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Conrad London St James Review: Grand Deluxe
The Conrad London St. James hasn’t really been open all that long. Originally opened in 2012 as an Intercontinental before being purchased and reopened last September 1st as the Conrad St James. Overall, I enjoyed staying at this property and seeing as though it was part of a prize ( 5 nights at any hilton worldwide) won at a charity auction it was an outstanding redemption. It really came down to this or the Hilton Park Lane, and seeing as though I had just stayed over that way I thought I’d give it a go. However, if were to use my own points ( 80,000 ) or pay to stay here I’d probably think twice given my experience.
The Deets
- Where: London
- How many points: None but normally 80,000 Hhonors
- Status: Gold
- Upgrade: Yes – Superior to Grand Deluxe
- Value: £235 to £350
It is a Hilton Honors Category 9 hotel
From the moment you walk into the lobby your olfactory senses are hit with a great floral bouquet that is just on the verge of overwhelming, but really quite perfect after battling the London weather.
I’ve stayed at a few Conrads and this very much stuck with the overall theme. Crisp, luxurious accommodations with an almost Asian style and approach to luxury. At least this was the goal…
Check in was a breeze – straight to the HHonors desk and we were told we were upgraded to a Grand Deluxe room. I inquired about lounge access ( As a gold you are only entitled to lounge access if you are in fact upgraded to an executive room), he politely offered me a rate of £55. Ridiculous really considering our redemption included free breakfast.
The Room
I think the design team has made great use of the space. It looks and feels much larger than it actually is. The combo treatment of the vanity on one side with the built-in flat screen on the other makes what would ordinarily be a small/regular room, feel quite large. The desk area is great for business travelers and has made outstanding use of international sockets and plug-ins. For what it’s worth, the room looked exactly how it’s advertised on the website.
The built in TV is absolutely Gorgeous.
Another added benefit of having Gold status – free upgraded high speed internet.
One thing I thought was an excellent touch was the Water on the Bottom shelf, both still and sparkling, as well as the large bottle of water on the counter top were all gratis. It’s always so appreciated when a hotel of this price point does little extras to make you feel welcomed. This is certainly one of them.
While it was nice to have the Nespresso machine as well as a half dozen options for espresso, the first one came out dirty. Such a disappointment for staying at a Conrad. All it takes is someone to run a clean cycle or even a few pure water shots to clean the inside out.
Obvs, Miles made great use of the 2 terrycloth robes. He was ready to wash off a day of traveling!
The hotel provides Aromatherapy bathroom products.
Now this is where it got to be a little annoying. The shower was beautiful and had two functions for using it – 1) The rain shower overhead or 2) the adjustable shower head with multi function. I actually found both to work very well; however, here’s the problem:
No matter which you use: the bathroom floods!
Breakfast the next morning
Was fine. Nothing out of this world, but it did have a pretty tasty selection of fruit, hot food, breads, pastries, and juices. It is served in the Blue Boar restaurant and pub.
The Gym
is small, but functional. Miles got a pretty decent workout in. And as I always say… if you want some free water. Go to the gym =)
Minor shortcomings
Flooding:
I’m not sure either of these pictures really shows the amount of flooding. There is a seal around the door and the bottom of the shower is slightly lowered with an edge, but unless you are extremely mindful of the direction the shower head is pointing, water escapes. The first shower flooded so bad it took every towel and both robes to mop up the mess. I’m not exactly sure what the hotel is to do about this, or if it was just this room, but it was nerve racking.
Concierge amenities
1) After mopping up the mess, I called the Concierge to request a hair straightener. It never came.
Half an hour later I called the front desk who then got ahold of housekeeping who then brought one “straight” away. Puns aside, it wasn’t a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but for the premium the hotel charges, it’s just another tick against it.
2) Also called the concierge to have the complimentary shoe shine done while I was away at dinner. They came quickly! However, after dinner, when I came back to the room the shoes were hanging on the door and after inspecting them….were un-shined. I didn’t even bother calling to have them redone. I was too tired and didn’t really want to get someone in trouble.
3) With unshined shoes in hand, I entered a room that hadn’t been given turndown service. Not a big deal, but it meant that all the soaking wet towels in the bathroom were piled up in the tub and at this hour I didn’t feel like waiting for someone to deliver towels that should have just been in the room. In the morning I slipped out and stole a couple for a housekeeping cart so we could take a shower in the morning. The second night we got turndown and also our room was made up.
Overall.
Check-in: 5/5
Quick, deferential, and got an upgrade and a great breakfast.
Room: 4/5 –
Beautiful room. Great products, wonderful towels and robes, umbrella, hangers, plugs, free water, wood work and everything. But…….what is this monkey business of a leaky shower?!?!?! Ruined it. Who wants to mop up a bathroom floor while on vacation?
Service 3/5
- Had to call more than once for an hair straightener to be delivered.
- Shoes just didn’t get shined. Really? Take note of the Peninsula for comparison
- Dirty Nespresso machine? Come on!!!
- Turn down for what?!?! Apparently not for room 416
Status Recogntion
- Easy check-in
- Upgraded
- Free breakfast
Location
The location is simply incredible if you are here to see the sights. This alone would bring back, however if you’re looking for some night action…not the place. But, being minutes from Westminster Abbey, Parliament, the Thames is more than incredible. I would highly recommend this place
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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