I stayed at the Royal York in October 2011 as a last minute booking after a reservation at another hotel fell through. Initially I was greeted well and told where the room was. the room was quite small and the windows were filthy. The paint on the wall was pock marked and chipped. The reception staff didn't greet me on entering or leaving the hotel unless I initiated it. I stayed two nights. the breakfast was very average with little choice. On the second day I had pancakes which took 30 minutes despite being the only person in the restaurant when I ordered. The coffee was awful and I would hazard a guess it was instant. My room overlooked the coach park and I was woken at 5:45am each day with coaches arriving. When I took my charger out of the socket to leave, the whole socket casing came out of the wall. I have emailed three times to complain, including photos and although I have had an acknowledgement I have not had the courtesy of a proper reply. I am totally disgusted with the service and can't understand the 4 star rating. I am in the process of complaining to the Tourism Board. Don't waste your money!

We booked a Lastminute.com 'Top Secret Hotel'. In retrospect, we wouldn't recommend this to anyone as the customer has no opportunity to evaluate comments of previous guests. However, we fell for it thinking we were getting something special. When The Royal York, Brighton was confirmed on booking we went to 'Tripadvisor' for recent reviews (the Lastminute.com link to these reviews was ominously dead). The reviews were mixed, and many bad. Lastminute states that the hotel has had 'complete and comprehensive refurbishment'. This needs revision to 'partial refurbishment'. There are many new features: lots of oak finish doors etc but much remains a little tatty. Not the 'luxury' we were expecting. This does not look the 4 star hotel that is listed. Our room was at the front as we asked to be spared the much-reported all night noise from the back (single glazed only). The room was fine and clean. It was rather small as it had a large bathroom for the disabled with a wide access door. This was ok except for the very tiny basin which was not far above knee high and had no shelf for washing items etc. Lastminute state 'Climate Control' in the hotel description. We assume this is the window. We spent a long time trying out the air conditioning controls and could hear air moving at different speeds, but it was not cooled. The room was an unpleasant and stuffy 26 degrees C. We left the windows open all the time we were there. This was at the expense of noise from people and traffic, but the climate was controlled to some extent. The minibar listed in the description was there but was empty, so not sure if this passes the Trade Description Act either. Breakfast was not included in our package. There was a breakfast room, but the 'Grill' now seems to be a Tapas Bar under new ownership. The hotel staff were very friendly and helpful. On leaving, we enquired about the air conditioning and were told that it did not function anywhere in the building (Ah!). We prepaid £84.15 on-line to Lastminute. The receptionist in error gave us a copy of the bill which showed an American Express payment of £63.96. Thus, we paid over £20 for referral from Lastminute to their 'Top Secret Hotel'. Some secrets are best kept that way.

Stayed for one night. Room ok, over looked bus terminus so quite noisy but not a problem for us. Breakfast was appalling on all levels. Only 2 members of staff serving, tv at full volume with motor racing on, had to wait ages and staff serving quite rude and very poorly organised. Could hear people moaning about the service around us, from cold tea to waiting an hour to be served. When food arrived it was of poor quality and we had no cutlery. All in all not what I expect from a 4 star hotel. Have written email to complain and a week later have still not recieved a reply. Would definitely not return...much better value and service at the B&Bs.

Stayed in this hotel for two nights. First impressions were very promising, as the girl on the front desk was so pleasant, and extremely helpful. The mention of a complimentary bottle of wine with our booking was a very nice surprise!
Room 305 was equally pleasing, with a good sea view. The decor showed dedication, and the bed was extremely comfortable. Bathroom was also impressive.
Staff over all were accommodating and cheery, and the continental breakfast was exactly what it was meant to be.
We thought that the over all look of the hotel was lovely. Other hotels we have used in Brighton have been shabby/chic (slightly more shabby...) however The Royal York appears to take a little more pride in its appearnace. Yes, there were the odd tiny flaws, but then these would in no way adversely affect a stay here.
There was noise outside, however it was Halloween weekend, and the hotel can't be blamed for the behaviour of others!
Good enough for Benjamin Disraeli, and certainly ggood enough for me. Would certainly use again.