I'm of two minds as I write this review. Our stay wasn't perfect but Scala House was sold by the long-time owners several months ago and will be closing to short-term stays as of this coming May. Therefore, I have to think that perhaps our stay isn't completely representative of how the property would have been, say, a year or two ago. I'd bet a fiver the new owners haven't put a dime into the property since the sale back in Oct/Nov 2006.

The main value for your money is the amount of space: Two bedrooms, a large living/dining combination, great kitchen fully kitted out, a full bath and a powder room, and a tiny little ledge (balcony isn't really correct) to lean out on as you have your monring coffee. Right there it was worth it for us, every penny. My husband is a late-night, up watching TV person and I'm in bed by 10-11pm. If we'd had to stay in a standard sized hotel room we'd have driven each other crazy.

The hotel is very centrally located, a block from the Goodge St Station for the Northern Line and a 5-minute walk from Tottenham Court Rd for the Central. A friend of ours who lives in London seemed to feel this wasn't a great area, but we never felt anything but safe. Great restaurants, grocery stores, shopping, and right across the road is a great greasy spoon, Gig's. (Get the chicken doner or falafel. A 'large' for £3.80 will feed two. And the fish and chips were so heavy in the bag I thought my husband had bought a six-pack of beer. And the guys behind the counter are super nice. We loved Gigs. It was the first thing we said we missed when we were home.)

As for the negatives: The property is very dated and shabby, but the prior reviews and even the website pictures make this clear. (The people who seem shocked in their reviews at what the place looks like must not do ANY research at all. ) The construction next door caused a water shutoff to the hotel for a few hours our first day, which was profusely apologized for by the management. The beds are firm and the blankets a little thin. The housekeeping seems a little overwhelmed (the shower curtain was still in the washing machine and our dishwasher was still running at arrival.)

But all in all, we loved it. It was clean and had plenty of towels (and wash cloths!) The caulking at the sink and around the windows might not have stood close inspection, but I can't say it would in my own home, either.

We didn't notice any unusual odors other than people's smelly cigarette smoke seeping into our hallway from other rooms.

The driver who collected us from Heathrow said he'd been taking passengers for Scala House for over 15 years and that to keep the prices low, the Palos' just hadn't put any money into the property to keep it modern. But really, people need to understand that's where the value comes from. Yes, it's a 70's shabby look, but the space was more than my first apartment ever had.

We paid £770 for the week; by comparison, we could have stayed at the Travel Inn County Hall for £693 in one small room with a bathroom you have to stand sideways to get into.

Chris and Boba in management were truly a pleasure; helpful, sincere, really concerned with making sure everything was going well, despite the fact that they're all losing their jobs in less than two months. The desk is staffed 24/7 and we were always met with a smile and a quick answer to any questions. The people really make the property.

As we left, Boba advised they were looking at buildings and would be hopefully opening their own property for short-term rentals, "much nicer looking" but with all the same people in charge.

I really hope so; when they open, I'll be lining up for my reservation.

Having read all the previous reviews, we bravely made reservations about 8 months ago for our visit to the Scala House. We stayed from 2/24 thru 3/10/07. There were 3 adults.
The flat was as expected: old and rundown but a good home base for all of our adventures. The kitchen was the best of the lot with a fine dishwasher and washer/dryer combo. A terrific convection oven that worked like a dream! Great refridgerator and freezer...large for UK standards.
Here's the problem: The rest of the flat. It smells like your grandmother's house from 1962 and it is furnished the same way. The bathrooms are run down with peeling paint and non working fixtures. We were without any water for 24 hours one day and without cold water for 24 hours another. One day, we had no phone service. The beds were hard as rocks and the bedside lamps were broken. Responses to fix things were overlooked for days by overwhelmed staff.
The staff seemed really disheartened by a recent takeover and reported that the Scala house would be closing it's doors once the last of the registered guests vacated.
I strongly suggest staying elsewhere.
London is not for the meek of wallet. Any other accomodation is going to cost you more than the Scala House. It is unfortunate that no one has cared for this aging building which is so centrally located. It is close to many wonderful eateries and grocery stores and buses and the tube.
If they continue to accept reservations past this point, please consider yourself forewarned!

This was our second stay at Scala House. We therefore knew what to expect. The apartments are quite run down. They (desperately) need refurbishing, especially the bathroom. The furniture should have been changed some time ago. At the time we stayed there, London was quite cold, and we found the apartment difficult to heat. Further not much hot water to share among three people either. However not to forget the bright sides: There are a complete kitchen with both a dishwasher and a washing machine (combined dryer). In this flat both the dishwasher and de washing machine was brand new. The living room is sizable with a dining table sofa and some chairs. Small TV and ADSL connection (since I didn’t bring a laptop I can’t comment on the ADSL connection). The smallest bedroom is small! There are no room for a suitcase. The largest bedroom is well sized. There are a safe in the closet of the larger bedroom (opened with a key). You’ll find blueprints of the flats on Scala House’s homepage. Towels and bed linen seam very clean. The apartment also seamed clean, but the wall to wall carpeting has a rather nondescript colour so it’s a bit hard to say.
Scala ouse has a good location. Close to the Tube, Tesco metro just around the corner. 5 minutes walk and you are on Oxford Street, a few more minutes and Chinatown, Soho and Theatreland are in reach. Not to forget there are a friendly and helpful staff present around the clock.

It seems most of the reviews of Scala House are "love it" or "hate it." For us it was certainly somewhere in between. We thought the location was very convenient--about a 15 minute walk to Lecester square or a one minute walk to the Goodge Street tube station. It took us a couple days to discover the wonders of Charlotte Street which is the next street in the opposite direction from the Tube. Charlotte street is wall-to-wall restaurants and Pubs for several blocks to the south of Totenham street and we really enjoyed the variety. The Tesco grocery around the corner was handy for breakfast treats, coffee, wine and other essentials.

The standard apartments are two-bedroom with a bath and a half. It is really a bedroom and a half and a bath and a half. There were three adults in our party and the second bedroom was a stretch even for one. Our beds were hard as rocks and we all had trouble sleeping. Like others we experienced significant noise from the corner Pub but only on Friday night. It will be worse when they are all outside smoking. The furnishings are as promised--pretty cheesy. There is a dining table and chairs, two sofas and another chair in the living area which was roomy enough. We only used the kitchen for breakfast. The washing machine comes in handy, but the dry cycle took several hours. Our front desk guy warned us about this when we arrived.

While we certainly found fault with a number of things, Scala House still remains a good value with plenty of square footage for multiple people at the price of a mediocre hotel. The staff was courteous and helpful. There isn't much in the way of services so there isn't much to be critical of. The neighborhood (Fitzrovia) felt safe enough even late at night, although when you head south into the heart of the city you pass through some dicey parts of Soho.

Would we stay there again? We would have to think about it, but it would certainly be in the mix.