Review: I try ‘work from hotel’ at the DoubleTree Tower of London hotel

This is our review of the DoubleTree by Hilton Tower of London hotel.

After a month of working from the dining room table and getting on my housemates’ nerves, I was glad to be out and about again. I decided to review the DoubleTree hotel by the Tower of London to try out Hilton’s new ‘Workspaces’ and pick up 10,000 easy Hilton Honors points from their new ‘day rooms’ promotion.

Booking day rooms is easy with Hilton: all you have to do is select the same check in and check-out dates and you’ll automatically see the day rates.

We paid for our room directly and Hilton did not know we were reviewing the hotel.

Location

The DoubleTree by Hilton by the Tower of London is very well located both for tourists and work. It was originally part of the eight-strong Mint chain which Hilton acquired in 2011.

It is tucked in just behind the Four Seasons Ten Trinity Square, within spitting distance of the Tower itself as well as Tower Hill tube station.

On the other side it is one minute away from Fenchurch Street Station and firmly within the City of London, which will make getting to meetings (when they start happening in person!) a doddle.

Arriving at the DoubleTree Tower of London

The hotel was very quiet when I arrived ….. although, to be fair, this was the first day after the national lockdown.

The hotel was virtually dormant, with all the restaurants and cafes closed and a lot of lights turned off. It was very odd.

Despite that, the DoubleTree has an impressive glass atrium when you walk in:

Check in

Checking in as easy given the lack of other people about, although the hotel had clearly missed the memo that the national lockdown was over and we were back in tier 2. They made me sign a waiver saying I was travelling for work!

I was given a standard queen room on the 9th floor, with views of the back of an office block:

If you’re lucky and get a south-facing room, you might get this view of the Tower and Tower Bridge:

Rooms at the DoubleTree Tower of London

Before you enter your room you see a sticky label declaring your room Covid-safe with the Hilton “CleanStay” promise, which I hadn’t encountered before:

The rooms look a bit dull and dated on the Hilton website, but in reality they aren’t as bad as they look. There was a part refurbishment in 2017, and things still look in fairly good nick.

Notably absent based on the website are the iMacs, which were a brand standard during the Mint days and still appear in the photos on the website. They appear to have gone during the refurbishment.

As you can (just) see, there is a faint imprint of the London Eye on the wall:

The hotel has gone slightly overboard with mirrors. There are four in the room, with another in the bathroom! There is a full length mirror as you walk in, a large one on the side of the bed:

….. another above the desk:

…. and one on the wardrobe.

The good news, for anyone who wants to work, is that the desk is an excellent size, with plenty of room to spread out.

A kettle and bits for making tea or (instant coffee) are also in one of the desk drawers:

As is an (empty) mini fridge. The wardrobe contains a safe, ironing board etc. There are no dressing gowns.

I want to mention the air conditioning / heating controls. At some hotels you need to be Stephen Hawking to work out how to get your room to a comfortable temperature. At the Doubletree Tower of London it is a lot simpler.

Instead of a digital panel, an inset switchboard with LEDs lets you select between a handful of options: very cold, cold, neutral, warm and hot!

There are no granular controls but and you cannot set a particular temperature but for what it lacks in precision it more than makes up for in simplicity. Sometimes, fewer options are better!

The bathroom

Here is the bathroom, which is pretty compact:

The bad news is there is no bath, and the shower is a step up. The door is also quite narrow, although the shower is larger.

There was also no handsoap in my room – bizarre, given promises of a ‘CleanStay’ and encouragement to wash hands everywhere! I had to call down to reception to ask for some to be delivered.

They did, however, leave some hand sanitising wipes.

What about the SkyLounge rooftop bar?

A major selling point of the DoubleTree Tower of London is its rooftop bar. Unfortunately, this was shut like all the other restaurants and cafes in the hotel. Here is what it looks like in the summer:

The hotel also has a gym.

Conclusion

The DoubleTree by Hilton Tower of London clearly appeals to both tourists and those travelling for business alike, and it manages to balance the needs of both quite well.

For those working, rooms come with a desk that is only slightly smaller than the one I have in our WeWork office.

For those who are staying for pleasure, the proximity to Tower Hill tube station as well as the SkyLounge are a big plus.

Overnight rates range between £90 and £150 depending on season, but we paid £65 for the day-rate. This combines nicely with the on-going American Express cashback offer (if you have it) and the 10,000 points bonus for your first Workspaces booking.

You can book or find out more on the hotel website here.

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How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards (April 2024)

There are various ways of earning Hilton Honors points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Marriott Bonvoy Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.  We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

Did you know that the Virgin Atlantic credit cards are a great way of earning Hilton Honors points? Two Virgin Points can be converted into three Hilton Honors points. The Virgin Atlantic cards are the only Visa or Mastercard products in the UK which can indirectly earn Hilton Honors points. You can apply here.

You can also earn Hilton Honors points indirectly with:

• American Express Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Rewards Credit Card (10,000 bonus Amex points)

and for small business owners:

• American Express Business Gold (20,000 bonus Amex points)
• American Express Business Platinum (40,000 bonus Amex points)

The conversion rate from American Express to Hilton points is 1:2.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Hilton Honors points. 

(Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)