"I stayed at the OWO Raffles twice in the last year and on both occasions the hotel failed to impress.
The building is spectacular but there were too many issues and disappointments during both stays.
Reservation
Both stays were booked on my Accor app, followed up by emails to inform the hotel why and who I was staying with.
The first stay I took a friend down for her birthday and booked the Spa package stay in a Junior Suite which included spa access and the Guerlain Signature massage for each of us. The second stay was with my husband because I wanted him to experience the history tour.
Arrival
We arrived, mid week at mid day. No great welcome and we were shown to the check in office. It was busy and there was nowhere to sit for five minutes. We were checked in eventually, and shown to our Junior Suite given a very brief orientation tour along the way. On my second stay with my husband we arrived on a Sunday afternoon and the welcome and check in was better but that may have been due to the issues of the first stay.
The Suites
The Junior Suite was large but long and thin with no character. Three times we had to call maintenance because things didn’t work in the room, there was no long mirror or a mirror on a dressing table despite them knowing two women were occupying the room. In fairness they did send someone up with them but this is supposed to be a super deluxe hotel. We didn’t receive a turndown service either and were woken up at 7am by a member of staff delivering drinks we hadn’t ordered.
On the second stay with my husband we were in a corner suite. The living room was lovely, well equipped with a view. However the only natural light in the bedroom was a skylight night above the bed. There was no dressing table at all and a hairdryer was plonked on a small stool in the corner of the room which had easily enough space for a dressing table and chair.
The dressing table was in the bathroom, with no socket so if you wanted to dry your hair you couldn’t. I did call down to reception and they sent housekeeping up who agreed with me that the dressing table should be moved into the bedroom but it wasn’t for the duration of our stay.
The Spa
The spa at Raffles OWO is truly spectacular, certainly one of the best I have ever been to. However I had the worst massage I have ever had anywhere in the world; the Signature massage is described as
The Imperial Relaxing Massage is a signature full-body treatment offered at Guerlain Spas worldwide. Available in 60-minute or 90-minute formats, this multi-sensory ritual uses the house's historic citrus fragrance to arouse the senses, stimulate blood circulation, promote skin oxygenation, and induce deep relaxation
Miranda was my therapist. When I asked for disposable knickers ( given to clients in the most basic of spas) she said they didn’t have any.
She asked me how much pressure I wanted and I told her, light on my limbs but more pressure on my back.
She then started the massage and I asked her why I couldn’t smell the famous Guerlain scent. She told me there was no scent in the oil she was using, Guerlain didn’t scent their oils. I found this very odd as I know someone who works for Guerlain, Fairmont and Raffles creating spas around the World for them, and she told me that they do have a signature scent in their massage oils.
Several times throughout the treatment I said “ouch”
After the massage I was shown to the relaxation room and met my friend. Her therapist had used scented products for her treatment.
I complained to the hotel and they said they would investigate this. I was given a goody bag of samples but it didn’t make up for the fact the experience was quite horrific and I had finger mark bruises on my legs and arms which I sent photos of to the spa.
I compared the experience to dining in a Michelin starred restaurant and being served McDonalds!
Three days after we checked out I received an email where the hotel did offer me a complimentary treatment on my next stay but I really didn’t want one, the damage had already been done.
The History Tour
On the first stay the tour was given by Emile, who I think is the head concierge and resident historian, with a degree in history. It was really superb and well worth doing. This was part of the reason I booked the OWO the following month because my husband and I were in London and I wanted him to experience the tour.
Sadly on that occasion the tour was done by another member of staff and it was rather bland and far less interesting. If you book a history tour make sure you are on one with Emile.
Dining
On my first stay my friend and I ate in Paper Moon. I don’t think it’s actually part of the hotel. The food was good but not great and neither was the service.
My husband and I had a casual dinner the first night of our stay in the Drawing Room. The food was good and the service attentive but lacking, part of our main course was not cleared away until we ordered coffee which we waited a long time to do.
Breakfast has an excellent buffet table. The first stay my poached eggs with avocado was not good, the avocado tasted as if it was out of a bottle so I left it.
On our second stay the lady who served us was fabulous, she had come from Gleneagles, where we stay often, and was a cut above the other staff. This time the hot à la carte food was much better.
The bars
The Spy Bar is a novelty, the cocktails are tiny and I think it’s very over rated.
The first stay my friend and I had drinks in the Guards Bar before dinner and the cocktails were fabulous and the service attentive.
On the second stay we met up with friends in the bar before going out to see The Great Christmas Feast, a dining theatre experience. The service that time was dreadful, the waiter told me off for saying “excuse me could we order some more drinks please”. I told him when I paid the bill I would be reporting his attitude on check out.
When we checked out the next day he had obviously said something to Reception because the drinks had been taken off the bill.
Staffing
During my two stays, the OWO got a new MD. A friend knows him well and said he is an excellent hotelier. In fairness to the hotel, he had just started the week of our second stay . I really hope staff receive better training because the hotel is stunning but the service was generally more Premier Inn than Raffles.
Would I recommend staying at Raffles?
No, unfortunately. In fact a friend said she was going to book a stay there for her husband’s birthday because of the history tour. I told her to book Claridges or The Langham instead and book the afternoon tea history tour with Emile at Raffles instead.
This review is written a several months since I stayed so things may have improved but I think there are better hotels in London for the prices charged."
A Tripadvisor traveler review
Aug 09, 2026
