They try. They really try. But the Hotel QT's insistence on being hip gets in its way.
The good: Great location. Tiny room, but that's why they call it a "boutique" hotel. Clean. I hear that breakfast is included, but since it's served starting at 7am, I had to miss it to make an 8am train. The young woman at the front desk was friendly and helpful, although she sent me to a non-existent restaurant. Oh well. It happens. Nevertheless, these are true strong points.
But, when the designers had to choose between being functional or hip, they went for hip every time. For example, the shower head in my room was stylish. About a foot across, it hung directly above me. Very pretty. But, a foot-wide shower head disperses whatever water pressure it gets. As a result, you can't really shampoo your hair in it (especially if you have more hair than I do, which let's hope you do). And because it's fixed above you, you can't rinse the downward-facing parts of your body. Ahem.
Not to mention that the shower area (an open part of the open bathroom -- very hip, unless you're rooming with someone you don't want to strip in front of) has an outside window as one wall. The window is frosted ... but only halfway up. Why oh why do the QT's designers think we all want to show off our nakedness to the building across the street?
Likewise, the bed is on a platform with a lip jutting out. Since the rooms are not all that well lei, and because I am a klutz (all part of not being hip), I kept barking my shins on it. Just another example of a design decision made with hipness rather than functionality in mind.
if stark, clean lines matter to you more than being able to take a good shower in a private room, then you will genuinely enjoy this hotel. But, either it is too hip or I am not hip enough, so the bottom line is that next time I'm going to look elsewhere.
hotel reviews