The Academy - Small Luxury Hotels Of The World

“Overall, a very good stay.”

This was the first time I stayed at the Academy. It's a small hotel in an excellent location. The public rooms are really nice, particularly the bar. There's also a library room leading out onto a terrace. Decor is very stylish. Our room (17) was at the top - be prepared for stairs!, but staff carr… more

This was the first time I stayed at the Academy. It's a small hotel in an excellent location. The public rooms are really nice, particularly the bar. There's also a library room leading out onto a terrace. Decor is very stylish. Our room (17) was at the top - be prepared for stairs!, but staff carried the bags up for us. The room is well appointed, bed very comfortable, pure cotton sheets, feather pillows. Bathroom was lovely - all marble, big walk-in shower with dual head, luxury Elemis products. It was also very quiet, a pleasant surprise. We had drinks in the bar with friends which was really nice - big comfortable sofas and chairs and friendly staff. Buffet breakfast the next morning was excellent: a wide range of foods constantly topped up, plus teas and coffees. The staff overall were extremely helpful, I particularly want to thank Ida and Felix for their great response when there was an issue with the heater in the room.

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“Great location, friendly service”

I stayed at The Academy for a 1-night stay at the end of January, and I thought my single room was very smart. From arrival, the service was impeccable and one of the lovely reception team carried my bags to my room. It's worth noting that the hotel is a bit of a maze, being several townhouses toge… more

I stayed at The Academy for a 1-night stay at the end of January, and I thought my single room was very smart. From arrival, the service was impeccable and one of the lovely reception team carried my bags to my room. It's worth noting that the hotel is a bit of a maze, being several townhouses together, and from an accessibility point of view, this isn't ideal. However, it wasn't a problem for me. Breakfast was included and it was a nice touch to be able to have barista made drinks as part of this. It's a continental breakfast but you can pay for additional items from the kitchen. I didn't get to visit the bar, although it looked lovely. Overall, I would stay here again - the bathroom was tiny, but fine for me being a solo traveller. Great location in the heart of Bloomsbury.

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“Great location and staff but let down by the room”

This is a slightly longer than normal review but I want to give a fair overview of our visit. Firstly the staff were fantastic. Friendly, efficient and welcoming, they were all lovely and professional. The location was ideal. The public areas were beautiful, especially the library and the outside… more

This is a slightly longer than normal review but I want to give a fair overview of our visit. Firstly the staff were fantastic. Friendly, efficient and welcoming, they were all lovely and professional. The location was ideal. The public areas were beautiful, especially the library and the outside sitting area. The breakfast buffet was good but there was an additional £15 charge for what looked like a very small cooked breakfast. Where it was let down was the bedroom. Six flights of tight steep narrow stairs and no lift to a top floor room in the attics (the alternative offered was in the lower ground floor next to the breakfast room). There was no full length hanging space and no power socket anywhere near a mirror so it was impossible to dry your hair properly. The blind fell off the window and the air conditioning sounded like a waterfall after 5 minutes so it was easier to jam the window open with a water bottle. The bed was lovely but the pillows were heavy and not especially comfortable. The decor was tired and the bathroom was cramped although it was a good shower. Given that we had not taken a cheap room (we had a Bloomsbury double) and it is a small luxury hotel, we were very disappointed by the bedroom.

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