Wheelchair users opinion (Novotel Heathrow Hotel London)

Member Name: AdoraBubble

Product:	Novotel Heathrow Hotel London
Date:	03/05/09 (106 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good level access, great staff

Disadvantages: Limited disabled access to the public toilets.

Novotel are a hotel chain run by Accor (a French hotel group), they have hotels worldwide in all manner of locations. Cities, out in the country and on resorts. They cater to all markets including families although their main clientele does tend to be business people.

The rooms are well equipped with all the usual amenities you would expect to find in a mid range hotel suite besides the obvious of bed, wardrobe etc: Internet access, mini-bar and air conditioning amongst them. Novotel hotels are well equipped so if you do not want to venture out after your long journey you can have a meal at their onsite restaurant, maybe a drink at the bar, simply sit and relax by the pool. or if you still have energy to spare a work out at the gym might be more your thing.

That is the chain in general now I want to review this particular hotel. I am doing this from the point of view of a manual wheelchair user with very limited upper body strength as that is who I am.

Firstly if arriving by car this hotel is incredibly easy to find as it sits on the junction of one of the main hubs off the M4 motorway very near to Heathrow airport. There is a substantial car park which is chargable but if you stay overnight you get to park free via a pass when you check out.

There is fantastic level access, easily managable by your average wheelchair user. The gradient is not so steep that you fear tipping backwards. The doors, if memory serves me correctly, are electric so no having to wait for some kind person to let you in. On entry there is a large carpetted Foyer with a seating area and public toilets to your right. (Be aware that the toilets are in a tight corridor so larger wheelchairs may struggle to turn in the space). There is also an open plan restaurant and beyond this, still on the same level, is the bar. If you are looking for somewhere to have a party they have a large hall available within the main hotel.

Check-in was easy, we were given a ground floor room with easy fire exit credentials. The room and bathroom was neat, tidy and clean. However, it did not have much in the way of disabled aids. You would certainly need upper body strength or your carer to get into and out of the bath. I feel this could easily be rectified by putting in a wet room in lieu of the traditional suite. One thing did please me is the disabled room also had the sofa bed which means if you are disabled with children then you do not have to compromise on your needs as you do in some other hotels by forgoing a disabled room for a family room.

Unfortunately, I did not sleep well due to the bed feeling tilted and as the hotel was full we had to manage but the staff did apologise and did sort out some discount for us. I could not bathe the next morning due to the afore mentioned bathroom but as we were only staying the 1 night this was not too much of a problem. We had breakfast (included in the room price) at their sunny restaurant, which was enjoyable and the food was good.

Overall this is not the best hotel I have stayed in but the staff were great and the positioning for access to Heathrow is pretty good.

Summary: I would probably only choose to stay here again if someone else insisted on it