Why it’s good for business The Radisson SAS is the only hotel linked to Stansted Airport (both the Hilton and Express by Holiday Inn hotels are within a two-mile radius of the terminal), it’s a three-minute walk from the terminal along a covered walkway to the hotel’s airy glass and steel lobby. The location means it’s convenient for travellers with late night or early morning flights (the Stansted Express runs between 5am and 11pm, but up to 30 flights operate each night between 11.30pm and 6am). It’s also popular with executives who fly into the airport and use the hotel’s restaurants and business facilities for meetings, saving them the hassle of trekking into town to meet colleagues. In addition, the hotel has a gym, swimming pool, sauna, steam room and treatment rooms, which offer respite for the frequent flyer.
The room
The hotel opened in summer 2004 so its 500 rooms (including 20 suites) still look new, with an inoffensive modern design and muted tones (a contrast to the dated clashing colour scheme used in the hotel corridors). There are three room types – Urban, Ocean and Chili, which are decorated respectively, with vibrant colours/dark woods, blues and greens and bright colours with quirky furniture. All rooms have flat-screen televisions with satellite channels, tea and coffee making facilities, trouser press, iron and ironing board, safe large enough for a laptop (but without internal power supply for charging), heated bathroom floors and mirrors and mini-bar. A suit costs £6 to press or £14.25 to dry clean and must be delivered by 9am to be returned by 8pm. There’s also a three-hour express laundry and pressing service between 8am and 8pm.
A place to meet
There are 26 meeting rooms on the ground floor, which can cater for between two and 400 people. All have natural light thanks to floor-to-ceiling windows plus air conditioning and modern comfortable office chairs. For more informal meetings, the Wine Tower Bar in the lobby has tables and high stools where you can order drinks and snacks. It was buzzing at 11pm on the Tuesday night I stayed and is dwarfed by the 13-metre wine tower, the hotel’s piece de la resistance, which holds 4,000 bottles of wine and is scaled by staff in climbing harnesses. The three other restaurants (below) can accommodate meetings, or a private meal can be arranged in one of the meeting rooms.
Technology credentials
All meeting rooms have high-speed internet access, wireless internet access and video-conferencing facilities. The internet access also extends to the lobby area and all of the rooms, and consistent with Radisson’s business traveller-friendly policies, all internet access is free. There’s also a simple-to-follow guide in each room, which explains how to connect to the internet.
Fed and watered
In addition to the Wine Tower Bar, there’s an Italian, Filini; a tapas bar, TaPaell’Ya and the New York Bar and Grill for burgers and chips plus more healthy choices like salads. The breakfast was top class – a good mix of healthy and more sinful options including, as part of the cooked breakfast buffet, an excellent scrambled egg, which is rarely tastes good if it’s not made to order, and the thoughtful addition of soya milk.
In the know
The car parking charge to guests at the Radisson SAS is £7.50 per day, which compares to £21.50 per 24 hours in the short stay NCP car park. This means with room rates from £75 per night, if your trip is longer than five days, it could save you money to stay at the hotel if you have a car to park.
Business class – business farce
Business class: proximity to airport and good choice of meeting places Business farce: views from the rooms are mostly over uninspiring carparks – few even have runway views
The bottom line
Rooms from £75, plus there are packages including extended parking for seven or 14-night breaks, Underground or Stansted Express tickets and meals at both the Stansted Radisson SAS and its sister hotel, Radisson SAS Portman Hotel, in central London.
Need to know
Radisson SAS Hotel London Stansted Airport, Waltham Close, London Stansted Airport, Essex. Tel. 01279 661012, www.stansted.radissonsas.com, info.stansted@radissonsas.com
