We wanted a few hours sleep after our flight from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. We’d previously stayed at the Yotel and thought that was great. BLOC seemed like it had improved on the Yotel idea with the following:
- Slightly larger rooms.
- A window to the outside. They also have less expensive rooms without a window.
- A fixed day rate of £44 (7.00am – 4.00pm). When you book, just select the same date of arrival and departure.
We didn’t plan to arrive until around 9am and leave at 2.45pm, but that was still cheaper than the Yotel.
The Bloc Hotel entrance was easy to find – it’s just next to the departing passenger security gate. We were given our room keys and took the elevator up to our floor.
The room had a large bed and enough space to store our three cases.
Not much of a view and we closed the blind before sleeping, but there’s something nice about having a window.
The bathroom was small and functional.
Behind me was a shower – so the floor and room gets wet. This is similar to the Yotel.
There was a touchpad on the wall and that enabled control of the window blind, lights, TV and temperature. I didn’t try the TV.
There was a BLOC magazine on the table. I’m not sure why they bother printing their own magazine as most people are just likely to just sleep in the room.
There was only a UK plug socket and no USB socket. I’m really surprised that they don’t provide at least US, EU and USB considering the airport location.
Wi-fi was free, fast and no password required.
We checked out by simply leaving the room and dropping our card in a box by the elevator.
Overall, I really liked this hotel and would choose it over Yotel next time I needed a day room – well unless Yotel had some half-price offer available. The overnight rates are about the same as the nearby Hilton and so I’d probably stay there overnight.
BLOC Hotel
South Terminal, Gatwick Airport, West Sussex, RH6 0NQ