Let me just say this upfront about the London Marriott Hotel Park Lane  – “WOW”.

This is the best service I’ve ever received from a Marriott property.

It almost feels like the wonderful staff at the London Marriott Hotel Park Lane ACTIVELY look for opportunities to enhance your experience here. I think I’ll need to go in chronological order to show you just how welcome these people make you feel.

The Walk-in

I used 45k Marriott Points to redeem ONE NIGHT at the Park Lane, as my wife and I were heading back to the states the next day. We walked in, and immediately, we were offered to have our bags taken to the room. Here’s the kicker – NO TAGS. They just mentally kept track of the bags. I have not even checked in yet!

Another staff member in the lobby walked us to the check in desks. The lobby is so small, there are only a few steps up a small set of stairs, it took all of 10 seconds to get there, but he walked us there anyway! He showed us the desks, which is not a counter at all, they are individual desks for individual check ins. They were occupied at the moment. So, our staff member asked if we would like to have a seat, but we politefully declined; it felt good to stand after few hours on an international train ride.

The Check in

The helpful gentleman at the check in counter got up from his seat to greet us. He got us squared away quickly as I did a mobile check in, and asked what we would like for my Platinum gift. We thought, let’s try the ice cream again. After our experience at the Brussels Marriott Hotel Grand Place, we felt by now that it was the definitive TRUE TEST of a Marriott property’s ability to deliver. We also specified 2 beers, as we were a little tired of wine by this point.

Being the sharp tack that he is, our check-in attendant asked when we would want it since it is Ice Cream after all, and he wouldn’t want it to melt on us. I said I had a reservation for Afternoon Tea downstairs at the Lanes of London 3:30pm, and it was 2:45pm at the moment. He said he thought they could deliver by then.

Just then, by surprise, another staff member comes out with a small tray containing two little pastries and ‘shots’ of orange juice, with warm moist towels to wipe our hands with. That did it, I was finally taken aback. I asked if I could take a picture, and the check-in attendant not only said sure but even reached out to dress up the shot for me! Whatta guy!

As we were enjoying this nice treat, he asked what we were planning on doing. He suggested that if we have some free time, to check out the Winter Wonderland across the street in Hyde Park. When we got up, he walked us to the elevators, again within 10 seconds, hitting the button to call the elevator for us.

This all happened within the span of 7 minutes.

Settling In

Within 10 minutes of exploring and enjoying the room, our bags came up. The staff member asked which of our bags to place on the foldout baggage table, and walked them over for me and lifted my wife’s bag on the table. Before walking out, he asked if I had stayed here before, which I haven’t. So, he decided to take a quick minute to explain the switches next to the doors.

Within 20 minutes, our ice cream and beers came.

I’m convinced, this hotel delivers.

The Room

As it just so happened, we were also upgraded to a Premium Room! ON A REDEMPTION AWARD STAY! The room has to be the best looking room I’ve ever stayed in at a Marriott property. The view isn’t all that great, but it can easily be forgiven as the room is excessively easy on the eyes. Modern and trimmed, the room was bright and it felt classy and light.

The bathroom, with all its marble, sports a bidet! I haven’t seen one of those in the wild since Japan! The nozzles on the shower have a designated tub filling option, and the marble floor has a white rug on it. The rug is a huge deal for me! It’s the first rug I’ve ever seen on a bathroom floor in a Marriott property.

Underneath the TV, which apparently has “Good Afternoon, Jonathan Avila” on it, is a mini fridge which comes stocked with beers, wines, champagne, chocolate, etc.

Huge closets come with what you would expect, but it also has a little sewing kit and other amenities with the laundry options toward the bottom of the closet. Speaking of which, Housekeeping knocked around 7:30pm, and asked if we needed anything (towels, etc.). As we have barely touched the room, I couldn’t think of anything, but the nice Housekeeping lady double and tripled checked with me (‘Everything is okay? Don’t need anything? Absolutely sure?’) to ensure we were comfortable!

The Property

The Park Lane itself is extremely convenient. You have the Marble Arch station quite literally in front of the hotel that gets you on the Central line. There is a bus stop half a block down the street. Hyde Park is also directly across the street.

In case you want to enjoy Afternoon Tea, or a nice dinner, you can always go downstairs near the lobby to try out the Lanes of London.

The Park Lane also sports an Executive Lounge. I was impressed by the interior design, the lounge has so much character! My wife and I came down here for breakfast early in the morning. We also brought our carry-on luggage as we planned to check-out afterwards to catch our flight back home. Not only did we receive good morning greetings the staff at the front desk on the way to the Executive Lounge, but they offered to hold onto our luggage at the desk while we got some breakfast! Like I said, I really do feel that the Park Lane staff actively looks for opportunities to enhance your experience here.

The service doesn’t even stop there. They helped walk some of our bags down to the front door. As my wife was putting on her coat and purse, the staff in the lobby engaged in small talk with me about where we were going next, how the weather is in LA, all the while holding the front door open for us. They went out of their way to make us feel welcome even up to the very last second. We took the bus down to Hyde Park Corner station and took the Piccadilly line into London Heathrow.

The Verdict

I am still geeking out about how great the staff is at the London Marriott Hotel Park Lane. It is one thing to provide services, but it is entirely different to provide that level of courtesy along with it, and that is where I feel this hotel shines. That’s not to understate how beautiful and convenient this property is as it also excels in those qualities as well, perhaps more than most hotels that I’ve been to. Yet, I’ve never encountered this amount of professionalism and personability at a hotel abroad.

Top marks, 10/10 would stay again!