Honestly, when I first walked up to Cleveland Residences Russell Square on Guilford Street, I wasn’t expecting much – the entrance is pretty understated, tucked between those typical Georgian facades that line this part of Bloomsbury. But you know what? Sometimes the best finds are the ones that don’t scream for attention.
The location is actually brilliant if you know London at all. You’re literally a two-minute walk from Russell Square tube station, which means you can be in Oxford Circus in about ten minutes or hop straight onto the Piccadilly line to Heathrow without any faffing about with connections. What I really appreciated though was how quiet Guilford Street stays, even during the day – it’s one of those side streets that locals use as a shortcut, but tourists rarely stumble down. The British Museum is basically around the corner (seriously, like a five-minute stroll), and if you walk towards Russell Square itself, there’s this lovely little café called Pret that does decent coffee, plus the square’s gardens are perfect for a morning jog or just sitting with a book when the weather’s cooperating.
The rooms surprised me too – they’ve got this modern, clean aesthetic without feeling sterile, you know? The beds are properly comfortable (I’m picky about mattresses), and the bathrooms are well-designed with good water pressure, which honestly can be hit or miss in London hotels. I mean, it’s not huge – we’re talking efficient British space management here – but everything feels thoughtfully arranged. The staff at reception were genuinely helpful too, not just going through the motions. When I asked about getting to Camden Market, the guy actually drew me a little map showing the best walking route through the back streets rather than just pointing me toward the tube. Little touches like that make a difference. The building itself has that lovely period character – you can hear it in the way the floors creak slightly as you walk down the hallways, but it’s charming rather than annoying. Check-in was smooth (I arrived around 2 PM on a Thursday), and they even let me store my bags earlier in the morning when I landed.
What really sold me on this place was the neighborhood vibe – during the week it’s bustling with university students from UCL and SOAS, but evenings and weekends have this lovely residential calm. There’s a proper local pub called The Marlborough Arms just down the street that serves solid fish and chips, and if you’re into bookshops, you’re spoiled for choice with all the antiquarian places scattered around Bloomsbury. The 9/10 rating makes total sense when you factor in the combination of location, service, and that indefinable feeling of staying somewhere that locals would actually recommend rather than just tourists stumbling through TripAdvisor reviews.