Rollin's Honest Review of citizenM, South Bank, London

While we were in London, we wanted check out as many hotels as we can. So, we went to citizenM, Dean St. Townhouse and Saint Martins Lane. It wasn’t easy but I think it is best so I can review it before y’all go to London. If you have any other hotels we should try please let us know on the comment section.

Table of Contents

A Design Hotel for Millennial and Me

According to citizenM’s website, it is an affordable luxury boutique hotel. It got everything you wanted. Affordable. Luxury. Boutique. What more can you ask for a hotel? But, I think citizenM might have slightly exaggerated their concept. Affordable? Maybe. Luxury? Maybe. Boutique? Maybe (You can read what I think of Boutique really means). Let’s find out the truth about their claim.

If you don’t have the time or feeling lazy to read, don’t exit but click on the links below to skip to where you want to go.

PRICE
LOCATION
ROOMS
BARS & RESTAURANTS
OVERALL

You can also check out other hotels in London that I did a review of.

PRICE

citizenM is a perfect hotel for people who wants to stay at a boutique hotel and don’t want to stay at a hostel or an affordable Airbnb, but still don’t want to pay a fortune. It is not a luxury hotel where you get a full service hotel facilities from gym, on-site full service restaurants and bars and high end amenities. But it is a uber clean and well designed.

citizenM Is “Affordable” Compared to Luxury Hotels, But Not Affordable Compared to Hostels or Airbnb

Instead, it is a self-service check in hotel with no extra amenities (i.e. no gym, no full service restaurant). So, by reducing the extra cost, the hotel is able to offer a reasonable price compared to the other luxury hotels (i.e. Mondrian hotel). I believe, the hotel was able to make it affordable by getting rid of the concierge, the gym and some other unnecessary amenities. I would rather say it is a design hotel for millennial.

It costs on average $100 – $200 a night. And the best part about the hotels is that is free wifi, free beverage and free movies.

LOCATION

You cannot beat the location. If you came to London for sight seeing, you are on spot. It is only 5 minutes walk to Tate Modern, Borough Market and the London Eye. It is also close to lots of restaurants and bars. I wrote about Mondrian Sea Containers a while back, and put some guide map in the post, and you can check about the area here.

LOBBY

The lobby is a typical design hotel. It has lots of sofas, chairs and tables where you can chill, work or hang out. They have a cafe/bar where you can order drinks. When you enter, you will see the self-check in machine where you can check in without going through the receptionist and wait on line. It is an easy process, and I believe most of the hotels will follow this path in the future (It is so much better than going through the reception. Aren’t we all used to uber and seamless).

citizenM Is Full of Designs and Trendy Furniture, But Doesn’t Feel Unique in It’s Own Way

They also have an outdoor space in the middle.

ROOMS

Citizen M on South Bank has around 200 rooms with all same size, and everything is white and red. Even though it is a small room, it comes with a kingsize bed which is super comfortable, and a working desk and a single sofa chair. The beds have a drawer underneath, and it is literally attached to the wall. Wall to wall windows which makes the room airy and spacious. You can control everything from blinds to light through an IPad, so you don’t have to waste your energy. But don’t expect a room with a lot of space where you can walk around. It is really a room for you to sleep and maybe do some work. It is not small where you can’t move, but it is not big where you can walk around.

You can see the video room review below:

Because of the small space, the sink is outside the bathroom above the shelves and the refrigerator. But the bathroom is still separated with tinted glass. If you still haven’t done your first fart or first poopy in front of your boyfriend, it is not the easiest bathroom to use. The bathroom is super clean, and well designed even in a limited space (It is not like Hudson hotel in New York).

The best part about the room is that you will get free wifi, free movies and free beverage. And above all the universal plugs and USB plugs!

BARS & RESTAURANTS

Citizen M has a small cafe where you can grab a sandwich or coffee during lunch or dinner. Also, they have a bar in the middle and it seems like they open till pretty late. I didn’t really bother going to cafe or the bar as there were so many other choices outside the hotel.