Holiday inn Heathrow Ariel - a good, all-round hotel!
Written: Jul 30 '04 (Updated Jul 30 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Good location. Comfortable. Good value via Priceline.
Cons: I couldn't justify the rack-rate in a month of Sundays!
The Bottom Line: A good hotel if you're looking to stay at Heathrow airport.
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| andymcf's Full Review: Holiday Inn Heathrow Ariel |
We recently promised to take baby Josh to Legoland, Windsor. We also took Mary, the teenage daughter of a friend of ours, and a friend of hers and decided that the best way to make an early start was to stay at a local hotel the night before. I visited Priceline and in their inimitable fashion, they decided to place us in an airport hotel at Heathrow. Not that at £25 per room, against a rack-rate of up to £184, I was one to complain. And I like airports, as does Josh!
The hotel is situated, like so many other hotels at Heathrow, on the Bath Road - the A4, that runs parallel to the main runway. I've stayed in quite a few now, from the Marriott, which looks like a large stainless steel biscuit tin, to the Sheraton Skyline, which doesn't, to the Holiday Inn Ariel, which looks like a wedding cake that has passed its sell-by date.
This hotel is round (in that it has a circular footprint)and, from the outside, nothing really to write home about. The other hotels look slightly more posh, it has to be said, but at the price, I was certainly not one to complain.
We drove into the car park and were very pleased to note that there was ample parking space; we were even able to park very close to the entrance which, since I've currently got my leg in plaster (fractured fibula), was a real bonus; it wasn't that far to hobble to reception!
Anyway, hobble to reception, I did. It's a nice lobby area, containing the reception desk, a bar and a decent-looking restaurant. I leant my crutches against the reception desk and proceeded to check-in, careful not to put any weight on my left foot after the right-royal-rollicking I'd got from Nurse Bridget the day before.
Things were going well. And then the 'phone rang. I couldn't quite believe the fact that the receptionist sat in front of me, precariously balancing like a monopod, whilst she picked up the 'phone and proceeded to book in another guest and then carried on to give them precise directions to find the hotel. Great customer service if you're making a reservation, but less than satisfactory if you're standing at the desk trying to check-in, broken leg or no broken leg! Anyway - we got our key cards and headed for the lifts.
The girls had a twin room (smoking) on the second floor. We had a double room (non-smoking) on the third floor. I'd have gladly swapped the smoking preferences over - and the views (their room overlooked the runway, whilst ours overlooked the car park and a housing estate). I was very envious! He who laughs last, however, laughs longest and I noted that they had put us into an executive room, with bathrobes and upgraded chocolates and amenities. At least the windows opened fully - so, once again, my filthy smoking habit was conducted hanging out of a window. I'll never learn!
The rooms were very comfortable. Decent beds, comfortable seating, good selection of TV channels (I ended up watching the film "Pretty Woman" with Arabic subtitles into the early morning!), comfortable bathroom with decent amenities and (slightly noisy) air-conditioning.
After a short while, we popped downstairs to meet up with the girls, who were clearly loving their room. The "Do Not Disturb" sign was hanging on their door and there was loads of giggling going on. Tea and coffee had been made (they subsequently borrowed more of ours). Later that night, the Playstation was apparently in use until 3am. That was after they'd 'phoned reception for a shower cap to be delivered. One or other of these indulgences showed up as £5 on my bill. Who cares? They had a great time.
We decided to eat at the airport. You can get a bus (The Hotel Hoppa) direct to the airport for £3 per person each way. Don't do it! Cross the road and take the regular public transport. Why? Because it is completely free - in our case, a saving of £24 - the price of one of the hotel rooms!
On returning to the hotel, Mary and her friend offered to look after Josh, whilst we relaxed for an hour in the bar. Great bar, with decent prices - we spent £10 on two beers and a vodka reef. We then returned to the girls' room to pick up Josh.
They'd had a great time. Being a round hotel, they had run round it. D'oh! They'd gone up and down in the lifts. It's a four storey hotel - next time, we'll take them to a skyscraper.
Josh and I slept in the next morning. We'd offered the girls the option of hotel breakfast or breakfast-in-bed. Neither was a particularly pricey option by hotels' standards. They chose, however, the McDonald's just down the road. All options are open!
We checked out effortlessly and were on our way to Legoland. For a treat, I'd worried that the girls would see an airport hotel as just a little bit naff. As we pulled out of the car park, Mary announced that she thought it was a "really cool hotel". I may have stayed in better ones, but I've certainly stayed in worse! I'm certainly glad that they enjoyed it!
Andrew
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
andymcf
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Member: Andrew McFall
Location: Canterbury, Kent, England
Reviews written: 74
Trusted by: 132 members
About Me:
Maths teacher. Father of young Josh. See below!
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