Melia White House

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

40 reviews

• 

  Do NOT stay in the Apartments at White House if you are expecting a Melia Hotels experience

  It is essential for anyone who is considering this option to know three things: - The Melia White House Hotel and Apartments are two very different experiences within the same building, with the Apartments being far, far worse. - You will not earn points on the Melia Rewards system if you stay at the Apartments. -- The main hotel is generally a four-star experience, at a reasonable price compared to competitors, which is why my company had us stay there in 2024. Based on that experience but anticipating a longer stay, I rebooked in Oct-Nov 2026 at the apartments, which offered a better rate. What a mistake. The "upstairs, downstairs" effect is immediately obvious. You cross the carpet into the Apartments wing and it goes from lustrous to tatty, with chipped wainscoting and crooked burnt out lamps in the hall. Before you get into the room, it is very likely your lock will not work. The key cards are notoriously fussy - old mag-stripe cards and readers malfunction constantly. The staff are aware of this and warn people not to place the cards near any other cards or electronic RFID devices like phones. But it goes way beyond that, or at least it did in my case. The lock mechanism itself had to be tested twice, and its battery replaced by tech staff once, before it finally consistently accepted my key. I think I had at least five lockouts during a 7-day stay. I was asking to be moved to the hotel and they said there was nothing they could do, as it was a "different property." The room was a decent size, with the bathroom having both a tub and shower. After that, it was all downhill in terms of comparison, not only to the hotel-side experience, but to other accommodations at this price point. An old lamp with antique two-prong points required a converter to be requested in order to use in the room - why would you even have such a thing in the room? The walls are paper thin - could hear full sentences being spoken next door. There was some kind of gnat or moth flying around in the room - adding to the fuggy, stuffy, ratty atmosphere that pervades the hallways and rooms. Weird furniture choices - a vinyl couch - what is this, a dorm room? Miami Vice? - mismatched with rickety "olde" wooden tables and desks. A general lack of outlets for travelers with converter plugs - I had to unplug the TV in order to plug in the laptop with a cord long enough to reach the desk. A strobing light in the bathroom that was reported twice to management. It was removed but not replaced during the entire stay. The kitchen is super minimal - I barely used it as it is on the occupant to supply all cleaning supplies. I can see that being a fair offer for weeks-long stay, but for one week... c'mon. I did not use any of the appliances except the kettle, as they looked very dated. Another occupant told me the microwave blew a fuse the first time he used it. The laundry had only two machines, one of which was out of service the whole time, and another occupant told me that it had been like that for months. "Nothing we can do about it," staff told him. 'It's serviced by a third party.' And it will cost you more than $11 USD to wash and dry one full load. The second-class nature of this experience is reinforced by the opulent lobby, fancy cocktail bar, and excellent breakfast service for which Melia is known. I really don't know why they bother with the Apartments at all - it is brand-destructive.

  Nov 06, 2026
• 

  Tired apartments, poor customer service

  I booked a six-night stay at the Melia White House Apartments, and after just ONE NIGHT, I am ready to leave. This is disappointing stay especially considering that the Melia hotels are considered an upscale brand. The problems began with a slow check-in and have continued with virtually every aspect of the stay. The room keys are a complete disaster. Every time I leave the apartment and return, the key stops working. I have been to the front desk THREE TIMES in the first 24 hours to have the key reprogrammed. Rather than fixing the problem, the front desk staff actually advised me to stop by the desk EVERY TIME I leave and return to get a new key. Seriously? The condition of the apartment is worn. The door barely opens and cannot be closed properly without considerable effort. The hallways are dark and filthy. There is currently garbage sitting outside the doors along the way to my apartment, which is perhaps not surprising given that the apartment itself has only two tiny garbage cans. The kitchen smells, the stove is rusted, and the bathroom window is so permanently clouded that it is impossible to see through it. The heating system works only intermittently. I asked the front desk if I could pay to upgrade out of the apartment and into a proper hotel room. The staff member told me he would speak with his manager and get right back to me. That was three hours ago. No response. And the phone is never answered at the front desk or by the operator. It is now 9 p.m. I have called my room's telephone approximately 20 times, trying to reach either the front desk or the operator. Not a single call has been answered. I am left in a filthy, poorly maintained apartment with malfunctioning keys, inadequate heating, and absolutely no meaningful assistance from the hotel. What I had hoped would be comfortable six-night stay in London has turned into a unpleasant experience after just one night. There are plenty of other places to stay in London.

  Oct 28, 2026
• 

  Dissapointing

  We stayed 26-29th August. I booked two apartments for my family so we would be more comfortable on our london trip. One for our 19yrs old son and one for us. First the positives, the hotel was spacious, excellent location near tube stations. The breakfast was very good with lots of choices and no queues. The door staff and concierge were very nice. The apartments were spacious with a kitchenette and large bathroom. However one of our rooms was not ready at 4.30pm, even though check-in was 4pm. It was still not ready at 5pm. We had plans for the evening with dinner and a show booked. We were tired from a day of travelling and just wanted to freshen up in our own space. Check-in staff were apologetic but I did not think that was good enough! It was past 5pm not 2pm. I asked to speak to the supervisor who then offered a temporary room for my son to use to freshen up in. We were given a free drinks voucher which had to be used that evening as a good will gesture. I was stressed as we were now running late and so had to get a cab to the venue instead of using tube as planned. Our room was ok but the bathroom was dated with a slowly draining sink and shower, cracked tiles (had to place bathmat strategically to avoid potential injury) and a dirty loo!!! I mean really..... Felt too tired to complain .

  Aug 30, 2026
• 

  Wish I’d stayed somewhere else

  Decided to stay here for our 10th wedding anniversary after it was recommended to my wife. Might be our last if she makes any more suggestions like this one. We stayed for three nights. Basic? I was expecting roll call at any minute and a Screw checking in on us. Wormwood Scrubs would have been an upgrade. It had a bed (the mattress would have been better flytipped - and we could hear the springs in next doors when they turned over), a kitchen Rigsby from Rising Damp would have turned his nose up at, and a shower cubicle the size of postage stamp that flooded because the curtain didn’t reach the bottom. The bathroom door still looked like it had dust on from a fingerprint dust down. I asked to borrow an iron from reception. To be fair it arrived within minutes. But I might as well have used a hot stone it was that poor. The walls were that thin the people next door might as well have invited me in to play Sonic with them at 5am. Coventry City were staying in the hotel before they played Arsenal. I hope their rooms were better or Frank might have a few transfer requests flying in. On the flip side the food was good, the staff were very nice and the gym was decent. Location was close to Underground stops as well. Fair to say though we won’t be back.

  Aug 23, 2026
• 

  A happy ending, eventually

  I had made a last-minute booking of a Studio. I knew that check-in was at 16 hours, but my train arrived at about 9 in the morning, so I went to the reception. They said I would pay £70 extra, but it was ok with me. I was assigned a horrible place. The kitchen smelt of corpse and there were flies around. The fridge had clearly never worked in years. I went back to reception and demanded another Studio. They sent me someone to accompany me to visit a completely different place. Bright, clean, spotless, kitchen and fridge included. A very comfortable Queen bed, a sofa bed, a table with 2 chairs for dining, a desk with another chair, quite elegant. Very spacious bathroom with both a bath and shower and a separate shower cabin. Hot towel rack. Well-functioning air-conditioning, separate, for the bedroom and the sitting room part. A very enjoyable 3-night stay, eventually.

  Jul 29, 2026