Leonardo Hotel London Watford

We booked directly with Leonardo Hotels as this worked out to be the cheapest option, and the booking process was really straightforward. Parking was also excellent value at just £4 per day in the car park directly across the road. First impressions of the hotel were really good. From the outside it looks smart, modern and well maintained, and as soon as you walk in it smells clean and fresh. The receptionist who checked us in was friendly, welcoming and helpful. The communal areas are probably one of the hotel’s biggest strengths. They are immaculate, modern, spacious and very well looked after. Unfortunately, Room 612, which was an Executive room, didn’t live up to the same standard. We paid to upgrade to Executive and, in hindsight, I’m not convinced the upgrade offered particularly good value. I was glad to have the fridge, but the rest of the Executive benefits felt a little half hearted. The package included two complimentary drinks, two complimentary coffees and discounted food in the hotel. The free coffees weren’t much of a benefit when coffee is already included with breakfast, and as we were using the hotel as a base for exploring London, we didn’t eat there in the evenings, so the food discount was of no use to us. The welcome extras were also underwhelming. We received one KitKat, two cans of Pepsi Max and some biscuits. There was a coffee machine in the room, although two of the pods provided were decaf. The biscuits and KitKat we received on arrival weren’t replenished for our second day either. Individually these are small things, but when you put them together, the Executive upgrade just didn’t feel particularly special or offer much additional value. I had also mentioned when booking that this was my birthday weekend and my first trip to London. I certainly wasn’t expecting a freebie, we paid £358 for our two night stay, but even a little “Happy Birthday and welcome to London” note would have been a lovely personal touch. The bedroom itself was reasonably modern, but there were several disappointments. The TV was dated, so we couldn’t connect via Bluetooth or use services such as Netflix. The bedding was badly creased and wasn’t particularly comfortable to sleep on, and the pillows were rock hard. We arrived back late on our first night, so it was too late to do much about it, but we did speak to housekeeping and ask for this to be sorted for our second night. The biggest disappointment by far was the bathroom. It was tiny, dated and completely at odds with what I would expect from a room being sold as Executive. The shower head in particular was terrible. I’ve genuinely seen better in campsites. I’ll upload a photo because I think it demonstrates the point better than words can. The bathroom was depressing and simply not of the standard I would associate with an Executive room. Breakfast, however, was very good and the staff work incredibly hard. Throughout our stay they were friendly and helpful, and the communal areas remained immaculate. The hotel is also a really convenient base for exploring London, particularly with such reasonably priced parking directly opposite. Before booking I read lots of reviews, and I completely agree with the many comments praising the staff. They really are excellent. However, when I leave a review and give a rating, I like it to be honest and reflect the overall experience, not just one aspect of the stay. I actually considered rating the hotel as poor because of Room 612, particularly the bathroom, but ultimately felt that would be unfair on the staff. They work incredibly hard and don’t deserve a poor rating for something that is clearly beyond their control. In my opinion, Leonardo Hotels needs to invest in this property. The communal areas demonstrate how smart and modern the hotel can be, but the bedrooms, and particularly the bathrooms, appear to have been overlooked when it comes to refurbishment. If a room is being sold as Executive, it should feel Executive throughout, including the bathroom. There is a lot this hotel gets right, which is why it’s such a shame the room let it down. With an updated bathroom, more comfortable bedding and an Executive package that genuinely feels like an upgrade, our experience could have been completely different. Unfortunately, as things stand, it isn’t a hotel we would choose to return to. We had a brilliant weekend exploring London, but coming back to such a small, dated and frankly depressing bathroom each evening really took the shine off what should have felt like an Executive stay.

Staff were lovely to start off. Room 544 next to the lift. Avoid!! Not ideal and very little sleep. Spent most the night awake as every time the lift was used I could hear it. Sadly didn’t realise it was the lift until it was too late and my daughter was in bed and fast asleep after a long day at Warner Bros studio. I’ve always raved about leonardo hotels to my husband especially the Birmingham city centre one as I regularly stay there for work. The bed was rock hard and could feel the springs. Sadly this experience ruined my positivity for the Leonardo chain. I spoke with the manager who offered me a complimentary upgrade on my next stay. We won’t be coming back. I was then offered a free breakfast. We’d already had the hotel breakfast which I’d paid for on arrival. Very disappointing stay.

Krishna from Watford went above and beyond to make our stay wonderful. He had been so helpful including helping me print a last minute document needed for work. I’ll definitely be back!