In the centre of Antwerp’s old town, stylish design meets historical charm – Sapphire House Antwerp impresses with its atmosphere, exciting architecture and vegan fine dining. Unfortunately, dark rooms, poor breakfast service and night-time party noise spoil the overall picture. If you’re into lifestyle and can forgive minor flaws, you could still spend a few nice days here. But read for yourself!
Review #74
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Sapphire House Antwerp currently offers you the following benefits:
- Welcome gift
- Daily complimentary full breakfast for up to two guests
- Free basic Wi-Fi daily
- Priority for a room upgrade – subject to availability
- Early check-in / late check-out – subject to availability
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Content
Location
The hotel is located in the Nieuwstraat, directly adjacent to the old trading exchange – a building dating back to the 16th century. A central location in the centre of Antwerp’s old town, with plenty of historical flair right on the doorstep.
Getting there
Antwerp is pretty well connected – regardless of whether you are travelling by car, train or plane. If you are travelling by car, you should be aware of the fact that there is an environmental zone in the old town, meaning you should check online beforehand whether your vehicle is authorised (and register if necessary). Parking is possible near the hotel, but not cheap – the underground car park costs around 35 euros per day.
You can get there quickly by train, especially from neighbouring countries – ICE, Thalys and Co. regularly call at Antwerp-Centraal. The station is centrally located and is a real eye-catcher – perfect for anyone who wants to arrive relaxed and in style.
The city is also easy to reach by plane: The nearest major airport is in Brussels (Zaventem) and from there you can hop on a train to get to Antwerp quickly.
How to get to the hotel
We flew to Brussels – great connection, uncomplicated and quick from Frankfurt. At Zaventem airport, we took the train directly to Antwerp, which runs regularly, tickets are easy to buy from a ticket machine or online and the journey takes around 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the connection.
Once we arrived in Antwerp-Centraal, we simply walked the last stretch. It takes around 15 minutes to walk through the city centre to Sapphire House Antwerp. No taxis, no hustle and bustle – instead a relaxed walk with first impressions of the city. The route is easy to do, even with suitcases. And for those who prefer to drive: Taxis and e-scooters are available right outside the station.
Check-in
The check-in itself took place at a very busy time of day for us – the lobby was accordingly bustling, so unfortunately there was no time to take a photo of the reception desk.
There were a few sweets waiting in the entrance area, a small gesture that we always appreciate. As Titanium members of the Bonvoy programme, we could choose between breakfast or points. As breakfast is included at Autograph Collection hotels in Europe from Platinum upwards anyway, we naturally opted for the 1,000 points.
Sapphire House Antwerp at a glance
Sapphire House Antwerp is part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection and is a rather small, stylish boutique hotel with a total of 139 rooms and suites. In reference to the diamond city of Antwerp, the room names bear gemstone titles such as Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire or Diamond. The centrepiece on the ground floor is the bar, which flows seamlessly into the restaurant and bar. At peak times, this area is also used as a breakfast overflow.
In terms of design, however, the hotel is on a very contemporary level: the choice of colours, materials and patterns are modern and stylish, but not intentionally trendy. The bar is definitely worth a stop for a relaxed drink in the afternoon.
The building itself dates back to the 16th century. Those interested in the history can visit a small wall installation in the basement of the reception, which summarises the most important stages of the building. A nice idea that takes away some of the anonymity of a hotel.
Suite
Thanks to the status upgrade, we ended up in the Diamond Junior Suite – in the last corner of the corridor. Unfortunately, we immediately noticed something when we entered the suite: the darkness. Despite additional light for the photos, the room remained very dark overall. The high windows were north-facing, which brought very little daylight into the room. It almost had something of a very stylishly furnished cell wing – no exaggeration.
So this dark Suite 237 is gonna be our home for the next three nights.
Entrance
In the entrance area of the suite there was an open cupboard with an iron, ironing board, mirror, slippers and bathrobes. Right next to it was the separate toilet – but there was no second toilet in the actual bathroom!
Welcome
A small collection of welcome gifts awaited us on the bed: a velvet bag with two blue plastic diamonds, an information sheet on the history of the hotel, a short welcome letter and some chocolate in a golden wrapper.
And also a charming idea: the blue plastic gemstones could later be exchanged for delicious chocolate diamonds at the bar.
Living room and bedroom
The actual room is located at the end of the long corridor. In addition to a desk and minibar, there is only an armchair with a small table. Unfortunately, this Junior Suite does not have a separate or even visually separated living room.
The highlight of the suite was without question the bed. We have rarely slept as well as we did here – perfect mattress, great bed linen, just the right firmness and comfort.
In addition to the safe, the sideboard also contains the minibar, which was empty apart from two small free bottles of water. In the drawer you can find all your tea and coffee capsules, as well as small practical helpers. On the sideboard you’ll find a kettle, coffee machine and cups – everything you need to make coffee or tea.
Bathroom
The bathroom consisted of a large vanity unit with one washbasin and a spacious walk-in rain shower. What struck us was that there was a lot of unused space. There would easily have been room for a bathtub – or a second toilet, which would have been particularly useful in a suite.
Care products came from the Gemology brand – including hand soap and hand cream, although these were only available in the toilet area.
View
The view from the large windows looked out onto the side street, but didn’t really offer a nice view. As I mentioned at the beginning, there wasn’t really any light here and unfortunately the room remained dark as a result.
Noise
And then there was the matter of the noise. An event was taking place at the hotel on the evening of our last night, which was noise wise clearly noticeable in the suite. The party went on until about half past one in the morning, and unfortunately it was not possible to change rooms to a more quiet one due to full occupancy.
We understand when people party – especially when there is a specific occasion. But when other guests are massively disturbed while sleeping, it becomes critical. Unfortunately, you might know… somehow we obviously have a knack for it – remember the Hotel LUME with us…
Hotel activities
Fitness Center
The fitness area is located in the basement and – like so much of the hotel – is rather dark. Unfortunately, you won’t find any daylight here, nevertheless the gym is well equipped. There are various strength machines, cardio options and free weights. However, we missed a classic treadmill.
Restaurants
Restaurant
The restaurant at Sapphire House is the first in the Marriott universe worldwide to specialise entirely in vegan and plant-based cuisine – at least in the evening. The concept is softened somewhat for breakfast.
Bar
At the bar, the two blue plastic diamonds from the room could be exchanged for two small chocolate diamonds – a nice gimmick and a good example of small, thoughtful details.
Breakfast
Breakfast consisted of a small buffet with basics and a small à la carte menu with egg dishes and pancakes. However, the service here was the hotels real weak point. Even when ordering a simple omelette (with onions only), we had to ask three times, as if this was a completely absurd special request. Overall, the service was not unfriendly, but conspicuously inattentive. Many of the staff seemed more preoccupied with themselves or their colleagues in small talk.
On the third morning it was finally over: The hotel was fully booked, the breakfast room was overcrowded and the staff were completely overstrained. There was hardly any clearing up, new guests had to wait for free seats and friendliness was in short supply under these circumstances. There is definitely an urgent need for improvement here.
Check-out
The check-out was well prepared and went smoothly. The General Manager also joined us during check-out and we were able to chat a little. She was obviously very aware of the deficits in service and vowed to improve – we´ll see.
Costs
We paid a total of 513 euros for three nights at Sapphire House Antwerp. This included a 50 per cent discount on the last night, which we were granted due to the noise problem. In addition, we were able to get a further 100 euros discount through the Marriott offer via American Express.
The bottom line: an acceptable price for what was on offer – but nothing more.
Departure and onward journey
After this stay, we returned home and took the same route from the hotel to Brussels Airport as we did on our journey there.
Conclusion
The Sapphire House in Antwerp is a stylish boutique hotel with a historic setting and great design, but has clear weaknesses in terms of service and functionality.
The suite was dark and impractical, the breakfast was disappointing due to the overworked staff and lack of attention. The bed, on the other hand, was great and the location was also a plus point.
Overall, the hotel is more of a lifestyle hotel with a focus on adults, couples or solo travellers. In our opinion, it is not suitable for families.
You can spend a few nights here without great expectations – especially if the price is right. However, anyone looking for genuine service, consistent quality and peace and quiet will be disappointed. However, the Sapphire House Antwerp is only recommended for those with lower expectations. Ideal for short trips when design is more important than function. However, it is rather unsuitable for families or those seeking peace and quiet.
Go there?
Not necessarily. Maybe – but probably not again.
Hotel Homepage
Rating
We give the Sapphire House Antwerp 7 out of 10 possible points.
Overall deducting 3 points. The service at breakfast was simply not good, the room was far too dark and the noise issue was of course really annoying!
Booking with EVRYWHRE
You want to book the Sapphire House Antwerp anyways? Then book our Preferred Partner Rate! It won’t cost you any more, but will bring you real benefits:
✔ Free breakfast
✔ Upgrade subject to availability
✔ Early check-in & late check-out
✔ Collect points – as normal
You can find all the details on our Booking Hub.
YouTube Review
Want to see more of Sapphire House Antwerp? Then take a look at our YouTube review! Have fun with it!
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