Manchester Marriott Hotel Piccadilly Review: Refurbished Spaces, Fading Service

The iconic curved hotel building near Manchester Piccadilly train station has taken on several names in the past, including the Manchester Macdonald Hotel and Manchester Piccadilly Hotel. Following a £33 million renovation, the new Manchester Marriott Piccadilly was relaunched in 2024 with a fresh identity and as part of the world's largest hotel group.

Refreshed guest rooms of the Manchester Marriott Hotel Piccadilly

Renovated and relaunched in 2024

The renovation took three years and included remodelling all rooms and common areas, including a new restaurant, lobby lounge, 24-hour fitness centre, an Elemis spa, and meeting facilities. With 338 rooms, the Manchester Marriott Piccadilly is the largest hotel in the city centre. Beyond city limits, Manchester's largest hotel is the TRIBE Manchester Airport, with 412 rooms, which also opened in 2024.

Iconic facade of the Manchester Marriott Hotel Piccadilly

Scaffolding on the lower floors was still present during my visit, but once past the revolving doors, the hotel lobby was all clean and shiny. There were separate reception and concierge desks, and the hotel's lobby lounge (The Greatroom Lounge) was just on the right.

Hotel entrance with scaffolding seen

A large Marriott icon in the lobby

Lobby area with refreshed interiors

In a nod to the city's football heritage, the hotel has a lobby phone dedicated to Manchester United, which football fans would certainly appreciate.

Manchester United lobby phone

Check-in was all good, but check-out would not be as smooth, as I later realised. Once on the guest floors, a long curved walkway leads to all guest rooms. It's quite a walk from one end to the other. 

A long walkway

Deluxe King Room

Standard rooms are a good 28sqm, while the Panoramic Junior Suite is 32sqm and the Executive Suite is 56sqm. The latter two include M Club lounge access, which Marriott Bonvoy Platinum and higher members can also enjoy.

Entrance to the Deluxe King Room

For this review, I stayed in a Deluxe King Room and found two good things. First, it came with a proper sitting area even in this entry-level room, which is a practical touch that guests will appreciate. Second, because of the glass facade the windows line almost the full length of the room, which brings very good natural lighting.

The hotel has decided to do away with full carpeting but there is a big rug by the sitting area.

Windows line almost the entire length of the room

Welcome amenity

View from the large windows

While the room itself is very modern, the bathroom feels slightly retro perhaps because of the sink top and flooring. There is both a bathtub and a separate standing shower.

A slightly retro bathroom

Large mirror

Breakfast: The Restaurant

No points for guessing the restaurant name but breakfast is served from 5:30 am to 9:30 am on Monday to Friday, and from 7:00 am to 11:00 am on Saturday to Sunday. A full English breakfast is available with eggs made to order. The restaurant also serves dinner between 5:00 pm and 9:30 pm, Monday to Saturday.

The Restaurant

Breakfast buffet line

Fruits and juices

The Greatroom Lounge and Bar

The lobby lounge serves coffee and handcrafted cocktails and has some very comfortable-looking seating areas.

The Greatroom Bar

Comfortable lounge areas

Fitness Centre

There is a dedicated elevator for accessing the spa and fitness centre; the fitness centre is in the basement. The facility is functional and weights machines come with rep counters which is a nice feature. Towels are provided. Unfortunately, I see a live roach crawling in a corner and suspect there might be a pest control issue here.

Fitness centre

A live roach!

Room for Growth

The hotel has potential and is a valuable addition to Manchester with its large room inventory and shiny spaces. While the hard product seems to be there, the hotel would certainly benefit from ensuring a more consistent service standard. Some issues I encountered include:

• Despite having a late check-out confirmed at the point of check-in, multiple staff members knocked on (and opened) my door on the day of departure.
• The associate at check-out appeared unfamiliar with how to process a credit card pre-authorisation refund. The electronic invoice that I requested did not arrive until I sent in my feedback several days later. Points did not post automatically, so I had to contact Marriott.
• As mentioned, there may be a pest issue, which falls below the standards expected of Marriott or any 4-star hotel.

With a few targeted improvements, the Manchester Marriott Piccadilly can match its revitalised interiors with an equally high standard of hospitality. The hotel is now part of Marriott, which carries certain expectations and standards. Once it can deliver a guest experience worthy of its brand, it has the potential to become a standout choice in Manchester's city centre.

Address: 91 London Road, Manchester, M1 2PG