St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel

tinahodgkinson

17 Dec 2023

Afternoon Tea Review - Perfect

5

5

Date of visit: December 2023

I have experience of challenges around: moving around

Overall Rating

Excellent

St Pancras Renaissance Hotel is the gothic, fairy-tale-like castle building that fronts St Pancras International Station. Think Harry Potter. Originally opened in 1873, it has had a major refurbishment to bring it back to its former glory and to include step free access via lifts and platform lifts. This review is for afternoon tea in the Hansom Lounge. It was an utter joy, food, service, ambiance, access were all perfect. Please note I have not stayed in the hotel so unable to comment about its bedrooms.

Disabled Access In and Around

Excellent

From the upper floor of the station, there is a step free entrance with manual double doors that leads into the Booking Office (bar area), walk through this and you come to the Hansom Lounge where afternoon tea is served. We were shown to our table. The chairs and tables were free standing. We were sitting in swivel chairs. These were very comfortable but as I have a mobility disability, I felt better taking the transfers slowly. There were also so fixed sofas, so you may want to state at time of booking if you have a preference. Afternoon tea is waiter service so everything is brought to you.

Parking & Transport

Excellent

Public transport is excellent as King's Cross - St Pancras is a major transport hub. The hotel is incorporated into St Pancras International Station, which serves the Euro Star and domestic train services. The Circle and Metropolitan Lines for King's Cross Tube Station have a step free exit/ entrance in St Pancras Station. King's Cross Station is adjacent and from King's Cross Station you follow the step free route to the Circle and Metropolitan Lines entrance, which leads you under the road and into St Pancras Station. This is very handy as you don't have to go outside to get between the two stations. There are also several buses that stop very close by. Once in St Pancras Station take the large lift to the upper floor which will bring you out onto the level for the step free entrance into the hotel.

Accessible Toilets

Good

The accessible toilet is in a step free corridor adjacent to the lounge. The entrance to the accessible toilet is through a manual door which also leads off to the men's toilets. There is a sign on the door which indicates this. Then there is a small hallway with one manual door marked as being the accessible toilet and the other door as the men's toilets. While the accessible toilet is in a private cubicle, I did get stares from men as I entered and exited via the main communal entrance. I have been to the hotel several times pre-covid, and I am sure that the accessible toilet was directly off the corridor and not via a communal men's toilet door. The toilet itself was spacious, clean, tidy and well maintained. There were grab rails but the emergency cord was tided up.

Staff

Excellent

Staff were amazing. Very welcoming, service was excellent, that perfect balance of attentiveness but also being unintrusive. We were offered a complementary drink when we arrived and madeleines at the end. Drinks, then savouries and finally scones and pastries were served. There were checks that we were ok and offers of replenishing our teapots. When we were leaving and I was finding my transfer a little difficult, our waiter appeared and offered assistance. It was just perfect!

Additional Information

Sorry I haven't taken as many access photos as usual. This was my Christmas treat and I was focused on having a good time, that I didn't take many additional photos, sorry. In the adjacent corridor is the hotel's iconic staircase, which looked even more spectacular with the Christmas trees. The staircase appeared in the Spice Girl's Wannabe video. There is a platform lift from the Hansom Lounge which will take you to the foot of the stairs. The lift was working but the opposite door had not been closed so I couldn't use it. Thank you St Pancras Hotel, we had a lovely time. I've been here before and always enjoy returning. Highly recommend it. I would return in a heartbeat.