Tag Archives: hotel

Ampersand Hotel Review

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The Ampersand Hotel is in a very convenient location, a few minutes walk away from South Kensington tube station. It is also near the Victoria & Albert Museum, Harrods, Hyde Park, The British Museum and Harvey Nichols. So if location is your thing, the Ampersand Hotel should already be at the top of your list. The hotel itself is beautiful, brilliantly designed, classy and elegant. The staff are friendly and helpful.

The room is beautiful. It has everything you could possibly need. You do expect a hotel of this caliber to have everything and it does not disappoint. It has free wifi, a hairdryer, air-conditioning, TV, a desk, cable, tea, toiletries by Miller Harris and even ice. The bed is comfortable and the curtains are good and heavy, blocking out the light and some of the London noise.

The bathroom is great, with a bath and a shower. It also has lots of handy kits for sewing or vanity. The towels are lovely and fluffy. A dressing gown and a pair of slippers also comes with the room. The only thing I can complain about is the lack of bubble bath.

The lighting is good, the soft drinks in the minibar are free. One of the things that I really liked about this hotel is that you do not feel like a customer, constantly being fleeced of your money, but instead like a guest.

There is also a Business centre, a library, a wine room, a games room and a gym.

The Apero restaurant in the hotel is good. With an emphasis on sharing. We had serrano ham mikado ,(delicious and different) ,Plaice goujons with avocado mayonaise , Grilled neck of lamb with harissa & onion salad and Gnocchi with chard & smoked scamorza and an amazing cocktail called Elixir of Love.

In the morning we had a delicious full English breakfast and read the papers. Our stay in the hotel was relaxing and luxurious. This hotel is highly recommended. One of the best hotels to stay at in London.


62 Per Cent Increase in Rent During Games in London

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LONDONERS RACE TO CASH IN ON THE GAMES

· 62 per cent increase in short term property rentals listed on Gumtree.com

· Average rental price drops as homeowners look to fill their properties over July and August

Gumtree.com has seen a 62 per cent increase in adverts posted by Londoners looking to cash in on their homes and spare rooms in prime Olympic hotspots.

The average asking price for London short-term rentals has actually dropped by 24 per cent between May – June 2012, as homeowners become more realistic in their price expectations and the Games draw closer.

From studios to five-bedroom houses, Gumtree has seen more than 10,500 replies for London properties for rent during the Olympic period. According to the latest Gumtree.com site data, the average asking price for a 4-bedroom family home during the Olympics period is currently £2,377 per week and for a 1-bedroom apartment or room, it is £892 per week.

Gumtree.com has seen hundreds of savvy Londoners advertising spare rooms or sofas, renting their property out in its entirety, while other advertisers are trying to secure themselves a holiday by swapping their property for a week with those living overseas or in other parts of the UK.

Current ads live on the site include:

·         3-bedroom apartment, Euston £995 pw

·         2-bedroom apartment, Wapping £700 pw

·         2-bedroom apartment, Shoreditch £2,495 pw

·         1-bedroom apartment, Stratford £1,000 pw

 

 

Hamish Stone from Gumtree.com said: “With the Olympics starting this week we are seeing more and more Londoners looking to capitalise on their prime locations and get in on the Olympic fever sweeping the country. For anyone interested in renting out a room or home at the last minute, make sure that you highlight how close you are to the Olympic venues, flag transport links, and talk about any local events that visitors might be interested in in your area.”

HOTEL DU VIN LAUNCHES ‘TERRE DU VIN’ With Lyn Harris.

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HOTEL DU VIN LAUNCHES

‘TERRE DU VIN’

The bespoke new bath and body range by British perfumer, Miller Harris

Translating Hotel du Vin’s ‘best of British’ brand ethics, Terre du Vin is the new line of bath luxuries created exclusively for the group by British perfumer, Lyn Harris, and her esteemed Miller Harris fragrance house.

Creating a bespoke fragrance is the ultimate luxury in perfumery and using Miller Harris’s unique skills in matching scent with setting – Terre du Vin captures all the qualities of Hotel du Vin in a rich, luxurious fragrance packed with British delights, from culinary and garden delicacies to those irresistible vices of cigars and fine wine.

The scent offers crisp notes of orange bigarade, bergamot sicily and fruity notes of grapefruit – all fused with herbs from an English feast; rosemary, sage and thyme on a base of rich vetiver Haiti and a hint of tabac noir.  Lyn’s style reflects her love of naturals and the delicate use of them is evident in this creation.

Said Nicola McSorley (Group Director of Communications & Strategic Partnerships),

“Our aim is to enhance the ultimate bathing experience and capture the DNA of our brand in a bottle. We’ve found the perfect gender-neutral balance of day and night for all seasons and an aroma that can evoke memories of good times for our guests.  I sincerely hope they like it.  To have worked with such a respected and classically trained perfumer and her quintessentially British brand is a great privilege.”

Launching from January 5th 2012, across all 14 Hotel du Vin properties, the Terre du Vin range comprises a shampoo, conditioner, bath gel, body lotion and soap.

www.hotelduvin.com / www.millerharris.com

 

Brits ‘terribles’ at foreign languages.

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Parlay voo onglaze?

Brits ‘terribles’ at foreign languages, with 19% unable to even translate “bonjour”

While everyone loves going on holiday, research by Hotels.com today reveals that this does not ‘translate’ for Brits into an ability to understand and speak the local language. Shockingly 64% of us are completely unable to say anything in a foreign tongue, and only a third (34%) of us are willing to give the lingo a go when abroad. Even simple words such as “bonjour” and “goedemorgen” failed to register, with 19% and 63% of us respectively unable to translate “good morning” in French and Dutch.

Despite French, German and Spanish being on the National Curriculum, only 13%, 8% and 6% of Brits respectively consider themselves able to speak the language. Of those in this category, 25% can ask a limited range of everyday questions, 21% can just say “hello” and “goodbye” and a strange 2% claim that they can understand everything that is said to them, but are unable to say anything back.

The majority of Brits (61%) rarely or never try to speak a foreign language, with reasons for their lack of effort being put down to simply not being bothered (16%), being too embarrassed they will make a mistake (35%) or simply assuming that everyone can speak English (23%).

Surprisingly 47% of 18-24 year olds reported that they haven’t spoken the foreign language they learnt at school, since they left. Conversely, those aged over 55 were most likely to try and speak the country’s local language when on holiday, with 45% of respondents claiming to very often or always try.

Putting pints before their Ps & Qs, more people (43%) were able to translate “a beer please” in Spanish (“una cerveza por favor”) than were able to correctly translate “thank you” in Portuguese (“prego”) 29%.

Kate Hopcraft, from Hotels.com, said: “The results of our study seem to put British holiday makers to shame, with even languages typically learnt at school such as German, French and Spanish having incredibly low levels of comprehension. Brits often have a negative image abroad when it comes to languages and unfortunately it doesn’t seem to be anything we’ll be saying auf wiedersehen to anytime soon.”

Percentage of Brits who could correctly translate these common foreign phrases:

Bonjour

81%

Una cerveza por favor

43%

Prego

29%

Ja

57%

Danke schoen

57%

Goedemorgen

37%

Buenas Noches

56%

Rugby World Cup Fans Face Hotel Hike.

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RUGBY WORLD CUP FANS FACE AVERAGE HOTEL PRICE HIKES OF 29%

Impact of major sporting events on room rates revealed in Hotels.com new HPI

British rugby fans travelling to the World Cup in New Zealand are facing steep average price increases of 29% for hotel rooms, according to the latest Hotels.com Hotel Price Index (HPI).

The booking demand for the six-week tournament in the first six months of the year contributed to the sharp rise with the average room rates in the host cities of Wellington up 29% to £73 per night and Auckland up 11% to £68 per night. The overall rate in New Zealand itself also rose 14% to £70.

As well as big rugby showpieces, the Hotels.com report reveals how Formula One Grand Prix racing can affect prices and occupancy rates in venue cities with the sport being one of the factors behind a 22% jump in Melbourne to £96 and a 5% rise in Barcelona to£102.

Sports fans also helped to boost the price of a room in London by 3% to £113 with the city at full occupancy for the Wimbledon tennis tournament.

The latest HPI also charts how prices can fall dramatically after a major sports event such as the football World Cup in South Africa. The country saw its average room rate tumble by 17% in the first six months of the year to £105 with host cities Cape Town down 20% to £100 and Johannesburg down 13% to £111.

The statistics could provide a pointer to what could happen in London before, during and after the 2012 Olympics with some industry insiders already predicting rates could jump as high as 50%.

Alison Couper of Hotels.com, said: “Prestige sporting events are key drivers of hotel prices and can lead to double-digit percentage increases as many rugby fans have found.

“What is happening in New Zealand and what happened in South Africa could provide a foretaste for what might occur in London next year. It is expected that several thousand additional hotel rooms will be available in the city in the run-up to the 2012 Olympics. However, despite the extra capacity, we would urge people thinking of coming to London next summer to book their accommodation as soon as they can as the demand and prices could soar the closer we get to the event.

“London is always popular with both domestic and foreign travellers but the Games are set to take that popularity to a new level.”

The impact of other non-sporting, one-off events on hotel prices could also be seen in the report. Dublin witnessed a 7% increase in the average cost of a room to £73 with the visits of the Queen and Barack Obama in May enhancing the city’s profile and appeal. Dusseldorf also saw an increase by 17% to £100 after the German city hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in May.

The Hotels.com HPI tracks the real prices paid per hotel room (rather than advertised rates) for 125,000 properties around the world. The latest HPI looks at prices in the first half of 2011 compared tothose in the first half of 2010.