day for five times just to roll the dice and try your luck. Number of calls answered: 0. The last straw: The wall is paper thin. You hear couple bantering in the next room and decide that the wife has a point, someone sneezing and coughing and cursing. When you call your family at night and speak any louder than whisper, there will be angry knocks on the wall from your lovely neighbours. 6am in the morning, alarm clock wakes you up.

It has a swimming pool, Jacuzzi, Bapor room that is perfect for the skin, sauna, and a small gym. All for £10 an incredible price and is usually almost empty.

Stayed here quite few times now, so yes its a good hotel. The room is a little small but its single occupancy, bonus has a bath. Visited the gym for the first time and its not 2 bad. May be a bit crammed if busy but hey its a hotel gym. Staff always seem to be happy enough, bar seems moody but service is quick and inattentive. So to sum up for the money at its location you can go wrong.

About 5 years ago the hotel was completely renovated and the hotel is great. The hotel even offers swimming pool and fitness room for guests. The breakfast buffet is one of the best I've ever had (I'm over 20 years bus driver). 1 star I have to pull off unfortunately because the place where the hotel is running in a private residential area and the next subway is a good 10 minute walk.

I had a room on the first floor in the building opposite reception. Clean room and good powerful shower. The breakfast selection was good and I ate one evening meal in the restaurant. Prices were good and it was conveniently located for the work location I was visiting. A bit of a walk from the nearest tube station is the only slight negative.

Good level Hotel. Comfortable. Friendly staff Some speak French.

I booked it as a late deal, and deal it was, very central in London, close to all amenities and choices of tube lines, bus stations etc. Had use of spa facilities if I wanted them, and breakfast was included also. Nice and quiet single room, clean, lovely sheets and a nice big bath to relax in. Staff were incredibly helpful and pleasant. Only minor issue was that breakfast was a bit of a free for all, but it was a Sunday morning, and summertime, so what else would you expect! I'd stay again without hesitation.

The hotel was clean, the breakfast delicious, the staff nice, it is about a 15 minute walk and with the subway from the Big Ben.

I love this hotel located in a quiet area with nearby transport. Buses pass regularly.

A comfortable place, the rooms a little small but all very clean and good service in general, the best the pool and the Jacuzzi.

Almost a very good, staff very friendly, breakfast very adequate, a third coffee machine would not be bad. Completely satisfied.

Stayed NYE very pleasant hotel and reception staff are helpful. We found parking very easy as it was bank holiday we parked on road with no charge. The only disappointment was the bar was shut early we rushed back from fireworks to have few drinks so we couldn't celebrate 2018. But a plus was the manager on shift New year day compensated us by some discount off bill and a very nice email.

First impressions were not that great as I arrived and got given a room which frankly smelt of death and mold. This mould started and triggered my asthma and I was quite uncomfortable. On closer inspection I could see black mould growing on the window sills and walls near the window. Also the bathroom tiles were moldy too. My the room probably just needed some new paint and disinfecting. I complained immediately and got given a new room and an upgrade which I can not fault,. The breakfast was what I expected. The place is actually good for a three star as it has a leisure facility too. Just shame that the staff could not check the room before handing out to clients. I would have given it a 1 star if they didn't upgrade me but the customer service resolution is what's saves it. I was actually contemplating not to complain but if this actually happens to you I would definitely speak to the hotel manager. Also the bed in the upgraded room was broke too but I just couldn't be bothered to complain anymore…

Nice hotel for a good price in central London. The staff were all very friendly, breakfast was nice and the shower was good. The bed was comfy and the air con (not available in all rooms I don't think) worked well. My only negatives were that it's quite a long walk from the nearest tube stop and that there are remarkably few plug sockets in the room (had to charge my phone at the opposite side of the room to the bed). Overall a good experience and would happily stay there again.

Very nice rooms in a quiet hotel. A welcome more than perfect. A breakfast with a wide choice. Perfect.

Hotel corresponding to our expectations, very good reception, very nice staff. Excellent dinner rates very reasonable. Great breakfast Quiet room clean, big bed.

I attended a professional training event at Thistle Barbican. Staff were extremely welcoming, with a personal greeter escorting me directly to the suite being used for our event. Staff were friendly and professional at all times and all facilities were excellent. The conference rooms provided were well furnished and quality refreshments were provided and kept topped up through the day. Great food and great environment to work in for the day.

Friendly and helpful staff throughout the hotel. The room was a perfect size and very comfortable. The bathroom had a bath/ shower which was excellent for me but could be a problem for more elderly visitors (although I'm sure there's a room suitable for everyone). Took a dip in the pool in the afternoon, then relaxed in the steam room. Wonderful. The buffet breakfast was expansive and had a huge range of fruit, cooked meats, eggs, porridge, yoghurt, cereals etc etc. I had a very relaxing stay here and used it's location to easily get around London using the tube and buses from Old Street. I felt very well looked after and would highly recommend it.

The hotel is clean, the rooms are cleaned daily, the staff are super friendly and the breakfast is delicious, with a wide selection.
So all in all, I've been very happy with the eye.

Was on a training course for 2 days. Location was okay. Room was a good size and layout good but the seats were not good enough to sit on for a full day. Really not comfortable. The coffee provided was a bit weak. The food was okay, very good brownies!

Would like to give 3, 5 star but that is not possible. Became a 3 star because of the outdated bathroom and high prices of drinks and food. However, very friendly staff! Room was clean. Good place to visit London and nice swimming pool. Good enough for us to go back!

Very small rooms that look like shoeboxes. Besides, it's not very clean. I wouldn't recommend it.

First room was so badly insulated, it sounded like the busy road below was actually passing through my room. Tried calling reception, no answer, so went down and swapped rooms. The 'new' room was quieter but not exactly salubrious, there's no fridge and their idea of AC is a metal fan on the floor! If I'm forking out £250 a night, I expect far higher standards! Probably best if they levelled the building and built something half decent, a skip would be an improvement! I've prewarned work very to book this hotel again! AVOID!

Everybody is really competent, nice, professional, understanding. Really good team. The hotel is beautiful. We had a really nice view from our room. And the breakfast was amazing.

Nice hotel. Reasonable location. Reasonable room. Nice bathroom. 10 mins to tube station. Great breakfast, great coffee included. The bar was not relaxing at all and 2 loud for my taste.

This hotel is a really great value for the area. The rooms are just fine, and the breakfast is exceptional. We prepaid and it was included. The nearest tube stop is a little far, like about a 10 minute walk, but there are loads of restaurants within a few blocks. Great experience.

Very clean and quiet Hotel Great breakfast Small drawback water interruption, fixed quickly. Daily towel change. The room is slightly small. The rest OK.

The staff has always been professional and polite. Breakfast rated 10. The old rooms are to be avoided. The less old ones more than passable.

Stayed for a Saturday night. The reception were very kind and helpful at all times. During the heat wave, the only option of cooling was a wall mounted fan. Air conditioning would have made it 5 stars for the review. The hotel bar was open till late I think it closed at around 0230-0300. This was a nice touch to see the end of the night. The breakfast was self service buffet, that was a very in depth selection with all the options being fresh. I did not have the time to enjoy the amenities such as spa/gym or pool etc. Overall if in the local area overnight again, I would come back. Maybe asking if there is an option for AC next time though. Overall good, clean and decorative hotel. Highly recommended.

They don't speak Italian! Room OK but 12 pounds for a medipcre breakfast are too many! Not recommended.

I am currently staying at the hotel with my colleagues whilst attending a software development conference. As I write this review I am currently in my bed and I have to say it is very comfortable here. I am currently staying in a single room which I believe is of an appropriate size. Facilities include swimming pool sauna hot tub, I have forgotten my swimming trunks although my client in for me there are of appropriate size and quality. There is a safety box provided in my room along with additional dowels hello iron and ironing board. The bathroom consists of a shower and bath along with the other usual facilities including power socket for shaver and beard trimmers. The weather in the area today was quite hot and the staff have provided me with a fan to help with the situation. Having inspected the room and all its facilities, linen and towels provided are very clean and of very high standards. Reception staff were very helpful during our late check in. Breakfast that is served in the morning is top notch. Breakfast options include cereal porridge full cooked English breakfast fruits tea coffee and various juices. Overall this is a great hotel to stay at one that I would very highly recommend to anyone.

Very clean room, very friendly staff. Price (€145 the single) in line with the average of the same level hotels in central London.

I booked a premium room, it's really big, 30 ' ' LCD TV about, air conditioner not too quiet. The bathroom has the tub, no bidets unfortunately. Staff at the reception (open h24hr) very friendly and helpful. I didn't have time to take advantage of the spa and the pool.

I had a very pleasant two and a half week stay. A little bumpy checking in but other than that my room was reasonably big, comfy king size bed on the 5th floor. The room was extremely well insulated from outside noise and the curtains blocked out the early morning sun (4am when I was there) so I got plenty of sleep. The breakfast service was excellent every morning, although in busier mornings the cleanliness of the buffet area slipped quiet a bit. The staff are fantastic. Really friendly. Over all it is a really nice hotel.

Decent hotel but room vintage.

Very good hotel, I have been here two days and everything is impeccable, rooms, services no complaints. The only catch: speak English well because staff don't control any of our language, but we s suits very well thanks to lure kindness.

I visit their sauna and swimming pool every once and then and I appreciate the service provided. It's not very crowded, decent sauna and Turkish bath, low swimming pool (it's more to relax into, not to do laps)

The room was VERY SMALL, our two bags the we had to put on the lintel of the window. A little away to take the metro.

No water was provided on arrival or during lunch, only tea and coffee. I don't drink either. When asked the waiter said "I only have sparkling now" when asked, the waitress said "there's some in the meeting room" all bottles were empty. I got some eventually but it should have been easier. Customer service typical these days. Cannot go out of way. Rear was ok.

Last Friday and Saturday, we have 12 people in tour groups staying at the hotel. Hotel is bright and spacious, staff is great. All our needs can get help. Organized taxi, take-away food. Rooms are basic but clean, delicate is very good, it is refreshing. Thank you so much. And also for the night waiter Chris!

Friendly and convenient. Food is of a decent quality. Downside is Wi-Fi is dreadful, TV is bog standard and the rooms are in serious need of modernisation (but clean & functional).

The room was great, everything you need including iron and board decent size TV with good channels. Bed was comfy bathroom was old but smart and very clean. Located in the Barbican its just minutes to anywhere really good links. The breakfast is really good and it set us up for the afternoon so just had to get a main meal. It has a swimming pool, jacuzzi steam room and sauna. Overall a really nice hotel and a brilliant stay.

The room is small, but comfy, the walls are quite thin so you can hear the TV of your neighbours. Food is good, but be warned they add 12.5% automatically and have the cheek to add a gratuity option.

Can I give this place NO STARS? WARNING Do not stay in this hotel if you don't want to be robbed by their staff! My boyfriend and I stayed at this hotel as part of a package Europe trip we took. We stayed 2 nights in London. First off, let me start by saying the rooms are super tiny and old and dirty. The railings and faucets in the bathroom were so dirty, I did not even want to touch them. We had to change rooms twice because of the filth. Now, me and my boyfriend are fairly new travelers and we were not aware that there is a safe in the room. We kept some money inside the hotel room. And London being our first trip on our vacation, the money was supposed to last us for 2 more countries. On the second day of our stay I called housekeeping to change the garbage in our bathroom. As she left she said "I'll come back later to clean your room". Knowing we kept cash inside the room I said "no it's ok we don't need housekeeping" she said ok and left. My boyfriend and I then went out for the day and came back around 4 pm to pick up some money. Upon entering our room we see the bed is made. We quickly check our money and see $300 missing. We quickly went to reception and spoke to the managers and alerted the police. The managers did not want to compensate for anything. They said it will have to be an "ongoing investigation". We are from New York and were leaving the following day, how were we supposed to stay for this "ongoing investigation".

The location while a little off the beaten path is still relatively close to the London city underground and a mere 15 minute train ride to most sights. The hotel is friendly and clean while meeting all of my basic expectations if not succeeding them. Easily one of the better places to stay if you happen to be a first time vistor and don't mind buying a metro ticket if you want to go into town.

This hotel is getting old now and some areas have had a facelift. The bar and restaurant area is fabulous but some of the rooms are a bit dated and some are downright shabby. But… All in all its a good place to stay if you are visiting the City, Islington, Hoxton or Shoreditch areas of London.

Good hotel with really friendly staff, I would regimens eating at the restaurant across the road if you have time. Nice toiletries and soft beds, but our neighbours were a little loud so didn't get as much sleep as we would have wanted.

I got a good deal here but would never pay full price it needs updating a lot they have a high tech cool lift but the rooms… Eugh. Needs updating asap.

The hotel was very nice and clean. The service was amazing. The check in and out was simple. The location is close to the Barbican Centre, only a 10 minute walk. The room was spacious amd clean and even had a hair dryer and iron! I would definitely recommend this hotel.

I got a room in the opposite building (The Prisonblock) and everything was unclean. There was mildew in the bathroom, long hair in the bed and generally a very unclean feeling. After complaining I got a new room in the same building as the resection. There were just a small amount of mildew in the bathroom, and no hair in the bed. A step up from the other room. Breakfast was fine, with very nice and helping servers. Meetingrooms were old and tired, and we paid a fortune to use a horribly bad projector.

The hotel looks fairly nice at first glance when you walk into the reception, and I was upgraded as they had ran out of standards rooms. The premium room was average — no better than a standard room in a decent hotel, so it did make me wonder what the standard rooms were like. It was quite tired looking inside, but it was clean, so no complaints there, however, the tap was stiff to operate and the sink was partially blocked. I went to use the gym, but it was absolutely hammered so didn't even bother going in, which was unfortunate. The restaurant looks nice at first glance, but the service isn't great, one of the waitresses were quite abrupt and the main course was brought out before my soup bowl had been cleared away, and barely after I had finished the soup. Nobody asked if everything was alright with the meal either, almost like they didn't actually want to know. Speaking of the food, it was mediocre. The soup was watery and rather tasteless and the chunk of bread had been toasted (! ), so it wasn't nice and soft and suitable for soup. The main course didn't fare any better. The chips were awful, very greasy and tasted like they had been cooked in old oil. The half chicken breast was partially dried up, quite bland and generally not the best. When I came to get the bill, a 12.5% service change had been added, but I'm not entirely sure what for, because the service was poor. Breakfast want great in the morning either.

We booked this hotel for my parents golden wedding anniversary (18 September 2015). The staff were absolutely wonderful and really looked after them very well. I cannot recommend this hotel highly enough. Thank you so much, you made their anniversary very special. Sharon Kane.

I had a really bad stay here. The rooms are old not to mention the bathrooms. I paid a beer with cash and they charged me again to the room account. I asked for a taxi to go to the airport and pay with credit car and I ended up in a really bad cab that made me paid with cash. The only reason I didn't left the first night it was that it was close by to my meetings and I wanted to walk. If you are staying for business I will reconsider this place.

My stay was first class… the room was fine, the food good and the staff were excellent. Certainly would recommend this hotel, for the price in London a real bargain.

Me and my husband stayed there for a long weekend we found the hotel to be very central to what we wanted to do. The staff were very pleasant and the overall appearance of hotel was good. We had a breakfast for the 2 days stay everything you could ask for even had a chef making fresh ommlettes which I was very impressed with. T he spa facilities were great as well. Definatley stay there again very soon.

Quality experience from the staff. Love the multicultural diversity. Highly recommend the premium king room for executive comfort.

Bit dirty and tatty, desk was chipped and glasses were covered in fingerprints and soap was still in the soap dish. Staff were lovely though and and free safe and Wi-Fi a good bonus. Spa was nice but showers let it down.

Awful was told the coach party we travelled with could not have a la carte in the restaurant but could have Christmas buffet they had put on, cold soup, cold turkey, thin gravy, frozen cold veg. Not worth the £20 they charged. Room ok though found 3 blood stains on sheet.

Just spent one night at the Thistle as we went to Sadlers Wells. Lovely hotel, good sized rooms and extremely friendly staff. Great breakfast, good value for money and we will stay again.

Worse hotel I've ever stayed? I think so. First, I love their food and Wi-Fi However, I don't know how stylish it is to have a shower which is activated only by holding up a knob. On my last day, I couldn't complete my bath as the water wouldn't flow again and I had to clean the soap on my body using the towel. I waited for some 30 minutes thinking it was just a hitch, but the water never came back.

Nicely decent location from oldstreet underground (5 min> walk from Thistle City Barbican) to many bus/ subway travel connections to the "Heart" of London. Friendly neighborhood, plenty of food restaurants and some local (organic) grocery stores so you don't starve ;-).

We stayed at the hotel for two nights, our first impression of our rooms was small and dated. This first disappointment was more than compensated for by the friendliness and helpfulness of all the staff we encountered. The restaurant was very good if a little busy at times and it was also a bonus having a swimming pool in the leisure centre. We would certainly stay at this hotel again and considered it value for the monies we paid J Green.