We stayed at the Aloft in Liverpool for four nights. I booked with a combination of points and cash. For three of the nights, it made sense to use cash as the rates ranged from £80 to £125 for those nights and the corresponding points required were around 15k-25k depending on the cash price. On the night before the match (Saturday), it was £300 or 30k Marriott points so I used points for that night. I like that Marriott (and Hyatt) allow you to select whether to use points or cash for each individual night of your stay as it can sometimes make sense to mix and match. This was also during the Marriott current promo so I earned 1000 bonus points and a bonus elite night for each paid night.

One of the best things about the Aloft is the staff. They are all friendly, helpful and knowledgeable about the hotel and the city. As a Lifetime Platinum member with Marriott I opted for the free breakfast for two (instead of 500 welcome points) and we also received two free drink vouchers. I also received a handwritten note at check-in thanking me for my Marriott loyalty and for my return visit.

I parked in a nearby parking garage that handles parking for several hotels near the Moorfields MerseyRail station. The discounted rate for hotel guests was £13.50 per day with in and out privileges. Every time I was going to take the car out (we did this three out of four days), I stopped by the front desk for a payment ticket that I could use in the automated garage machine, and the hotel billed my room for the parking charge. The process was fairly straightforward and the garage was secure.

Our room was on the top (6th) floor, but only one of the elevators goes beyond the 4th floor so there was sometimes a bit of a wait. The top floor rooms are supposedly an upgrade, but the only difference I’ve seen is that they have slightly higher ceilings, better views and a couple of free food items (we had popcorn and Oreos in our room). The rooms have a mini-fridge, small desk, safe (ours didn’t work) and a decent number of outlets (don’t forget your UK adapter).

I’ve stayed at the Aloft Liverpool six times now. It’s a fairly basic hotel as you can see. It has a few things going for it though including:

• Location in the center of Liverpool steps away from Matthew Street, home of the Cavern Club (and every hen party in the city) and close walking distance from Liverpool One shopping and restaurants as well as the waterfront and train station
• Built in a historic 19th century insurance building that has been restored so that every room is a slightly different shape and layout
• A good (not great anymore) breakfast which is a benefit for Marriott Platinum/Titanium members
• A good, reasonably priced restaurant/bar for a hotel

All that being said, I might try a different hotel next time I visit Liverpool. Some of the negatives include:

• Tiny bathrooms and floors that always get wet from the shower
• Haphazard housekeeping (for example: empty glasses not removed and bottled water not replaced)
• Terrible thin pillows
• Breakfast quality dropping since covid (powdered eggs, fewer options)

It was fairly busy at breakfast each morning. There was a self-serve coffee machine with espresso-based drinks available, a buffet with (powdered) eggs, bacon, sausage, mushrooms, baked beans and tomatoes, a bread/pastry area and cold buffet with some cold cuts and cheese. You could also order omelets, poached eggs or fried eggs from the host which we did a couple of times after trying the bad scrambled eggs the first day. As hotel breakfasts go, it was OK, but nothing special. I remember it being better the last couple of times I stayed here with things like a real honeycomb and more cold options.

I used my drink coupons for a couple of beers to share with my friend who met us there on Friday night (before he and I went to some other local pubs) and they had a good selection of draft and bottled beers and ciders. There is also a mini-market near the front desk. The staff let me have as many waters as we needed and even a diet Pepsi one night to go with our delivered fish and chips without charging me.

Overall, I think the Aloft can be a good value, especially on a non-match weekend, but I noticed on this stay that the building is starting to show it’s age, the upkeep is slipping a bit and the breakfast quality has dropped just enough to make me want to possibly try the Hilton or Doubletree next time I’m in Liverpool.

Up Next: Lufthansa Business Class Manchester-Munich and the Satellite First Class Lounge Review

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