In this trip you don't need a luxurious hotel where celebrities usually stay in to show their respectable status. You absolutely don't need to stay in a palace, functional building is enough. You may have a business meeting and you may need to prepare for it in a hotel. If your plans for the evening are unknown yet, then you can spend your time in a swimming pool or sauna. For all these reasons, it is better to book a hotel of a famous brand with business and leisure facilities at a moderate price. Let us present you Crowne Plaza Helsinki.

• Where: Helsinki, Finland
• What: hotel inspection
• Hotel character: city & business
• When: summer 2012

Location

The hotel is situated in the city centre, on one of the main streets, Mannerheimintie 50. There is the Finish National Opera House within walking distance. Moreover, it takes only 15 minutes walking to come to Kamppi – a large shopping centre with restaurants, cafes as well as bus and subway stations.

Front desk

• Check-in

First thing that attracted our attention entering the hotel was quite a spacious lobby. Cosy atmosphere was created by the help of low ceiling and well-chosen materials for decoration such as floor covering and wooden elements.

Concierge and reception desks were located in the lobby on the left-hand side. Approaching them we were greeted warmly and offered assistance by a female receptionist; however, there was no one at the concierge desk. The check-in procedure lasted for about five minutes and was held in a friendly manner. We received the keys and a welcome letter from the Front Office Manager, which made us feel pleased.

General appearance

Modern style with a lot of classical elements dominated in the design of the hotel.

Talking about classic elements, first of all, I'd like to mention elevators. They are shown on the photos:

Walls were decorated with the masks which are traditional for Venetian Carnivals.

Rooms

According to the reservation, we had a standard non-smoking room with a queen bed.

A full range of stationary as well as booklets with hotel info and an application form for loyalty programme Priority Club Rewards were provided on the desk. If you don’t have a Priority Club Rewards card, I’d recommend you order it because membership in the programme is absolutely free; however, you will have a number of various privileges like extended check-out until 2 p.m. or complimentary upgrade, depending on Priority Club Rewards card.

During the check-in time we were given a password for free wireless Internet which could be accessed everywhere in the hotel.

A full selection of “Relax Refresh Revive” cosmetics with Dead Sea Minerals was neatly arranged in the bathroom. Most of all I liked hair conditioner because of its nice effect.

There was a minibar in the room as well as a tea & coffee set, which is considered to be one of the features of upscale four-star hotels like Crowne Plaza. While in other hotels, for example Courtyard by Marriott, minibars are not provided, and guests can use 24 hours market in the hotel. Thus, Courtyard by Marriott competes successfully with other business hotels, but they have their own features. From one point of view, it helps to create a conception of qualitative and affordable hotels; however, from another point of view, guests who are visiting these hotels for the first time can be surprised by unusual way of service.

Food & Beverage

• Breakfast – Restaurant Macu

Guests could have their breakfast on the first floor. Entering the restaurant, we were not met by hostess who usually asks the room number and accompanies you to the table. At first, it seemed to be very unusual because in this case it would be very difficult to monitor all guests but a few minutes later waitress came to our table. While servicing us she unobtrusively asked our room number.

It was a buffet breakfast with a large variety of cold and hot dishes. They looked very nice and attractive and tasted delicious. It seemed that there were some tourist groups staying in the hotel at that time as the restaurant was full of guests.

• Lobby Bar

Within a day time you can sit on comfortable sofas in the lobby bar, reading a newspaper or drinking a coffee.

Fitness centre

You can also visit sauna, gym and quite a large swimming pool which are free of charge for guests of the hotel.

Summary

It’s worth mentioning that we had quite full information about the hotel before visiting it. All guests’ feedback and hotel info on websites were very useful.

Hotel personnel were really hospitable and helpful. For example, we had a room with an amazing view and we were promptly provided with the answers for all the questions we had at any time we needed.

However, not only attentive staff but also the hotel itself with its interiors and cosy atmosphere makes your stay pleasant. Overall, everyone wants to get a good service for a reasonable price. Therefore, Crowne Plaza Helsinki provides with the high service quality at moderate prices.

To sum up, the hotel perfectly suits everyone: either if you spend an enjoyable weekend or if you have a long business trip in Helsinki.

Hotel Contact Information: Crowne Plaza Helsinki website.