We arrived with BMI at Heathrow Terminal 1 and took the Tube to Edgeware Road Station. It was difficult to figure out what tube we had to take once we were on the District and Circle Lines, but we managed. The hotel is maybe 50 m from the entrance to the tube station. We had to cross a smaller road and a larger junction. There is also the option of taking the Heathrow Express, getting off at Paddington Station. It's around 10 minutes walk from there, but because we didn't know the area well, we decided to take the Tube, our favorite mode of transport in London. The Metropole has three buildings; all are by the architect Richard Seiffert, who is also responsible for the Sheraton Park Tower - A Luxury Collection Hotel and the Holiday Inn Kensington Forum, all in London.
The Metropole's three towers look different from each other. The lowest is where the club lounge and all executive rooms and suites are located. It is triangle shaped and connects the other two, one round and one squared. We liked that the hotel's logo is visible from afar and when going to the entrance, there is also a big sign spelling out the complete name of the hotel.
The entrance is covered, and I think was originally conceived for guests, who arrived by car. The pedestrian way is on the smaller side and seemed like an after thought. Don't forget to check, if a car is approaching, when crossing the drive way.
Check in was at the Executive Wing. There are different desks to the left of the entrance and one is dedicated for HHonors members. To our surprise there wasn't a big queue. The check in was quick and friendly. We were immediately upgraded as Diamonds to a club room with lounge access. As requested our room was on the higher floor, and we had to walk a bit to get to it. The views were over Edgeware Road, the church at Kensington High Street and the London Eye. The medium sized room was triangle shaped and the furniture Art Deco. There was a king sized bed, two chairs, a coffee table, writing desk, a flat screen TV with international and regional channels, a safe, mini bar, a wardrobe, luggage rack and a cupboard. The bathroom was medium sized with our beloved Peter Thomas Roth amenities. There was also ample space at the sink to put up our own beauty products. The bath tub and shower were separated and had good water pressure. The toilet didn't have its own room, but it didn't matter. The room, bed and bath tub were comfortable and relaxing. We really loved staying here. As Diamonds we also got free internet access, which was fast and easy to use. The provider is BT Open Zone, like at the Hilton Dublin Airport.
Our next stop was the executive lounge. It has open from 07.00 hours to 23.00 hours Monday to Friday and 07.00 hours to 21.00 hours on weekends. We arrived for Afternoon Tea, served between 15.00 and 18.00 hours daily. There was a wide range of classic finger sandwiches (egg, cream cheese, smoked salmon and ham) available, as well as delicious cakes, scones (the best I've ever had), nuts, dates and fresh fruit, tea, coffee, soft drinks and to our surprise two types of smoothies. I tried from everything a little bit and can report back it is worth to stay at this hotel for the Club Lounge alone.
In the evening a selection of liqueurs, white and red wine is available. Unfortunately I can't remember if there was a hot dish. There were crudities, more finger sandwiches and a cheese plate. The evening cocktails are available from 18.00 hours to 20.30 hours during the week and on weekends until 20.00 hours. If you want to bring your children under sixteen, they can use the lounge until 17.00 hours.
Breakfast is served Monday to Friday from 07.00 until 10.30 hours and during weekends until 11.00 hours. Overall the breakfast is very good. I only had one minor gripe. I love either scrambled or fried eggs in the morning. There are only boiled eggs served. I don't like them, so I didn't have a hot item. There was a good selection of tea, coffee, juice, fruit, yogurt, cheese and cold cuts. I liked the bread selection especially. When staying longer at the Metropole, the club lounge breakfast could get too one sided.
Our fellow guests were truly international. We encountered Americans, Europeans, Asians and Middle Easterners.
Later in the evening we had in room dining. He had a Chicken Satay, which was delicious, and I had an Asian Prawn Noodle Soup, which I liked, too.
A positive comment about the male member of staff, who took the order. We had stocked ourselves with fresh juices from Whole Foods Market, so we didn't require any drinks with our meal. He repeated my order, was very friendly and told me how long it was going to take approximately.
When ordering in room dining without drinks, I was mostly asked at other properties, if I needed any beverage. It's annoying, because if I wanted/needed it, I would say so.
The hotel has other facilities, including a fitness center with swimming pool, meeting rooms, gift shop, a business center, two restaurants (Minako at the Met for Asian Fusion Cuisine and Fiamma for international) and two bars, the Sports Bar and the Lobby Lounge, as well as a Cafe Cino.
When we checked out the next morning, because we had booked a table at Amalfi for lunch, there was a big queue. What did we learn out of this? Calculate in time in case of queues, check out in the Club Lounge or use the Express Check Out option.
When it was our turn, the check out was quick and friendly. We had a small suitcase with us and asked where the luggage storage was located. We were advised, when we looked right, we saw a long corridor. We had to follow it for a bit, and we knew immediately we were at the right place, because there was another queue. When we were later back to retrieve our luggage, the hotel had quietened down. There was only one person waiting in front of us, so it worked out fast.
The hotel is a city in itself. If you don't like large hotels, this is not the right choice for you. Even though the Metropole has a lot of rooms, I never felt service was a let down or understaffed. All employees encountered were courteous, knowledgeable and efficient.
Our experience was very good, so we are going to return at some stage in the future.
©2012
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