It is difficult to know how many 'stars' to give this hotel as we have stayed here 3 times since my last review and each experience has been different, due to the rooms we have stayed in or the efficiency of housekeeping. On the whole, the staff at the reception desks have been great and have dealt with any issues graciously, although it is a pity there were any issues to deal with. In the autumn we had 2 good nights here, then 2 nights in Scotland before returning for a final night at the Marriott before going home. We arrived late for the final night and were not given the rooms we had booked (2 rooms with king-sized beds). It was my 'big' birthday trip away and I didn't want 2 Queen beds, which we discovered when we got to the room. I don't get why hotels don't give you what you have booked and paid for. My husband went to question the booking and was told that was all they had (we had booked several weeks before) but they offered us free breakfast to make up for it. Since our first stay here last summer, we choose not to have breakfast at the Marriott as we don't rate it and the coffee is dreadful, but we took them up on their offer. One of the waiters kindly got us coffee from the bar which has a decent coffee...It is difficult to know how many 'stars' to give this hotel as we have stayed here 3 times since my last review and each experience has been different, due to the rooms we have stayed in or the efficiency of housekeeping. On the whole, the staff at the reception desks have been great and have dealt with any issues graciously, although it is a pity there were any issues to deal with. In the autumn we had 2 good nights here, then 2 nights in Scotland before returning for a final night at the Marriott before going home. We arrived late for the final night and were not given the rooms we had booked (2 rooms with king-sized beds). It was my 'big' birthday trip away and I didn't want 2 Queen beds, which we discovered when we got to the room. I don't get why hotels don't give you what you have booked and paid for. My husband went to question the booking and was told that was all they had (we had booked several weeks before) but they offered us free breakfast to make up for it. Since our first stay here last summer, we choose not to have breakfast at the Marriott as we don't rate it and the coffee is dreadful, but we took them up on their offer. One of the waiters kindly got us coffee from the bar which has a decent coffee machine serving Starbucks coffee. When we were checking out we heard one of the receptionists on the phone telling a customer that they only have king-sized beds, clearly not the case!
We have just come back from our most recent visit of 5 nights. We chose the Marriott again due to the great location for the Metro Centre, the fact that the windows open and the Executive rooms come with a fridge, which I thought would be handy for having breakfast in our room and dressing gown and slippers would be a treat for a longer stay. The rooms are a good size and the sofa/sitting area is really useful. There are plenty of power sockets. We were shown to a room at the end of the corridor. No sign of any dressing gown/slippers and there was a loud, deep buzzing/humming noise. We turned off the fridge, air-con etc etc to find out where it was coming from. Hubby checked with reception to see if there was another room we could move to - none available, and she thought the noise was coming from the boiler room above, which made sense and fitted with what we could hear. I get the impression she had had to deal with this before. House-keeping brought the robes/slippers when we asked. We had the most awful night, in the dark the noise seemed all-consuming and we hardly slept. There was a noisy ice machine outside the door and you could hear the ice being dispensed, although i gather this gets switched off at some point. The next morning, the lady at reception was very willing to move us to a room half way along the corridor (not near the lift, thank god - avoid rooms ending in 1!!) and it was like being in a different hotel. The member of staff who showed us this new room came to our first room and agreed about the noise. Luckily I took the robes and slippers with us, as none were in the new room either. I think it is a pity that guests have to ask for what they have booked/paid for - I checked the room details on the website before asking for the robes just in case I was mistaken. Guests should feel like they are having a treat, not like they are being demanding. We slept really well in this new room. A few minor discrepancies between the 2 rooms included biscuits in the second, but not the first; wine glasses in the second but not the first; a bathroom bin in the first and not the second; a Jacuzzi bath in the first and not the second.
When we checked out we were asked if we had had a good stay, so we explained about the terrible first night and greatly improved subsequent nights. I asked if the hotel did refunds for bad nights, as is the case in other hotels. The reply was no, as we had paid up-front and I pointed out this should not make any difference. We were offered breakfast, but we needed to leave and didn't want breakfast. We were then offered half of the money back for the first night. I think next time we are in Newcastle it is highly likely we will try somewhere else, as it is so hit and miss here. Either that, or we will make the booking by phone and request a particular room, avoiding either end of the corridor or the room next to the lift shaft. We don't think the extra that is paid for an Executive Room is worth it. (Wifi is also included in an Exec room, but my phone wouldn't connect to it although hubby didn't have any problem with it).More
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