The Apartment

I loved staying here. The advert uses the word "homely" and this is true. As a child, I had 2 great aunts whose homes were light and airy and furnished with their 1930s beautiful things. The Apartment in Whitstable is exactly of that ilke: tasteful and homely because the objects are authetic, loved and have been used. It was as if I had been able to step once more into the world of the long-gone great aunts........only this time I was grown up enough to read all the books and drink gin and tonic. The views from the apartment are many as there are windows all around providing views to each aspect. All the windows have shutters which are welcome in a heat wave or if you really need to sleep. There is a good wi-fi signal and a large flatscreen TV if needed. Books, beautiful picture books and magazines are available in all the rooms and there are dvds and information leaflets too. Everything in Whitstable is near by and within walking distance from The Apartment. There are very few negatives because this apartment is indeed true to its own description. Yes, there is some slight vibration if a heavy vehicle goes by, but the road outside is not a major main road so this is a fleeting and minimal. There are no side lamps in the main sitting room but the overheads are dimmable. The positives eclipsed any negatives. Our bathroom was like a sitting room in itself with an armchair, table and sky light and the bedrooms are tranquil havens of soft, 1930s loveliness. Fresh flowers were put out for us in the sitting room and both our hosts were friendly, very willing to help any request and always at hand if needed. The breakfasts of fresh fruits, yogurt, toast and croissants were delicious and brought up to our sitting room when we wanted them. Some jars of cereal and tea and coffee were available at all times. This was not a high-spec glittering, impersonal hotel; if you want that kind of Art Deco experience go to New York. This was the best of a little English seaside town, and, if you want to stay in a beautiful and arty attic apartment, in a warm, family home, at the top of a book-lined staircase..... then this is for you.

We too have just stayed in The Apartment encouraged by The Guardian review and the beautifully designed website, but agree with most of the former review. The owners, especially Frances were friendly and helpful, especially trying to source non feather bedding for my daughter, but the shabby chic of the apartment is more shabby than chic and it was not the indulgent luxury we had been led to believe. The breakfast was fine for a continental with good fresh fruit but on a cold November morning at £150 a night for two of us a cooked option would have been welcomed. The house is on a busy main road, and it does shake as passing lorries drive past, so compared to other options in the price range locally we were disappointed and thought it pricey and noisy.

We stayed here for two nights based on the glowing review in The Guardian and overlooked the fact that there were no guest reviews online and no entry on Tripadvisor. This place could be very special indeed and we liked the retro furniture but there is zero attention to detail. The dining table had a scruffy tablecloth, the glasses, plates and cutlery were all dirty with a wine glass having mould in it, the rugs were covered in hairs. There's a flat screen TV precariously perched on an old trunk with a DVD player on the floor and wires everywhere. The entire house also shakes whenever a bus or lorry goes by. Breakfast was little more than four slices of toast, two croissants, some fruit and half opened boxes of cereal. The bedroom wasn't serviced at all when we were there. If this was £60 a night, I could understand but at £130 they need to be doing a lot more. We hardly saw the hosts at all and even when we left we just had to leave the keys on the side and were unable to provide our feedback directly.