City Hotel Nieuw Minerva Leiden

I’ll start with the positives the hotel wise excellently located, the beds were surprisingly comfy and the ground floor reception is nicely decorated. Unfortunately the negatives far outweigh the positive. We booked a luxury double room, on arrival we were given room 19. Essentially this is a forgotten attic room. The decor is dull dated & worn. Twin beds not even a headboard just two grotty scatter cushions. The bathroom sink was cracked and there was an over bath shower that was cramped and poor water pressure. After I complained they moved us to room 2 for the remainder of the stay. This is a first floor front room. This is the blue *****ed room from the photos it looked quirky, in reality it’s grotty, dated and poorly executed. Huge bed, big enough for 3 adults, with 2 pillows. No sound insulation between the room above when the guests in the room above moved the whole room shook. There are three large single glazed overlooking the canal unfortunately this meant we could hear noise from the street & bars etc. There is an over bath shower the fitting is broken so cannot be adjusted & the shower head kept falling down. The sink plug was blocked with dirt. We paid for the breakfast and regretted doing so- it’s basic & the fruit juice tasted watered down! We wish we’d gone out for it. The staff were surley. I had to arrange with the housekeeper to move rooms, it was too difficult for the receptionist. I appreciate this is a very old building but there was no excuse for the condition. I would recommend you stay elsewhere.

The property is central to many shops and restaurants. My room had a nice view of the canal. All of the staff was very friendly and helpful. Check in and check out were easy. Breakfast option offered.

No elevator, no heat or AC, low water pressure for shower, small room. Bad smell on upper floor. We do not plan to return.

The hotel is beside one of the main canals & is just a short walk to the main area. The reception & bar area is lovely. We had a nice room at the front of the hotel, very spacious. The only let down was the breakfast & in particular the eggs, both the scrambled & boiled were near enough cold. The scrambled also was literally down to the scrapings & wasn't refilled. All in all though we had a great stay.