Overall the hotel itself is very nice. Traditional, clean, and our room was spacious enough. What's missing at the Shelbourne is the attention to detail and the service. Two examples, the first from the housekeeping. They clean the room well enough, but they don't tidy up your hairdryer, and curling iron cables, etc. In other hotels, for example, The Dorchester, The Savoy, they do these small things so it's very evident when you go back to your room that they've spent time doing this and it's a nice touch. Mine were a heap on the desk exactly as I had left them. This didn't bother me as much as the doormen. At the other hotels I mentioned previously, the doormen are in a class of their own. They make you feel special, they make you feel welcome and like you've come home at the end of the day. They go out of their way to take your bag or open the door for you. I asked if possible to have an umbrella for me to get into the cab as it was raining and we were off to dinner and he responded: "it's only a few meters". I was quite surprised, to be honest. It's a shame because The Selbourne is regarded as the best hotel in Dublin and these small things let it down. No personal touch at all. Also, there is very limited lobby seating. Literally two or three seats and that's it. So if your waiting for someone or just want to sit and watch the world go by you can't. The spa set up is not good. When you go to a spa from the minute you walk in the experience should be calming and relaxing. The fact that the initial reception of the spa is on the ground floor, street entrance and the changing rooms down in main gyms pool area, then back up to reception in a bathrobe freezing by the street entrance until I was taken upstairs, to then be led into yes a lovely area finally. The entire process should be upstairs. This was very bizarre and I don't understand why it's done this way.

We were fortunate to spend 5 days at this marvelous hotel over the Christmas holiday. I cannot say enough good things about the Shelbourne. The staff here goes out of their way to provide the best in customer service. The rooms are small but comfortable and divine. We had a luxurious marble bathroom along with robe and slippers. Superior room service and turn down service adds to the pampering that awaits you here. There is a choice of lobby bars that are popular and fun places for a happy hour cocktail or after dinner drink. The indoor heated pool is a nice treat on a cold day, plus high tea to chill your bones after a day out on the town. There is a salon for hair or nails treatment, plus massage rooms for a body treatment. The onsite restaurant serves a very extensive buffet breakfast including omelets cooked to order. The location of this hotel is ideal as you can walk easily (just a few short blocks) to the popular Grafton Street with its many stores and restaurants. The tour buses stop at the park directly across the street from the Shelbourne lobby. Honestly, this hotel is perfect in every way. The room rates are pricey but in this case you get what you pay for !!!

Myself and my husband booked a night in the Shelbourne for a mini babymoon. From start to finish the experience was wonderful. Despite the challenges the hotel industry is facing, this hotel made every effort to make our stay as relaxed as possible. The hotel seem to have a well run system for social distancing and cleaning. I cannot fault the hotel or staff on their delivery of a safe environment. There was no compromising of service or atmosphere with the restrictions. The room was immaculate and thoroughly cleaned. It’s obvious the hotel regularly maintain the decor in rooms, it was fresh and welcoming as well as spotless. The bed was very comfortable and despite the weather being very humid the room stayed lovely and cool with the air con. What was a big plus for me was the peace and quiet in the hotel, despite there being a lot of guests you could barely hear any outside noise when you were in your room. We had breakfast the next morning which was superb. The quality of the food was clear and everything seemed to be cooked from fresh with a great variety on the menu. I must commend the staff throughout the hotel, everyone we encountered was pleasant and helpful even though they are working in difficult circumstances having to constantly wear masks and visors, along with the extra cleaning duties Since we couldn’t holiday abroad this year we decided to take some trips around Ireland and out of 4 different places we stayed, this was the absolute highlight. Other hotels could learn a couple of things from the Shelbourne about how to manage a hotel during a global pandemic!