I raised the blackout blinds in my room to one of the best hotel views I’ve seen in a good while.
From my bed, I could survey the 900-year-old Tower of London’s turrets and thick fortress walls.
It was an overcast day, but the historic spot looks pretty epic on any given day.
I had checked into the citizenM Tower of London.
I like this hotel brand for being fun, funky and affordable with rooms starting from just £80.
But the Tower of London location definitely boasts one of the best vistas of all the city spots.
For those who aren’t familiar with the Netherlands-based citizenM brand, it’s motto is ‘supersized essentials, nothing you don’t need’.
Basically, it removes all unnecessary items, in order to give its guests a luxury feel – think slick design, fun design details – for a budget price.
The rooms are compact but can accommodate two people, with a wall-to-wall bed and window and a toilet and shower block housed within a spaceship-esque capsule.
There is a washbasin and dressing table in the room, along with a hanging rail for clothes, a small refrigerator, hairdryer and bedside table.
There is usually some kind of reading materials too, and in my room I found a few books with titles including Why You Will Marry The Wrong Person, Why We Hate Cheap Things, and How To Find Love.
On the ironing front, there is a communal ironing room on each floor of the hotel, which I think is a great idea to save on the cost of appliances.
The lights and television in the room are controlled via an iPad.
When I stayed at the citizenM Tower of London location I found the system wasn’t working properly, with the temperature control being temperamental and the lighting panel not working.
I wanted to change to some disco mood lighting – as that is an option in the rooms – but my control pad wasn’t playing ball and I settled for white over calming blue or sexy red.
On the coronavirus front, the hotel has taken a number of measures.
This includes no breakfast buffet (this was one of my favourite things previously as there was an impressive selection on offer), masks are to be worn in the communal area, limited numbers in the lift at a time and the roof bar at the hotel is also closed.
When I stayed at the hotel on a Saturday evening there were a number of guests around and one of the staff members said things were gradually picking up.
I would definitely recommend this spot for its views, service, cleanliness, affordability and central location.
Be sure to ‘book a room with a view’ (£4.50 extra) so you can wave at the Beefeaters also.
I look forward to returning when the roof bar reopens. A friend told me this is the cherry on top…
citizenM Tower of London is located at 40 Trinity Square, St Katharine’s & Wapping, London EC3N 4DJ
To book a room visit www.citizenm.com or call +44 20 3519 4830
