As part of a Belgian weekend, we stayed at the Renaissance Brussels.
Here’s our itinerary:
| # | Type | Review |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Train | Thalys Confort, Paris Gare du Nord – Brussels Midi (not reviewed) |
| 2 | Hotel | Renaissance Brussels – Junior Suite |
| 3 | Train | Thalys Confort, Brussels Midi – Paris Gare du Nord |
While the hotel is of a good standard, our experience… interesting! Just read on…
Booking
I booked this stay using the Marriott Bonvoy app, as usual.
Few Marriott hotels are still open in Brussels, only the Renaissance and Courtyard. I chose the Renaissance because of its location and greater chances of an upgrade, despite the mixed reviews on the Marriott website.
So go for the Renaissance at €84 a night.
Arrival
The day before my arrival, I noticed in the application that my reservation had been upgraded to a Junior Suite… But on the day of my arrival I was downgraded to an Executive room… It’s off to a great start!
We arrived by Thalys and then IC at Brussels-Luxembourg station, located 100m from the hotel – perfect!
We are warmly welcomed by the receptionist, who proceeds with our check-in.
She tells me I’ve been upgraded to a Junior Suite (very good, so we’re back to the right level) but that the hotel has no restaurant service, not even for breakfast! I would really have liked to have been warned beforehand; it’s not that complicated to list the unavailable services at the time of booking, as Hilton does… Being presented with a fait accompli and no alternative is unpleasant, and it’s the first time it’s happened to me since the COVID-19.
Before arriving, I checked the availability of the fitness room, which was confirmed.
Room
The assigned suite was located on the 2nd floor of the hotel, which only operated on the 1st and 2nd floors.
A pleasant surprise: the corridors smell like new, and we’re hoping for the best for the bedroom.
Unpleasantly, the workmen haven’t gone beyond the corridor and it’s back to the 90s when you walk through the bedroom doorway.
The entrance leads to an office area, well insulated from the rest. This is followed by the Junior Suite, equipped with a dining table and armchairs, a sofa and coffee table, and a sleeping area with a king-size bed and two bedside tables.
There’s also access to the dressing room and bathroom, both of which are (very) cramped. It’s not easy for two people to navigate this space.
The visit in video :
Hotel facilities
The hotel has a gym, operated by World Class Fitness, to which hotel guests have unlimited access.
We enjoyed it once, but the unfriendly clientele discouraged us from returning.
Beautiful indoor pool.
Food options
The hotel restaurant was closed, even for breakfast.
Except that as we left the hotel on Saturday morning, we spotted a small group of twenty people seated at various tables in the restaurant, enjoying a hearty breakfast…
I inquired about this via the hotel’s chat system during our exploration of Bruges on Saturday, with no response.
On the way back to the hotel, I asked if breakfast had returned, since some guests had eaten it in the restaurant that very morning… And then I’m told that no, it was a special event organized by the convention department…
So there are ingredients, cooks and waiters, but not for hotel guests. A shame!
If you don’t want to provide such basic services, don’t open!
Departure
I used the mobile check-out formalities and left directly. I received the bill a few minutes later.
Bottom line
The hotel itself isn’t bad, but… When you don’t want to welcome your customers normally, you don’t open! Breakfast is a basic service provided even in super-economy hotels, so in a 4-star hotel it’s inconceivable. Especially when they dare to take customers for idiots like that!
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