Sofitel Gatwick

Thank goodness I didn’t pay their going rate of £200/​night for one room because this Sofitel’s rooms are so not worth that price. While it wasn’t dingy or dirty, you can tell that the rooms are in need of an upgrade.
My double room was clean, but the décor was kind of tacky and the furniture was pretty rough looking. I did not find the bed comfortable. With scratchy, low quality sheets and a firm mattress, a good night’s sleep was not had. The bathroom, again was clean, with a big shower/​tub combo. Plenty of towels were provided, which is always a plus. My room was strangely missing it’s hairdryer, but I called down to the front desk and they had one brought to me. The room was not soundproof. I could hear the tram that connects the two terminals together running all night. Overall, I was not impressed.
The hotel has three restaurants, but don’t waste your money! It’s so ridiculously overpriced. Something like £16 for fish and chips that are probably crap anyway. Eh, no thanks. I just took the tram back to the south terminal and picked up a sandwich and one of the coffee stands. Front desk staff were friendly, welcoming, and helpful. The Sofitel is located at the north terminal. My flight was actually out of the south terminal, but the tram is super quick with frequent trains.
Protip: This Sofitel participates in Priceline’s name your own price. That’s how I got my room for £80. I would definitely not pay over £100 for one their rooms. If you’ve got a long layover and are desperate for a place to crash, or like me have an early flight out the next day, it’s not a terrible hotel. Just way overpriced.

I’m absolutely disgusted with the lack of respect and friendliness at this hotel and the bar and lounge. I was not greeted at the door, just looked at without a smile. The staff treated me as if I were just in the way. I’m currently sitting in the restaurant/​lounge area and have been for 35 minutes, it took 30 minutes for my appetizer which was nothing more than baby gem wedges with dressing and bacon. After I ordered, the waiter asked if I wanted anything else, I went to respond with «that’s everything, thank you» and he cut me off «saying thank you» and walking away before I could even finish the word «everything.» My mom also ordered coffee with double baileys and they brought her black coffee with milk and sugar on the side. I will not suggest this hotel to anyone, nor will I stay here again.

The rooms are ok but over priced but you are paying for the convenience we were up out the door and going through security within 20mins. Great start to a holiday!

Had an unplanned night here due to a cancelled flight from Gatwick. Had only seen the outside of the hotel before and to be honest my heart sank a little when I heard I’d been booked in here and not the Premier Inn. Just goes to show, don’t judge a book by its cover!
The hotel is great, lovely inside, great bar and restaurants, friendly staff, room was fab, and the bed was the comfiest I’ve ever had in a hotel. Great stay and will stay again if needs be!

Urban café in the Sofitel — Had the sea bass, salad, and rice — pretty good. Also had a nice coke. it was so good, i got the same order two nights in a row. I also got the view of gatwick airport.

Handy location and a lively foyer and rooms. Very clean and welcoming. For an airport hotel I have to say this one is much better than most and not expensive for the convenience.
The rooms are clean and welcoming and the bed are very comfortable. They valet was very friendly and proud of where he works. All in all it serves its purpose and does it well.

For an international airport, I’d have to say this is one of the best I’ve been to. It’s very easy to navigate, they have tons of shops and restaurants and the airport security is very easy to get through. I was over in Europe for 10 days total and in Gatwick a total of 4 times during this visit. Everything went smoothly the each time. Nice job Gatwick, can’t wait to fly into this airport again (That’ll mean I’ll be in London:-))

Very nice, upscale, and modern hotel right next to the airport. The breakfast is very very good here as well but a bit pricey.
A+ if you have a layover and need a few hours downtime.

I stayed at this hotel earlier this week after flying in to Heathrow from Germany and taking the bus over to Gatwick before flying back to the US the next morning. I don’t recommend the bus ride particularly (National Express) although it may be the only way to get there at a reasonable price with luggage (cost about 24 pounds). But once there, I found the Sofitel is connected to LGW’s North Terminal — it’s a covered walk of about 200 yards, slightly uphill part of the way. Also, there’s a monorail that will quickly take you between Terminals if you’re flying out of the South Terminal.
The hotel is clean and the bed was the most comfortable I had on my trip to Europe. Restaurants and bar downstairs were pleasant and convenient.
Wireless internet was free, but only for one device, so choose wisely or pay something extra. I would stay at this hotel again, for sure.
I listed it as «moderate» price, but some might consider it a little pricier than that.

Wonderful restaurants. I would not stay there if you are working in London, but great right before leaving the country!
Clean rooms, great restaurants and a good bar.

A distressingly long time ago, my wife and I got lucky. We were leaving Europe and had not been able to visit London. We were so disappointed!
So, we got on the airplane in Frankfurt and took off for Atlanta (the first leg of a truly long and agonizing trip most of the way around the world in the wrong direction, but I digress). There was a 5 hour delay while the airplane waited for a new part (a coupling). /​sigh.
About an hour or two into the flight — joy! — the new part failed (the coupling uncoupled). We had to perform an emergency landing in London. What luck! As we bent into the crash position, I said, «Gee, honey, if we make it this will be the best thing ever!»
The emergency vehicles lining the runway were not needed. Busses delivered everyone to the terminal and the airline put everyone up at the Gatwick Sofitel. This is a pretty if rather antiseptic business hotel for, well, business travelers. I would not recommend this for recreational travel. As a place to crash after winning the broken airplane lottery, it was just fine.
It was like sleeping in a giant Ikea, only the coffee was way more expensive.
Gatwick also has trains that will take you to Victoria Station and all the wonders that combine to form London. (We stayed in London for a week. Wonderful!)

In 2008, I had to work in London. My wife was still in school in the States, so, I ended up living in the Sofitel and commuted to work. I either took the train to London Victoria (30 minutes — note: train station is located in Gatwick airport as well) or had a driver take me to my office in Crawley (10 minutes).
I spent roughly 3 months here. Of note, I later moved to the Hilton (yes, after 3 months, I found that there was a Hilton at the Gatwick — since I was a Diamond member, it made sense to accumulate more points — so i moved. Kinda wished I stayed at the Sofitel though). Anyways, here is my review of the Sofitel hotel.
Well, the Sofitel is a high end hotel. It is located in Gatwick Airport Terminal. If you walk around the Gatwick airport, you kinda feel like the Hotel is kinda outta place. Gatwick is a small and kinda dirty/​unsanitary airport. You figure the hotel would be better situated next to a better airport — i.e. Heathrow.
Well, Check-​in is very nice and cordial (like the British). Rooms are very clean and well lit. As for the ambiance, the room was painted in earth tone colors… very calming. My only issue with the room is that some of the rooms faced the interior atrium. When you close the curtains, the light from the atrium still managed to enter the room at night. Recommend switching to the other side of the building w/​no atrium. By the way, because it is at the airport, your view is either the Sofitel atrium, parking lot, or planes on the runway. Woo hoo — how exciting!
As for pillows, each time I checked in, I always had to get a change of pillows. The feather down pillows are not for me; I prefer the synthetic. It has a firmer texture to it.
Overall, service was excellent. By the way, the first few days and because I worked long hours — 6am to 11:30pm — I ate mostly in my room; however, after a few days of room service, I had to dine downstairs at one of their fine dining establishments — the La Brassier or the Gatwick Oriental Restaurant (reviews to come shortly).
By the 3^rd week, the maids knew my name. Periodically, the managers sent chocolates and/​or fruit baskets to my room… Kinda cool. Trust me, after a long day, I was very grateful. Note: It would have been better if there was a bottle wine and a babe too… wishful thinking… hee hee. oh, I forgot, I am married… LOL…
Now for my favorite, they had the ULTIMATE fitness room. I loved the ellipse machines and the free weights. As a business traveller, it is so hard to find a hotel with free weights. I must say, I gained some serious muscle and gain some weight by staying at this hotel.
At the time of my 3 month stay here, the currency was 2x the USD (1.97 to be exact). At my corporate discounted rate, a typical night stay ran about 200 – 250 USD a night.
Being back in the states now, I do miss my time here. It was very relaxing and convenient. If you are in Gatwick, I would highly recommend staying at the Sofitel… note: do not stay at the Hilton Gatwick… it is much dirtier… and the restaurants are not as nice…
Cheers!

This hotel, although convenient, is not such a short walk from the airport as it first seems. It’s a decent walk to the terminal and then you may not even be in the right terminal for your flight. There is a free shuttle to the other terminal that takes approx 10 minutes (waiting for the bus to load etc). When you are brought to this terminal by the shuttle, you can’t cross the street so you have to take a walk through the car park. (If your luggage is heavy, take a trolly/​cart and you can walk it all the way into the hotel and back. Just be sure to have a one pound coin ready.)
Also there are not enough elevators so hubby and I often snuck into the service elevators. And the wifi is expensive when it should be free in the first place. Also I’m not sure but I don’t think there’s a sundries shop there so I couldn’t get a ziploc bag, a rubberband, or even a takeaway container from any of the restaurants or front desk.
One nice bonus is that Marks & Spencer food is nearby. Second, there is a proactive greeter/​concierge that stands in front of the reception desk to help people. In contrast the Heathrow Sofitel had at least 4 people doing that service.