Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Tag: Accor

Ljubljana – Day Three (Ibis Styles)

We were all staying in Accor’s Ibis Styles for the three nights that we were in Ljubljana, a conveniently located hotel just a short walk away from the bus stop and railway station.

The set-up here is a little different to the usual Ibis Styles arrangement, as they also have a hostel on the seventh floor which means more social areas are provided for the entire hotel. There is a rooftop bar, which I confess that we forgot to visit.

We were all on different floors, but I think that the rooms looked the same. The bathroom set-up is very Ibis Styles… My room felt functional and bare, but it was clean and I had what I needed. Well, other than a welcome gift….

The view from the hotel over to Ljubljana Castle.

I had been fortunate to obtain a favourable rate that also included breakfast, although the others had booked room options without the breakfast. I didn’t intend to miss out though.

I didn’t bother with the hot options as the cold options were plentiful, but there were some eggs and sausages as well.

Bread, blue cheese, tomatoes, olives, cucumber, salami, croissant, bread and butter, all really rather lovely.

I always find it handy when they do this. I went down between 07:00 and 08:00 to fit in with the others and it was always quiet.

And my welcome drink, which I picked up on the final night. It’s not a beer that I’ve had before, but it was dark and interesting.

As an aside, I liked the lights outside the room which clearly indicated to the cleaning staff who wanted the room cleaned. I opted to just collect the 100 Accor points every night by not having the room cleaned, as every little helps…

I really rather liked this hotel, the staff were friendly, the room was clean, there were no internal or external noise, everything worked properly, there was a nice welcome drink and the breakfast was of a decent quality. I’d certainly stay here again if I come back to the city, which I likely will.

November 29, 2025
Tirana – Mercure Tirana

I’d just got off the bus from the airport and thought I’d take this photo with the beautiful light. Clearly so shaken by the bus journey, I managed to mess that up.

To make up for it, here’s a replacement shot from the following morning when I was marginally more awake and less traumatised by public transport.

The bar area of this Accor hotel.

The welcome drink and it was another smooth and generic European lager, but I like free things and it was refreshing in the extreme heat.

The room and they only had twins available. To my slight annoyance, this had a connecting door to the neighbouring room, which I hate anyway (and have to pile up furniture to prevent any access), and it was also not properly sound protected. They’ve only just built this hotel, so this just seems like a pointless small saving for the annoyance it’s already caused judging from the reviews. Anyway, I opened my window and the road noise drowned out any conversation from the neighbouring room. Fortunately, I very much like road noise, so all was well.

The view from the window.

If there’s a fire at the hotel, the general manager will get called out on this as the emergency plan is complete nonsense. Which means in the event of an actual emergency a guest might probably wander off in the wrong direction and for a brand new hotel, that’s a rather impressive oversight. They’ve been told about this in reviews and haven’t corrected it. Being quite dull, I always already know where the lifts and stairs are in nearly every hotel as I check in advance, but they’d be better to take these down and have nothing than to have widely incorrect plans. In this plan, the room highlighted is at the rear of the hotel, but I was at the very front.

Breakfast was very peaceful as the dining room was large and quiet, with the staff being attentive and plentiful. The filter coffee was a little drab, but that cherry jam was formidable. It’s one of the punchiest cheeses that I’ve had, but there were plenty of juices to temper the flavour a little. All absolutely fine though with plenty of choice and numerous breads and croissants.

I liked this hotel and would stay again, but they really do need to sort out the sound protection between the rooms as it shouldn’t be like that in a new build. Most people don’t want to open the windows to hear road noise to resolve the issue, I accept that I’m odd in that regard. The air conditioning seemed temperamental, some reviews have suggested it’s because they’re turning it off and on at reception. Either way, the room was tolerable in terms of heat and I set the bar quite high on that, so I suspect most guests would have been entirely happy. The highlight was the breakfast, but as for the fire plan, let’s just say don’t rely on it unless you’re keen on a spontaneous tour of the wrong part of the building.

The hotel is around a one hour walk from the city centre, so I decided that’s what I would do in the extreme heat, although there are buses and taxis available for those who don’t feel the need to walk everywhere.

July 25, 2025
Faro – Faro Ibis

This is the second time that I’ve stayed at this Accor operated hotel, located halfway between the airport and the Old Town of Faro. This was ideal for me as it put within walking distance of the airport, but I suppose it’s also handy if you’re the sort of person who can’t decide whether you want to be near planes or actual civilisation.

Check-in took nearly fifteen minutes because of two guests in front faffing about with their reservation, it felt like that they were negotiating some UN peace agreement.

My welcome drink of Sagres, a generic tasting beer which did meet the key requirement of being refreshing, although the brewery haven’t burdened themselves with what I consider a key requirement of it actually tasting of anything. The staff member, with commendable honesty, told me it was “only available in small” which somehow felt both welcoming and not. I wasn’t exactly planning a major session at the bar with my free drink, but it does feel like the sort of policy that saves the hotel about £10 a year while just very mildly irritating everyone.

The standard Ibis set-up with a desk, which is how I like it.

There was a welcome gift of pasteis de nata and bottled water and it’s hard not to feel welcomed when someone provides me with free custard tarts.

The view from the window over the sun scorched land.

The view from the side window of the corridor and the hotel’s main draw (although not to me) is the swimming pool.

All told, I rather liked this hotel and there were no noise issues, although I had my favourite room location of the top floor far away from the lift. The team members were friendly, the room was clean and I liked the custard tarts.

July 22, 2025
Bratislava – Ibis Bratislava Centrum

I had one night at the Ibis Bratislava Centrum, staying loyal once again to Accor Hotels. It’s centrally located in the city, around a five minute walk away from the city centre with its restaurants, museums and craft beer bars. It’s also quite convenient, as might be obvious from the photo, to the tram line. The slightly odd thing in terms of first impressions is that they drape the mat outside the front door so that it’s over the top step, I’m moderately surprised no-one has fallen down the stairs, especially as some of the tiles are chipped and damaged.

The room is the standard Ibis design, but I’m content with that. The staff member at reception was friendly and helpful, but there was quite a queue to check-in when I arrived. Fortunately, I’m rarely in a rush unless there’s a bakery or craft beer bar involved. As a minor point, they could though do with more power points, they are all over by the desk and they could probably do with them by the bed. I think that’s usually resolved though when the room renovations take place.

My welcome gifts and I particularly liked that chunky fridge magnet. Well, and the chocolate and the peanuts, there’s always a need for food based gifts. Call it an edible bribe.

And my welcome drink from the downstairs bar, the Urpiner Classic 10. It was the only beer that was available as a welcome drink and to be honest, I’m surprised that the fridge magnet didn’t stick to it as it tasted so metallic. It’s a very basic beer which was pretty devoid of any flavour, maybe some malt although I wondered whether that was just some slightly tasty dust. But, it was free, so I drank it.

The breakfast room was relatively quiet, which always makes for a calm start to the day. The staff member at the little desk had a friendly welcome as I arrived, but she said my room number wasn’t on her list for breakfast. She phoned downstairs to the reception desk and seemed pleased with their response as I was allowed in without any further query.

There were a variety of different seating types. This room is only used as the breakfast room as the bar is downstairs and the hotel doesn’t offer hot meals.

The breakfast buffet selection.

Delicious. There was a limited hot food selection, but I ignored that as usual, going for the cold food selection. That baguette was really decent, I had quite a lot of that bread along with half the hotel’s tomatoes, gherkins and pickled onions. I know how to live….

The view from my window over the city. It’s probably not the best view from a hotel room in Bratislava, but I liked looking at the trams going by. I also managed to make my room very cold, which pleased me greatly that the air conditioning was working, as the temperature outside was ridiculous.

I’m not sure that I entirely like “only use the stairs in an emergency” as that clutters up the lifts needlessly and also isn’t exactly the inspirational healthy message to give customers….

The on-line reviews for the hotel are a little mixed, so I thought I’d meander through the negative ones to see if there was anything exciting.

“Horrible noisy hotel, the room is dirty. The guests comprise of out of control kids and drunk Brit’s on stage parties.”

Assuming that’s stag parties, that is a problem and I think is a challenge for the hotel. There was a British stag group when I was there with the stag dressed as someone from Guantanamo Bay, but the staff coped with them admirably.

“I had an absolutely awful experience on the phone with the receptionist. After being sworn at multiple times and being told “I see people like you every day with your bullshit” i couldn’t face going to the hotel itself and booked through an Airbnb instead.”

I find it odd how people manage to make a receptionist react like this, although I’m highly sceptical about this narrative anyway.

“Location is crap.”

It’s in Bratislava. May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Bratislava hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeasts swinging majestically…

There are a lot of complaints about the air conditioning, so I might have been very fortunate to have a room where it worked so well. I have twice this year gone to reception at hotels to reject a room for being too hot, so I have a lot of sympathy for customers stuck in a room which is too hot. At least the windows open in this hotel, unlike some IHG hotels which seem to so often have sealed windows.

“No mini bar no room service.”

Aspirational.

Anyway, I liked this hotel as it was clean and comfortable. I suspect the staff member was fed up with putting my bag in the luggage store as they did it the day of my stay and the day afterwards, with it being a slight faff to get the key, walk to the luggage room and all that, but she pretended not to be annoyed. The breakfast was decent and I liked the welcome gifts, so another win there. It was more expensive than I’d usually pay at around £60 for the room and breakfast, but I wanted to be in the city centre for at least one night. Hopefully I’ll stay here again, all rather recent.

July 4, 2025
Gdansk – Hotel Mercure Gdańsk Stare Miasto

I’ve stayed here before and it’s one of my favourite Accor hotels in Poland, so as there was a relatively low price I thought I’d opt for here for my single night in Gdansk. Here’s the view from my hotel window as I didn’t take another photo of the hotel’s frontage. The welcome at the front desk was immediate, engaging and personable, a very positive first impression.

The rather lovely seating area on every floor. This is one of those little touches that does make a difference. Thinking of my friend Richard, who gets tired easily, having a chair to sit down whilst waiting for the lift is very useful. Incidentally, he’s now a TV star, I’ll excitedly post links when iPlayer has his appearance on.

I booked a cheap single room, but was upgraded to an executive room and I was surprised and delighted at the arrangement. Clean, comfortable and I love that window seat option.

Drinks in the minibar. I didn’t want to be greedy and so I left the lager. I’m very helpful like that.

I wasn’t sure when I stayed last time if the drinks were free, but it was clear this time.

There were also some welcome gifts, a nice postcard, badge, amber soap and some sort of coffee. A really lovely gesture. Richard very much liked my exciting ‘welcome gifts from Accor’ page when I had it, so I must update that at some point.

The view from the window and one of the free drinks from the fridge, the Złote Lwy from Browar Amber. It’s a light, malty and refreshing drink with the view adding to the whole experience.

The Gdansk shipyards are visible here, formerly known as the Lenin Shipyards and where Solidarność was founded.

The view at night and the city’s main railway station is visible on the left-hand side.

Downstairs at the bar, these were the local beers to choose from as a welcome drink. The helpful team member said I could have any and I was tempted by the Baltic Porter but it was rather strong and I didn’t want to overdo it.

I instead went for the Kozlak from Browar Amber, which was sweet with flavours of toffee and caramel. I very much like it when hotels make an effort to support a local brewery, with Browar Amber being located in Bielkówko which is a little to the south west of Gdansk.

I won’t witter on any more as I’ve already written about this hotel, but I was entirely content at this repeat stay, it felt well managed and organised. And giving me free beer is always a way to get me to write lovely things about anything…. Unless it’s Greene King and then I’m more picky.

June 21, 2025
Vilnius – Novotel

I was fortunate to get a cheap rate for this hotel as it was a Sunday night, an Accor hotel that I didn’t visit when I was last in Vilnius. It’s a very well reviewed hotel on-line and it’s located in the centre of Vilnius, it was all a little more decadent than what I’m used to.

There was a wait of a few minutes to check-in as they had a little rush of customers, but it all looked quite organised in the lobby. They wanted to see my credit card so that they could take a deposit for the mini-bar that I had no intentions of using, but this became problematic as my cards are from Chase and don’t have the number printed on them. This caused the helpful staff member some confusion as she said she hadn’t seen this, so she decided to trust me not to run off with their Cokes.

The lobby bar and this felt modern and on-trend, but it didn’t ever seem very busy. It’s an interesting space that seems under-used, perhaps they should open a craft beer bar there.

They had two beers available as my welcome drink, one of which was some lager and this was the Penki Mazgai from Brick by Brick Brewery. It was perhaps slightly thin, but it had a tropical flavour, stone fruit and was an agreeable pale ale.

The welcome gift from the hotel, cheese, crisps, olives and red wine. I don’t much drink wine, especially red wine, but I did have this the following evening in Kaunas as they didn’t offer me anything there. A lovely gesture though and I fancied a snack. Although I nearly always fancy a snack, but that’s a different matter. I did take a video of the room, but no photos, but I don’t think it’s exciting enough to share. The room was clean, functional and in the bathroom there was a bath as well as a separate shower with the room design being near identical to the Novotel which I stayed at in Athens a few weeks ago. It was an upgraded room on a higher floor, not the cheap and cheerful room that I actually booked.

The view from the window of my room.

And at night.

Breakfast was included in the room rate and it was very busy, although I took this photo during a brief period of calm, although I found a seat without too much trouble. The space here is insufficient though, they have this large hotel and they’ve got a relatively small counter which is hard to navigate with the number of customers they have. At the back is the coffee area which also isn’t really large enough and there are numerous pinchpoints with this whole arrangement.

The hot food, which I ignored.

The cold food selection at the end, which was reasonable choice although not as good as in Dortmund. I liked the choice there, not least as they had guacamole. I suppose one of the challenges is trying to offer people what they want, so sacrifices are made with the quality to offer this level of quantity. Although I would personally have them ditch all the hot stuff and replace it with guacamole, I accept that this might not be a decision that went down with universal approval.

That’ll do. I’d add I might have had another couple of plates of this and at least two litres of orange juice. They had takeaway containers for the coffee which is a helpful bonus so that I could have one for the room as well.

As mentioned, the on-line reviews are very positive although one guest went to TripAdvisor to leave a 1/5 as there was a small hole in their bed sheet. I do wonder sometimes how people cope with life, but maybe I have lower expectations. And the member of the public who wasn’t allowed to use the toilet even though they’ve stayed at an Accor hotel in another location before, so they felt the need to leave a 1/5. Not only that, but he made sure to mention the staff member to try and cause her issues, which feels rather unfair to me. The vast majority of customers were though content with their stay, I just like having a little read of the negativity.

For the price that I paid, which was around £50 for the room and breakfast, I thought that the value was excellent. I’m not sure that they made much on me given they upgraded my room, gave me a welcome wine, snacks and then a welcome drink, but I’ve left them a positive review and I’m wittering on here in a helpful manner. I’d definitely stay again, although the rack rate for this hotel is usually quite expensive, so I might have to pick a cheaper option unless it’s a cut-price Sunday again…..

June 21, 2025
Budapest – Ibis Styles Budapest Airport

I mentioned in my last post that it took just seven minutes for me to get from the aircraft to the reception desk of the Ibis Styles, a building they share with their sister Accor hotel chain Tribe.

The team member at the reception desk was friendly, engaging and welcoming so my first impressions were positive. They use the bar at Tribe for drinks until midnight, so I was able to get my welcome drink there, opting for the Soproni as that was the only beer that they had. As an aside, an on-trend brand such as Tribe should probably have a better range of beers, but I won’t get distracted down that path.

I note that the hotel gets some negative reviews from airport users who want to come in and use the bar facilities overnight whilst waiting for their early morning flights. I’m with Accor here, you can’t really have a hotel which has a heap of people sleeping in their foyer when they’ve got hundreds of rooms on the floors above. For those staying in the hotel, they do though have a 24 hour bar available.

It was a relaxed and comfortable vibe though, Accor have been pretty ahead of the curve on making these foyer areas feel welcoming.

The room, before I had found the light switches. The hotel didn’t have opening windows, but the air conditioning worked well and soon made the room freezing cold just as I like it. The ceilings in the room are raw concrete, with a couple of lines painted on, which has annoyed a few customers who assumed that their rooms hadn’t been finished. I’m all for the industrial look though, although I didn’t follow the instructions plastered on the wall about making a paper airplane. Quirky is positive though, there’s enough corporate blandness in the world already.

And the room after I had found the light switches.

And the rather lovely welcome gifts which were very much appreciated.

Breakfast was included in the room rate and the hot options were better than they often are, with the potato lumps (probably not their official term), the roasted vegetables and the tomato based sauce all having some taste and flavour to them. The sausage was a bit generic but it was all at the appropriate temperature.

The cold elements of the breakfast, always my favourite part. I tested a lot of the cooked meats selection and that met my expectations.

There we go…. After I had collected the various component parts of the breakfast up as there were separate bread, juice and pastry counters. The breakfast area was quite large and it was quiet when I was there, but the opening hours are long and they offer light breakfasts from 04:00 for those with early flights (or those who just get up early).

I liked this hotel, it was clean, comfortable and everything seemed to work properly. The major selling point is that it’s the airport hotel and is just a two minute walk from the airport terminal, which is rather optimal to say the least when arriving into the city late at night. I’d happily stay here again and the pricing seems reasonable for an airport hotel, it’s cheaper than the numerous options at Luton Airport.

June 2, 2025
Basel (Saint-Louis in France) – Aparthotel Adagio Access Saint-Louis Bâle (Accor Hotels)

I haven’t stayed at an Adagio before, but this one was showing as the cheapest Accor option in the area. The Adagio Aparthotels brand is offered in three distinct tiers, Adagio as the standard option, Adagio Access for budget-friendly stays and Adagio Premium for a more upscale experience. No surprise I was visiting an Adagio Access, I know where I stand in the hotel hierarchy….

After the faff of getting here, I was pleased to see the welcome gift of crisps and water, a nice little gesture. The check-in had been a little convoluted as the person in front decided to ask far more questions than I felt necessary about the hotel, but as patience is one of my middle names, I just stood and tried not to look too passive aggressive whilst standing there waiting. The team member at reception was helpful and engaging, with everything feeling well managed here. Unusually, I was given an actual key to get into the room rather than a card, it felt like something of a throw-back…

The bedroom area of the room, with everything being clean and organised.

The kitchen area, with the desk and bathroom at the rear of the photo. I didn’t need to use the kitchen area at all, as I decided to eat my crisps from the packet rather than from a plate, but I noticed from signage that they would be charging if the washing up wasn’t done.

The view from the window over semi-rural France. It’s located in the French village of Saint-Louis and is literally a one minute walk from the Swiss border and it’s easy to meander into Basel from the hotel.

As I rather like doing this, since I don’t get out much, I thought I’d have a little look at the reviews to see if there was anything exciting.

“I was going to take a shower and didn’t have hot water, tried to call the reception and they wouldn’t answer the telephone. Had to go there in a towel.”

No, there is no logical requirement here to walk to reception in a towel.

“Catastrophic. Having to leave the hotel at 7:00 a.m., I asked if it would be possible to have a simple breakfast made for me, namely a small coffee and a glass of orange juice. I was told that breakfast opened at 7:30 a.m., period.”

I’m not sure that being a refused a breakfast before they were open is “catastrophic” especially when each room has a little kitchen, but each to their own….

“Well situated, but disastrous bedding. Definitively NOT recommended for side sleepers as the beds are as hard as a rock.”

Disastrous?

“We reserved 2 rooms at this Aparthotel when flying from Denmark to Basel. Unfortunately, our flight was cancelled at the last minute after we already traveled to Copenhagen Airport and got our boarding passes. We had no options at that point but to cancel our trip to Switzerland, France, and Germany, because we had to return to the USA soon. On top of this great disappointment, the hotel would not cancel the room and refund our money. We called as soon as the flight was cancelled, which was late, but they were unwilling to make any adjustment. I understand that was their policy, but in a situation like this, I would expect better customer service, rather than hiding behind their policy.”

I liked that the hotel reminded them that they had booked non-refundable rooms and that their policy was common in the industry, adding “the cancellation of your flight was not our doing” and they’re not wrong there….

As they’re designed as apartments for slightly longer visits, I doubt that many guests usually stay for just one day at these hotels, but I suspect they are sometimes quite cheap as they have gaps between bookings that they can’t easily fill. Anyway, it’s not really a brand within the Accor chain that I’d prioritise in terms of staying as I don’t need kitchens and the like, but if it looks like an affordable option I suspect that I’ll be there again…..

April 24, 2025
Accor Hotels – Newcastle Accidental Booking Review

I was eating breakfast this morning at the Mercure in Warsaw and because I’m really exciting, I thought I’d look at reviews of Accor Hotels on Trustpilot. I saw this review and thought that this must be nearly impossible to do and I was initially sceptical how someone could do that.

But I did a dummy booking and, actually, I can see exactly how someone would do this. Accor displays the price in GBP as standard for customers in the UK and as their hotels have similar external designs globally, I don’t see anything in the photo that would immediately stand out. I feel quite sorry for the guy, if he spent over £1,000 on room bookings for a hotel he couldn’t use, that’s really quite sub-optimal and I’d certainly be disappointed as it’s obviously not completely out of their hands. It’s actually very much in their hands.

April 20, 2025
Wrocław – Ibis budget Wrocław Południe

For my final night in Wrocław, I switched to the Ibis budget Wrocław Południe which was £30 including breakfast. Fortunately, I had enough points to pay all but 0.8zl (about 15p) which it was noted was the cheapest room they’d charged at the hotel for a while. On which matter, the receptionist was friendly, engaging and spoke beautiful English (as in, she spoke it beautifully rather than me making some general comment about how great English is as a language….).

I forgot to take a photo of the room as I was distracted by the welcome gift, which the hotel doesn’t really need to offer but I always appreciate it. Especially when it’s food. I have stayed at this hotel before, but it was around eight years ago and all I remember is the three mile walk to the city centre. I made sure to leave a five-star review because they gave me a doughnut and that is why hotels should give doughnuts…..

From my extensive collection of photos that I keep….. This is the room in 2017 when I last visited and it hasn’t changed much to be honest.

To quote the great philosopher Frank Spencer, a trouble shared is a trouble doubled, so there are other things…

The view from the window and it’s a peaceful location. The building in front is the Novotel, but it’s quite a bit more expensive than the Ibis Budget and I’m not as decadent as Richard.

The breakfast buffet arrangement, albeit at a slight angle.

Very hearty. Bread, butter, gherkins, salami, a hot dog sausage, tomato, cucumber, cheese, coffee and apple juice.

This is a photo I took in 2017 of the breakfast room, which also hasn’t really changed much. The on-line reviews of the hotel are generally positive, although I suspect that some people have some perhaps excessive expectations for a budget hotel. Such as….

“No brush or toothpaste. No water bottle or drinking water.”

I mean, there is drinking water out of the bloody tap. And there’s a Lidl a short walk away, but I’m not sure many hotels supply toothbrushes in rooms.

“No shelf under the sink”

I really don’t know how some people cope.

“The distance of the hotel from the most important points of the city of Wrocław. Everything is far away. For people who do not have a car at their disposal, it will be incredibly inconvenient.”

I’m annoyed on behalf of the hotel (I’m like that) about reviews like this. Why on earth book a hotel which is three miles out then? It’s a 45 minute walk into the city centre and there’s a bus stop which is a two minute walk away for those who want to use public transport.

“Breakfasts are a big disappointment, a few concise vegetables and cold cuts. I do not recommend buying!”

I like the hotel’s response which was “We would like to remind you that we are an economical one-star hotel that offers basic products for breakfast. However, this does not mean that there is nothing to choose from. In addition to cold meats and vegetables, we also serve yellow and white cheese, pâté, two types of salads, fruit, three hot dishes, breakfast cereals, yogurts and jams. However, if you are looking for more variety, we encourage you to check out the breakfast offer at our partner hotel Novotel Wrocław City, which is a three-star hotel. We believe that the breakfast offer of this hotel will meet your expectations regarding the variety of dishes”.

Anyway, I really like this hotel which is in a peaceful area of the city, it’s keenly priced, the staff are friendly and there were no noise issues. All really rather lovely and I managed admirably without a shelf under the sink.

March 26, 2025