Clarion Hotel® Oslo

Stayed in the Clarion Hotel Oslo for 3 nights. The day before I got a text message asking if I had any wishes and that they are ‘Preparing for me to have a Glorious stay! I text them back to say I’d like extra coat hangers and pillows. We arrived at the hotel around 12 noon, the room wasn’t ready and they advised me checkin was 3pm. I asked reception if they could telephone me if the room became available earlier, the receptionist’s reply was, ‘It won’t be!’ I challenged this because it’s quite obvious their cleaning staff work through the rooms one by one as so rooms become available sooner, having been up since 3am it would have been beneficial, however, she wasn’t interested in this whatsoever and just repeated herself. We left luggage in a room next to reception, no receipt or ticket was provided for the luggage so definitely leave luggage at your own risk! This was a rescheduled trip from 2020 so I had a voucher for the value of the original cost and of course they had put their prices up since then so had to pay an extra £125 towards the new booking which equated to approx 30% extra. We returned to the hotel around 4pm and checked in with Darius on reception who advised that the difference in room cost needed to be paid at checkin, this was rather strange as I was told pay on checkout, however, no big issue. I provided another card as a guarantee for incidentals whilst staying in the hotel. I asked Darius if they were going to hold circa £50 per night on the card as some hotels do this. This question was very confusing for him and so it took some time to find out if they were putting a hold on the card or not. I was told they weren’t and that they would just use the card to charge incidentals such as minibar etc upon checkout. I made it clear I may use a different card and he said that was fine. We got to the room and there were extra pillows in the room, however, no extra coat hangers as requested. We were also given a disabled room which I didn’t quite understand as neither of us are disabled and as the hotel was apparently full potentially someone with a disability could have benefited from the room whilst we were there or who may have arrived over the weekend. The room is very basic, no ceiling light in the bedroom area either so it was a little dark and we are in the height of bright summer weather, no idea what it would be like in the depths of winter! No telephone in the room either which I found odd. If you want to get in touch with reception you have to message or call them from your own mobile. The bathroom has Rituals branded toiletries, however, no vanity kit such as cotton wool pads, cotton wool buds etc etc. We asked reception (same woman who told me the room wouldn’t be ready before 3pm) if they had any cotton wool pads, she told me they didn’t but they have plasters, not sure how they are comparable so I politely declined. I also asked if they had an umbrella that we could borrow as it started raining and we needed to head out for dinner, she said they didn’t. Basically it’s ‘No’s’ all round! Breakfast in the hotel is good and really the only good thing going for it! Huge selection and replaced regularly. When we checked in we had to select a time for when we would like to have breakfast. I found this rather odd but Darius said the hotel was full. It seems that when you are staying at this hotel you simply have to fit in with what they want as opposed to them offering a decent and flexible level of hospitality. On the last day when having breakfast there was no mention from the staff that they were closing the buffet, granted it was 10am but it would have been nice so we could have had a couple of things that we would have liked such as a coffee. We only found this out when my partner went up to the barista in the restaurant and he said they’re closed and to use the self service coffee machine. Half past midnight on our last evening, I was in bed and my phone sent me a notification that the hotel had tried to charge the items I’d charged to my room on the credit card provided at checkin. My bank blocked it for security reasons, a few minutes later I had another notification advising the same. I went down to reception to ask what was happening and she said that they are charging the stuff I’d put onto my room. I explained that this would be done at checkout and that I hadn’t even checked out yet! I also advised I would want to charge the bill to a different card. I politely asked for them to just stop trying to charge my card until checkout and deal with it then, I just got a blank stare. When I checked out the following morning it was a different receptionist. I paid the bill and explained what happened the night before, the response I got was, ‘oh she’s new, I’ll let her know’ no apology, nothing. My reply was, ‘I’m sure there’s an apology in there somewhere!’ Again more blank faces, disinterested and quite frankly plain rudeness. If there would have been a more sincere response that was genuine I think it would have helped the situation but it is clear the staff on reception need some serious training in how to interact with customers. The bar is fine, closes on a Sunday for some bizarre reason even though the hotel was full. Many better places to have a drink in Barcode area. There are far better hotel options in Oslo, it’s a beautiful city with lots of good quality hotels, the city is also pretty compact so wherever you stay the location isn’t an issue as you’re never far from anything. Glorious stay…I don’t think So!

Wonderful hotel with super pleasant staff, self check in and check out if you prefer, luxurious comfy beds, great shower and an outrageously abundant breakfast which was truly gourmet. Only 7 minutes walk to Oslo Station, this was perfect for an overnight stay. Our room was clean as a whistle and it’s right across the road from a food hall for an inexpensive meal and also 2 minutes walk from the Munch Museum and the waterfront. Highly recommended!

We needed a compact room with highly sophisticated AV equipment, lunch for the participants, and a convenient location for all. We found all these needs were met by this hotel - a short walkable distance from the train station, lovely overnight accommodation for out-of-towners, a variety of room sizes and set-up options with fantastic AV, and a delicious local food lunch buffet. I will be returning each year!

The hotel is firstly in a very great location. But as with other Clarion hotels you also expect quality - and this was indeed quality. From the moment I walked in the staff was very helpful (one even helped me find my way out of the gym as I got lost) and the other was just straight up very helpful and nice. The gym itself is huge and equipped which is important for me when out on long travels. Otherwise you can feel that the hotel is used for professional conferences as soon as you walk in. It's also very clean - as one'd expect from Clarion. I have travelled to many hotels in my time and I can honestly say that this was one of the best places I've been too - both the location and the hotel itself fit me perfectly. If you can get a good price for the junior suite it's also something I would recommend as it's very spacious and perfect for work, small one-on-one meetings or simply for relaxing after a day of strolling up and down the Oslo waterline. Definitely a recommended stay.

Excellent services, cozy and warm environment in the restaurant and the bar, vast variety of goods during breakfast, located in an excellent spot (close to the station) for walking in the new developed area of the port!