We stayed at the Thistle Marble Arch from Dec 10-17, 2004, and had a completely enjoyable, uneventful stay. We arrived around 9:00a, planning just to check our bags, deferring check-in until the stated 3:00p time, but the staff checked us in immediately, which was very welcome and appreciated after a trans-atlantic red-eye flight.

Our room was very modern, clean, and relatively spacious. We were in a standard room - billed as a "double double" but in reality two single beds placed very close together. This posed no real issue, and upgrades are available for those desiring a king- or queen-size bed. Our seventh floor room was very quiet - the windows faced what was a essentially an air shaft, but again this was no problem for me. Given that this hotel is directly off Oxford St (one of the busiest retail areas in London), the evening quiet was very welcome. Given that we were on the penultimate floor, the room did become a bit warm around 2a, as the heat from the lower floors rose, but this was easy to address, and not a real problem in December. The Thistle Marble Arch is air-conditioned, but I can see this being more of an issue in warmer months. The hotel itself (lobby, hallways) is very much in the art-deco style, but the rooms have been updated and are a bit more modern. The lifts were a bit slow, but were always functioning.

The staff was very friendly and accomodating, and the continental breakfast included with our room was fine, if uninteresting. There is a good coffee shop in the lobby. We ate in the "Glenn Miller" room one evening, but there is better, less expensive pub food very nearby (ask the staff to recommend a nearby pub).

As I mentioned, the hotel is directly off Oxford St., and the Marble Arch tube stop is literally just around the corner. We found that most of the places we wanted to visit were no more than 1-2 transfers away.

I would recommend this hotel to anyone looking for a clean, comfortable location in Central London. I would definitely return.

The entrance to the hotel seemed a little odd, you have to go round the back because of the shops facing out onto Oxford Street. It doesnt really look like a hotel entrance, more a 'side door'. The reception is tucked away in a corner and needs updating, it looked very untidy however the staff were very busy. We were told a room was not available even though we arrived at about 14:00. The lady said we could have an executive room for an extra £50, which we paid because from looking at the state of the reception we thought the rooms might not be up to much. We eventually got to our executive room and it was quite nice. Not huge, so I dont know what the standard rooms were like but it was comfortable and the bathroom was nice and modern. The location of the hotel is good, there are tube stations very close by and bus stops outside, plus you're right on Oxford St and its not too noisy inside the hotel rooms. The hotel restaurant is ok, it is quite large and gets crowded but the food was good.

This hotel was in a great location, rates were good and the service was excellent. We had no complaints whatsoever. There is a tube entrance only a few blocks from the hotel, fast food restaurants and shopping all around, as well as a nice pub close by - The Three Tons. The continental breakfast isn't bad, but it was the same thing everyday. The service was excellent, we had an internet hookup in our room, which we made full use of. Our room wasn't ready at 9 am, but they told us to check back at 11 am or 2 pm and when we came back at 11, the room was ready, which was great. The concierge staff was so helpful with tour info and giving us directions to pubs or a laundromat since it was way too expensive to have them launder our clothes. The room was a bit small and I hated the single beds, but that is pretty normal in Europe and we didn't upgrade the room there. We had a pleasant stay and I'd stay there again if I'm ever in London again.

Booked on a last minute deal and was pleasantly surprised. The Hotel is in a great location - one street back off Oxford Street and very close to Hyde park. Check-in was smooth an efficient, and the rooms while small are well presented and clean. The Hotel is very large, so be prepared for a bit of hike to your room and a long wait for the lifts. Still these are minor issues and overall the Thistle offers excellent value for money.