What strikes you on arrival at Citizen M, is the informality of the place. There isn't the usual thirty foot long reception desk, but a bank of check-in screens, like at an airport, where greeters will help get you checked in quickly. It's the first sign, that the hotel operates slightly differently,that they've thought about their audience and the way their lives work.
The hotel is really well thought out in its public areas, with a lot of focus on bringing travellers together. The reception/bar/breakfast area/breakout seating areas are all on the same floor and flow as one space, with modern/contemporary furniture and workstations, which adds to the informality and sense of space.
Rooms are of a high quality for the price, compact but highly functional. They are about twelve foot wide, but about twenty five foot deep. Each room is equipped with a King Size bed which consumes the entire width of the room with a large LCD TV and a Philips Moodpad system which allows you to control pretty much everything in the room . A small open sink is in the room with a shower cubicle (rainshower style)/toilet and a small desk at which to work. For an overnight trip it was more than adequate, if there are two of you - it might feel a bit cramped if you've got luggage.
Close to both Glasgow train stations (about seven to ten minutes walk to both), it's well located for visiting the city. One major drawback is parking. The hotel is on a busy one way-street, with no lay-by to bag drop and the car park is around five minutes walk away. I was in quite a rush when I arrived as I needed to take a train to Edinburgh for a dinner, by the time I'd worked out how it all worked, parked, got back and checked in it added twenty minutes onto a tight schedule, just about made it by the skin of my teeth.
It wouldn't stop me from staying at the hotel again as nearly all city hotels have this problem, would just plan it better next time and ensure luggage is kept to a minimum. The main reason for this is that you have to put it in context of the whole experience versus the price.
My rate was round £90 for the night. This included free wireless internet and free movies in the room, which is standard in the hotel. Having a drink in the bar when I got back from dinner, I found the prices reasonable and the serving sizes really ample. A glass of wine was about twice what you'd normally get in a hotel, for around a fiver a glass. Staff were really friendly and made a point to engage me, seeing I was a lone traveller. It has a nice atmosphere to it, relaxed, informal and not threatening if you're travelling alone.
The Citizen M concept is really refreshing and it seems they have plans to roll it out further across Europe. I think other hotels could learn quite a bit from them, they've taken a fresh sheet of paper to the idea of a hotel, right from the basics up in terms of design and guest experience. I'd go back there and - relative to price - it's a smashing place to stay.
My Rating 5P's
