Novotel Liverpool Centre

"I arrived at Novotel Liverpool Centre with my 12-year-old daughter expecting a straightforward check-in. Instead, our booking was cancelled and we were left needing alternative accommodation—all because I politely pointed out a discrepancy in the hotel’s own breakfast information. A sign inside the hotel stated that breakfast ended at 10:00 am, while the receptionist gave us a different time. When I mentioned what the sign said, rather than simply acknowledging the conflicting information, the receptionist became dismissive and argumentative. When the Duty Manager was called over, I began recording the interaction on my phone. Throughout the conversation, including before the recording began, I remained calm and polite. I did not raise my voice, swear or behave aggressively. What happened next was astonishing. Instead of taking control, resolving the misunderstanding and de-escalating such a minor issue, the Duty Manager displayed a complete lack of leadership. The receptionist told the manager to cancel our booking, and the manager simply agreed—leaving a father and his 12-year-old daughter without accommodation over a harmless disagreement about a breakfast sign. I later raised the matter with the General Manager, Mathieu Batut, hoping that somebody in senior management would review what had happened objectively and recognise how badly it had been handled. Unfortunately, he supported the actions of his staff and accepted no responsibility. That response is perhaps even more concerning than the original incident. If the receptionist, Duty Manager and General Manager can all look at these circumstances and conclude that the paying guest was at fault, it raises serious questions about whether any of them understand the most basic principles of hospitality. Staff working in hospitality should be capable of listening, calming a situation and finding a reasonable solution—not escalating a trivial misunderstanding and then closing ranks to defend it. I asked at the time whether the hotel’s CCTV recorded audio and was told that it did not. My own video footage, however, allows people to see and hear part of the interaction for themselves, and it is available on YouTube. This was never really about breakfast times. It was about how hotel staff chose to respond to a customer politely questioning conflicting information. A matter that could have been resolved in seconds was needlessly escalated until a paying guest and his child were refused accommodation. In all my years of staying in hotels, I have never experienced such a complete failure of hospitality, judgment and leadership. Based on both the incident and management’s subsequent response, I could not recommend Novotel Liverpool Centre."

"Lovely hotel in the centre great staff room clean great breakfast would definitely stay again on returning to Liverpool 😁"

"15/08/26 The hotel is absolutely beautiful , the room was fabulous, guest service & bar staff were very friendly. 1 thing that disappointed me , and I feel strongly about this , so had to mention , I was at the bar , asking for a drink , they had run out of ice , the bar made asked her colleague if she would get some . The colleague was so rude and abusive to the barmaid .. basically saying , don’t you ask me to go get ice , who do you think you are !! The barmaid remained extremely professional, but I felt so sorry for her . I asked her if she was ok , also the name & position of her colleague, and was told it was Catolina .. shift leader . This shift leader , was definitely showing her authority. She did get the ice , but just slammed it down , and gave the barmaid a dirty look . I felt she was an absolute bully , and I don’t say this lightly. I could tell the barmaid felt intimidated by her . It’s such a shame , that 1 nasty person can bring down the ambience of the bar . She needs to do a course on her people skills , especially not letting her title go to her head , and making others work life miserable"