The Piccolino Hotel

We stayed at Piccolino for 6 days on 3 bookings and were given 3 different rooms each time. All rooms were spacious as compared with previous London budget hotels we had been to. Each room had a different design but all contained basic stuff like coffee and tea maker, hairdryer, shampoo and bath gel. All the family rooms are located on the basement and ground floor and there wasn't a problem when carrying our heavy luggage. But if you have a room on the top floor, it can be tough as the staircase is quite steep and you may need help from the reception staff who are very friendly especially Adnan and Azeem who were always ready to assist guests whenever requested.

As we had to move in and out a few times to go to other cities, the hotel could store our luggage and security wasn't a concern as the reception was open 24 hours.

The location is very central and it only takes about 4 minutes' walk from Paddington Station and from where you can take the tube or rail to major cities. With heavy luggage, the Rail Station is easy to get to as you need not go through stairs.

There were roadworks in front of the hotel during our stay and since there was no traffic, the rooms became very quiet.

The continental breakfast was all right with toasts, eggs, beans and cereal. It would be perfect if there was hot food and the ladies could serve the guests with a broader smile.

Cleanliness is an issue the hotel can improve on as bath towels didn't seem to be very clean.

In general, our stay at Piccolino was quite a pleasant one.

The hotel is a really "hotelino"... But clean, nice and quiet (at least our room, 4 floor). The beds are comfortable; Paddington St. and all possible busses are close... (We are goes, so from the hotel is not longer to Piccadilly than 35-40 minutes to walk...) The hotel is rather cheap (for London!), the stuff is friendly... Will probably stay again.

Beata and Wladimir, Copenhagen, Denmark

The Piccolino Hotel has some good qualities - friendly staff, good location - and also some less desirable ones such as crowded hallways and mice. The hotel is situated on a quiet street lined with hotels, very close to Paddington Station. The location is a great starting point for exploration of London's exciting and historic sites, and is close to Hyde Park, restaurants and pubs, and shops. The outside appearance of the hotel is quite classy, but once inside, things take on a different spin. The front desk is in a small room down a narrow hallway from the front door. During our 2 day stay, the hallway was crowded with mattresses and springs on their sides and leaning against the walls. Our party had booked 2 rooms - a double which was up several narrow flights of stairs, and a triple which was located on the lower level - again, stairs. This made hauling heavy luggage somewhat inconvenient. The rooms were reasonably sized and looked quite nice, but one of the en suites was so small it was difficult to turn around in. Each time we left the hotel we were required to turn in our keys at the front desk and pick them up again upon our return. The desk was manned 24 hours, so this was not a problem. The gentleman at the desk was very friendly and helpful, offering tips and even making calls to check prices for different modes of transportation to the airport. The young adults in our party found the hotel to be fine, but I was a little more critical. Besides the mattresses leaning in the halls, my partner saw several mice running across the hallway by the downstairs room. This was a bit off-putting to me. Although I'm sure there are plenty of mice in London, I don't want to see them in the hotel I'm staying in! There was a laundry machine outside, under one of the balconies in the front of the building. We could distinctly hear loud talking in the hallways and from nearby rooms, both late at night and early in the morning. I understand this is not management's fault, but it did detract from our sleep and therefore, my impression of the hotel. Breakfast was fine - cereal, croissant, boiled eggs - typical continental type fare. The hotel served its purpose and was not a *bad* experience, but next time I would hope for a little better.