The Berkeley

Hotel de 5 estrellas-lujo, cuya categoría es bien merecida por el trato recibido, ammenities en la habitación, amplitud de la habitación y situación del hotel frente al Hyde Park.

Rude, obnoxious, horrendous staff. We were booked into the Berkeley by the staff of The Lanesborough as our party had grown by one and they were no longer able to accommodate our booking. When we arrived the doorman and security man just stared at us until I finally had to beckon the doorman over to assist us with our bags. The doorman and security were horrendously rude and grudgingly agreed to assist us. Not only that but I was so taken aback by their blatant obnoxious behaviour I immediately asked to speak to the Manager. He was even worse and dismissed the complaint as a figment of our imagination. The rooms are comfortable and luxurious but the staff are very, very rude. Throughout our 3 night stay the staff were continually rude, lackadaisical and prone to harassing our visiting guests. I do not recommend this hotel to anyone unless of course you can transport the bedrooms to another hotel. I am yet to understand the reason for the inherent rudeness.

What a strange hotel this is. The whole family stayed here for one night for my brother's 40th, and had very high expectations, given the price and the occassion.

The best bits:

Firstly, and I can't stress this highly enough, the restaurants are absolutely excellent. I can't speak highly enough of Petrus, and box-wood is great fun.

The staff in the bar are very attentive and the night conceirge is a very pleasant chap. The hotel also has a great location - right opposite the park, and a few doors up from Harvey Nichols and Harrods.

The room we finally got (when we had the correct one) was nice. A good view of the church, very quiet, with a great bed and nice bathroom.

The bad bits:

As soon as you step out of the restaurant into the hotel proper, the experience is very different.

Arriving was hilarious. We were wearing T-shirts (since I don't wear a suit on my day off and my sister generally takes off her scrubs after a shift) so the doormen barely acknowledged our existence. No-one greeted us or showed us to reception.

We were then treated to a very poor check-in service. The lady on the desk was either very rude, or spoke very poor English. Either way, it resulted in her not listening to (or understanding?) a word we were saying.

We were then led to two terrible rooms, carrying our own bags (for £300 per night). One was a single - she repeatedly asked me "you on your own yes?" despite my saying that my girlfriend would arrive after work about 15 times. The other was hilarious once more - there was a man painting the wall - an hour and a half after check-in time! She then proceeded to berate the poor cleaner who tried to tell her (correctly) we were in the wrong rooms. - very unprofessional.

Another lady then arrived at the room, and said she was "devastated", but we were in the wrong rooms. Really?!

In the morning, my sister was treated to a lady barging into the room, despite the "do not disturb sign", when she had just stepped out of the shower.

My girlfriend and I then paid £44 for eggs poached seemingly in vinegar (very nasty), two glasses of juice, and (no exaggeration) one slice of toast each.

Overall, I would recommend staying at the Four Seasons up the road, and visiting Petrus for the wonderful dining experience!