Sofitel London Heathrow: Great for LHR Terminal 5

We needed a quick overnight hotel in London Heathrow, so we looked at the Sofitel, which is directly connected to Terminal 5.

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Booking the Sofitel London Heathrow

Official link to hotel: https://sofitel.accor.com/en/hotels/6214.html

With our final destination being Reykjavik, Iceland, I needed to look a bit closer into connecting flights. Sadly, given the time we were arriving on our Virgin Atlantic flight, there were no more nonstop flights to Iceland the rest of the night. Instead, we would just snag an overnight hotel in London and continue the next day. We debated off-property hotels, but wanted the convenience of being connected to Terminal 5, from where our next flight will depart. That’s how we settled on the Sofitel London Heathrow.

The Sofitel London Heathrow is bookable on Expedia, which means you should also be able to find it via the Delta Stays website. Why is that relevant? Well, any loyal Delta flyer would likely have Delta credit cards that offer an annual credit ($150, $200, or $250). I had a $200 credit on this stay, making the room only $209 for the evening. On top of that, I’d be earning 682 Delta SkyMiles (instead of Accor points) and $341 MQDs toward elite status.

The room rate actually also included breakfast, but with our next flight departing at 7AM, we weren’t around long enough to take advantage.

What about booking with Accor points? Recall that there is no award categorization for Accor and instead points are worth a flat rate (1,000 points = €20). That would mean this hotel stay would have cost around 18,000 Accor points. That would be an effective use of points if you had them but I unfortunately don’t have enough.

Earning Accor points

One of the easiest ways to accrue Accor points is by transferring them in from partner bank programs:

Bilt Rewards (3 : 2 ratio, where 3 Bilt points = 2 Accor points)
Capital One (2 : 1 ratio)
Citi ThankYou (2 : 1 ratio, depending on the card you have)
Rove Miles (3 : 2 ratio)

Aside from that, your best bet to earn a lot of Accor points quickly is by using their ALL Collections shopping portal. Or you can stay at their hotels, which is perhaps the most obvious way to earn rewards. For US customers, there sadly is no Accor credit card.

First impressions of the Sofitel London Heathrow

Once off our Virgin Atlantic flight, we found ourselves at Terminal 3 and needed to make our way to Terminal 5. Normally, it’s easy to get to the terminals landside via the Heathrow Express. It’s simple enough to follow the signs underground to the trains.

If the Heathrow Express is running, you can just go grab a free transfer ticket right by the ticket gates.

Select the number of free tickets you need and you’re off!

Unfortunately for us, right after we got those tickets, staff informed us that the train is no longer running. We instead needed to use the London Underground train to get to Terminal 5. All you need to do there is scan any credit card at the turnstile to enter, then use that same card on exit at Terminal 5 and your card will not be charged for the journey.

Once at Terminal 5, we followed the signs to the Sofitel, which finalized with going up these elevators in the corner.

Elevator to Sofitel at London Heathrow Terminal 5

From there, it was a lengthy walk through a long hallway that didn’t feel like it had any insulation. If it’s chilly outside, like it was for us in late March, you might want a jacket.

Finally, at the end of the hallway we arrived at another elevator and then was right at the front desk. The check-in agent quickly found my reservation, but oddly didn’t need to check my identification or take a credit card for incidentals. I’m assuming standard procedure is asking at least for identification. In my case, since the hotel stay was full prepaid, I had the opportunity to charge things to the room or not. I declined, and thus did not need to provide a credit card. Anyways, we were on our way rather quickly from here.

The room

We made our way up a separate elevator to the guest rooms. Our stay was at the far end of the hotel, so it meant taking a long walk whenever we needed to leave the room.

Our room for this stay was 1307, up on floor 3.

The bedroom

We booked the family room, which was fully loaded with rollaway beds. I didn’t list any specific requests to the hotel prior to arriving; this is just how they set up the room. Naturally, the kids thought this was an awesome setup and each picked out their own bed.

The main bed is quite comfortable. It’s firm with a nice pillowy mattress topper over the bed. The sheets are effective at keeping you warm and the pillows are plump enough for our liking. The rollaway beds actually weren’t that bad. I didn’t sleep on them, but they felt supported enough when I briefly tried them out. Still, they probably work better if you weigh less.

There isn’t too much decoration in the room around the bed normally. There are two side lanterns but a lack of electrical outlets. A single picture hangs on the wall. It’s a simple design but won’t win any awards.

Across from the beds are the TV, desk, and large mirror. I didn’t have much opportunity to use the desk on our brief stay, but it certainly seemed functional enough.

Underneath the mirror are some AV hookups for the TV, which is nice if you’re looking to project a movie or use a video game console.

The closet provides enough space to hold all of our belongings, which is nice. There are also some slippers and a robe if you want to feel pampered.

Hidden behind the door in a little nook is another large mirror and the in-room coffee setup. It’s almost like this area of the room was an afterthought and they crammed a bunch of random items over here. We weren’t over here much.

Another mirror in room with coffee, tea, and ice holder

Underneath the TV is where you can store a suitcase along with some drawers. The in-room safe and mini-fridge are also hidden away behind a door.

You’ll want to check inside the mini-fridge because everything in here is free. Sweet! Two bottles each of still water, sparkling water, Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, and orange juice. This seems more generous than recent visits to Andaz properties that have a similar benefit.

There are also a couple of packages of cookies that are complimentary.

The view outside is of the streets around the airport. We feel lucky because most will have views inward of the atrium.

Bathroom

The bathroom is nicely presented with plenty of glass and lighting that makes it feel modern and spacious.

On the right side of the vanity are some single-use items you can use in the event you forgot anything.

It’s almost sad how this feels like a dying breed that you get these automatically in your room, even in luxury hotels. There’s a comb, two dental kits, a shaving kit, a vanity kit, and a shower cap.

This bathroom has both a standing shower and a bath tub. First up is the shower, which is built into the corner of the bathroom rather compactly.

Yeah, this is one of those showers that might douse you with cold water when turning it on. If you’re tall enough, you can move the shower head out of the way. Thankfully the water pressure seemed sufficient enough and it’s fully enclosed so it’s not too bad.

Shower amenities are from Balmain Paris, a great brand.

Along the opposite wall is the tub. The kids tend to prefer using a bathtub when on vacation and this was no exception. No complaints about the tub but if you have kids, watch out for them wanting to sit on the right edge of the tub near the towels. Our kids were thinking of using it as a slide until we told them to knock it off.

Dining options at the Sofitel London Heathrow

If you’re like us and staying here on an overnight, you’ll be happy to know that there are several options to dine at the hotel.

Vivre

Website: https://sofitel.accor.com/en/hotels/6214/R002.restaurant.html

Hours: 5:30PM to 10:30PM daily

We stopped by Vivre to eat dinner during our one night at the hotel. The restaurant was busy–especially with children–but thankfully there was no wait.

While the host escorted us to our table quickly, service was a bit slow this evening because of the Saturday night crowds.

The menu is pretty standard with a mix of different cuisines to satisfy almost everyone.

They also have a kids meal, which feels a tad overpriced, but what do you expect for a restaurant at an airport hotel?

Macaroni cheeese

We’ll start with the kids meal because that came out quickest–Char ordered the macaroni cheese, which was on the smaller side. But what it lacked in quantity, it made up with rich goodness. It tasted freshly made and could work as a side for an adult meal.

Plus, look at that cheese pull, which was quite extreme.

Carbonara

Rather than choose a kids meal, Alex opted instead for some carbonara. He loved his choice in part because this pasta is very rich and packed with flavor. Carbonara is always that pasta dish that seems to clump up when you don’t eat it right away and it becomes cold. This one is no exception, but Alex was able to finish most of it himself.

Shepherd’s pie

This shepherd’s pie has a strong taste of lamb right off the bat. It’s topped with some mash potatoes that, when combined with the lamb, create a very comforting mix. What disappointed were the vegetables, which seem to have been doused in a buttery sauce. We would have preferred the vegetables steamed with some salt and pepper. Altogether, this is a heavy dish all around.

Cheese pizza with pepperoni

At Alex’s request, we also ordered some cheese pizza and added pepperoni. What we should have done was order off the kids menu but can’t do anything about that in retrospect. It’s a freshly made pizza with a great crust. Cheese pull is good on this pizza but it was more impressive with the macaroni cheese above. Unfortunately, this pizza suffers from too much grease but I guess you can just blot it out if you need to.

Overall, we thought the meal was fine. Nothing special, but it certainly hit the spot and we came away both satisfied and full.

La Belle Epoque

Website: https://sofitel.accor.com/en/hotels/6214/R003.restaurant.html

Hours: 6PM to 10PM daily

If French cuisine is more of your thing, you can instead check out La Belle Epoque, found on the other end of the hotel from Vivre. There also is a kids menu at Le Belle Epoque, but there appeared to be fewer children dining here from our casual observation. Perhaps that’s because the environment seemed to be a little more formal than at Vivre.

Dining at La Belle Epoque simulates an outdoor-ish experience with its tables in the atrium area.

Tea 5

Website: https://sofitel.accor.com/en/hotels/6214/R001.restaurant.html

Hours: 7AM to 4:30PM daily (breakfast is 7AM to 10AM)

If your room rate includes breakfast, you’ll end up at Tea 5. If our flight didn’t depart around 7:30AM, we would have checked it out as our rate included breakfast. From our view of the breakfast menu, Tea 5 seems to have a heavy emphasis on egg dishes, ranging from eggs florentine to egg sandwiches to smoked salmon with eggs.

The lunch menu looks casual, but we would guess the restaurant isn’t too popular at lunch. If you’re at an airport hotel, there’s a good chance you’re leaving sometime in the morning to catch your flight.

Sphere Bar

Website: https://sofitel.accor.com/en/hotels/6214/B002.bar.html

Hours: 4PM to midnight daily

There is more than just alcoholic drinks here at this bar, which is located right across from Vivre. They also have some small plates, burgers, and fish & chips. Of course, there is no kids menu here (what did you expect?) so you might want to look elsewhere if you have kids. It didn’t seem to get too crowded in here. If Vivre is too crowded and French food isn’t your thing, perhaps it’s worth checking out Sphere Bar?

Club Millésime

Hours:

Breakfast: 6:30AM to 10:30AM
Le Goûter (light dishes, snacks): 3PM to 5PM
L’Apéro Chic (evening aperitifs): 6PM to 8PM

Access rules:

Platinum or Diamond status with ALL
Eligible with certain room types

Near La Belle Epoque, Club Millésime is Sofitel’s executive lounge. We didn’t have access on this visit to the hotel, so we can’t comment on what the facility was like. Perhaps on a future visit!

Sofitel Spa and Gym

Website: https://sofitel.accor.com/en/hotels/6214/wellness-spa.html

Hours: 9AM to 9PM (spa), 24 hours (gym)

One level down from reception is both the Sofitel Spa and gym. I didn’t have a chance to stop by on this brief visit, instead preferring to maximize my sleep on this quick overnight.

Odds and Ends

If you need any essentials, the Sofitel London Heathrow has a gift shop in the lobby. It has essentials and some luggage, but this isn’t the only convenience store at Terminal 5 (there’s a Mark & Spencer easily accessible landside). Still, it’s nice to grab something quick if you need it.

Convenience store in Sofitel London Heathrow

One level up from the Sofitel reception heading towards London Heathrow Terminal 5 is the desk for Sixt, the car rental company. Convenient if you need a car while at this hotel.

Recommendation: Good for overnight stays at LHR, not good for London

As with most airport hotels, we would generally recommend against staying if venturing into the city. That also applies for the Sofitel London Heathrow. We couldn’t imagine wanting to spend multiple nights here with the intention of taking the Tube or Heathrow Express into the city every day. If you want to visit London, do yourself a favor and stay closer to the city center.

With that out of the way, we fully enjoyed staying at the Sofitel London Heathrow:

Plenty of food outlets with delicious dishes
Comfortable beds and good options for families without needing multiple rooms
Ideal convenience for anyone flying out of Terminal 5
Complimentary drinks and cookies in the room helped us stay hydrated

We didn’t find any specific issues the hotel needed to improve upon during our visit. Thus, if your intention is to fly out of London Heathrow Terminal 5, we wholeheartedly recommend staying here at this Sofitel.

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