For this trip to the United Kingdom, we were staying in Bath, England, an incredibly charming town known for the ancient Roman Bath constructed sometime around the start of the common era. Our accommodations were the luxurious Royal Crescent Hotel Bath. The Royal Crescent is a series of 30 homes connected into a – you guessed it – crescent. Built in the late 1700’s, it is now a series of luxury homes and a hotel and spa. Although not affiliated with any particular program, this hotel was fantastic. Read on to learn more about this amazing hotel in our Royal Crescent Hotel Bath review.
As a reminder, for internal “house” reviews, we score on the same 1-3 scale we use elsewhere. A 3 indicates that a given category exceeded reviewer expectations, a 2 indicates it met expectations, and a 1 failed to meet expectations. We evaluate the categories we believe are most relevant to the flight, hotel, or lounge experience.
Details
Stay: 10/17/19 – 10/21/19
Room Type: Concierge Queen
Price: 500 pounds per night
Room – 3/3
The room was spectacular, featuring a spacious sitting room, separate bedroom, and bath. The room felt very authentically decorated and genuine in design – very proper and English. I do think the eyes of some of the paintings followed me, but it may have been my imagination. The bed was comfortable. The room was in good condition and well maintained.
Although not a “modern” hotel, there were a decent number of power outlets in several locations. The biggest downfall of this particular room is that it was located on the first floor next to the door. The curtains wouldn’t completely close, so at night I had to manually close the shutters to ensure privacy. Of note, the room also uses… a key. A real key. This was actually confusing to me since I forgot to lock the door at least once. Oops.
Bathroom – 3/3
An excellent bathroom, clean and in good shape. Heated towel rack and good space for toiletries were a nice bonus. The shower was one of the dreaded British “half shower” panels – I don’t know how British people manage to use these showers – and neither does the internet. Bonus, for a particularly crude take on the half shower door, try this one.
Despite the half shower door, I’m still going to give it a 3/3. Because I’m a better person than the one who chooses to install half shower doors in hotels.
Breakfast – 3/3
The breakfast was quite good, although also quite pricy, at 30 pounds each per day. I did not manage to remember to take any pictures, but tried several things throughout the trip. Unlike many hotels, the focus of this breakfast was definitely on the a la carte vs. the buffet, which was fairly small. You could freely mix and match whatever you wanted, without any issues, which is what one would expect for a 30 pound breakfast!
Status Benefits – Not Applicable
I did not have status at the hotel.
Hotel Facilities – 3/3
The hotel included a very nice courtyard area, which I suspect would be extremely pleasant in better weather. There was a gym which I did not use. The hotel also had a restaurant, which we utilized both for breakfast and for high tea, and a bar, which we frequently utilized for scotch. All of the facilities had impeccable service and quality.
Service – 3/3
The hotel had impeccable British service throughout. From check in, to the doorman, breakfast, and the bar, everyone was incredibly polite, friendly, and generally awesome. The real test was when I stumbled back late Saturday night after an evening out at the bars. I arrived at 1 AM and found the hotel buttoned up tight – so I ran the bell, and a very nice doorman showed up and let me in. I don’t even think he judged me in my late night drunken state. Well, maybe a little.
Location – 3/3
Bath, particularly the downtown area, is quite small. The Royal Crescent is about a 15 minute walk from the downtown area – if that – and a 25 minute walk from the train station. As long as you’re downtown in Bath, you’re near the “action” – and the Royal Crescent is just a little bit outside, but close enough for a nice walk.
Royal Crescent Hotel Bath Review Bottom Line – 3/3
There are only positive things to say about this property. Excellent location, decor and staff – it has it all in a very quaint and charming town in the United Kingdom. If I was going to critique anything, I would note the use of a “real” key was downright bizarre for this grizzled business traveler. But that’s a total quibble, because the reality of this Royal Crescent Hotel Bath review is that this hotel is awesome, and well worth staying at if you can afford it.