OK - I admit it, I'm a sentimental mug.

Back in May 2003 when the Seattle had only been open a few months, I took my fiance to this hotel for a surprise weekend break and proposed to her. She said 'yes' and since then we've returned every year and even spent part of our honeymoon here. However, this year for the first time we're not going to go. In fact we don't intend to go back again.

First visit, we put the dodgy service, tiny TVs, broken toilet seats etc down to teething problems. The following years we've probably been too blinded by romance and nostalgia to notice the disinterested staff, the threadbare towels, the filthy windows, the noisy nightclub, the roasting hot rooms (in May!!!) etc. However, now enough is enough - especially when I realised I was beginning to dread our annual visit rather than excitedly anticipate it.

This hotel seems to have absolutely no concept of customer service (a couple of exceptions which I'll come to in a moment) and is making no commitment whatsoever to improvements. I'm fed up of fighting with the tiny TV set remote control and wishing I'd packed need binoculars to watch it. The rooms aren't cheap so why do I have to put up with stains on the carpet, walls and windows. I appreciate that this is a seaside hotel but the windows are always filthy.

Another thing which gets on my nerves is the room assignment - you can pay for a King Room with marina view but it's luck of the draw as to whether you get a dark room with a pokey half balcony or a light room with a double balcony. Even when I've been assured that we've been assigned one of the double balcony rooms we've checked in and found ourself in one of the dingy, half balcony rooms.

Cafe Paradiso (attached to hotel) is excellent for an evening meal but the breakfast is badly cooked and my wife scolded herself with a cafetiere which had the wrong sized plunger inserted. No apologies from the staff of course - too busy posing.

Service exceptions - the Black and White bar manager (Simeon?) who made a real effort to look after us last year and mixed some astonishing cocktails. Also one of the Cafe Paradiso staff who actually remembered us from a previous year and made a real effort to look after my wife (who's a vegan).

For sentimental reasons I'll keep checking on Trip Advisor to see if things are improving because one day I'd love to return. It has a fantastic location and with an intelligent management team, some minor modifications and some well trained service personnel if could be amazing.

Having read several reviews on this hotel I was prepared for it. We did everything right, booked well in advance, made sure we had a balcony room overlooking the harbour, but it still did not prepare me for one of the strangest hotel rooms I have ever stayed in !! On a plus side , the room and bathroom were of a good size, and spotlessly clean, with large fluffy towels, and one bathrobe, presumably we shared it!!!!
I really did not like the open plan bedroom with no cupboard space at all, just a rail set over the tea and coffee making facilities, great if you want to get creases out of your clothes , because the steam from the kettle would be directly below, not great planning!!!! You also need very good eyesight to see the miniscule, dated T.V..!!! One would have expected a flatscreen on the wall to fit in with clean lines of the room, but this model was awful. There was no minibar, again in a hotel of this calibre one would have expected one as standard.
The bed was large, and on the whole ,comfortable with ample pillows.
We had breakfast included in our price, and again this was not great. We were late down [10am on a Sunday] and had to wait some time for it to arrive, my husband left most of his full breakfast as it was overcooked , I had smoked salmon and scrambled eggs which was ok , but not great..
Overall, this is an OK hotel, very overpriced, and I would not put it at the top of my list of places to stay in Brighton

We had our wedding reception at the Seattle in October 2007 - a smallish family affair for 24 people who's ages ranged from 3 weeks to 76 years old.
I cannot recommend the Seattle highly enough. Everything was fantastic! From the staff ,discreetly on hand with wonderful canapes at the beginning of our reception, to the beautifully presented delicious 5 course meal which followed.
We had fantastic weather considering it was October and the balconies gave a great 'outside feel'.
For our wedding night we had a great king sized room overlooking the boats in the Marina. Even though we had drunk vasts amounts of alcohol we were still able to appreciate the lovely toiletries in the bathroom and the double sink!
After a delicious breakfast in the Paradiso restaurant the following morning we 'sunbathed' on the balcony before checking out.
If you want a hotel and a reception with a difference then choose the Brighton Seattle Hotel and enjoy it all!!

We booked a standard 'inland view' room with lastminute, and when we arrived at the hotel we were upgraded to a marina view free of charge, which was very nice. The man at reception was very pleasant, although very laid back. The reception itself is up a flight of stairs between and behind the restaurants, which is a bit unusual. Our room as was very nice, white walls and bed linen, nice cream carpet, fluffy towels and a bathrobe, as well as our own private balcony. Lovely duvet and feather pillows ensured a smooth nights sleep, despite the howling wind outside. The sounds from the boats in the marina were very soothing and all we heard, despite worries about some of the reviews I had read regarding noise levels! The rooms were a little marked on the walls, but they are not brand new rooms, and I would only expect them to be flawless if they had been freshly painted. Other than that the room was perfect. The furniture reminds me of the insides of fitted wardrobes without the outsides, but this helped to keep the room light and uncluttered. Yes, the clothes rail is above the kettle but this isn't really a problem if you're not staying long, and you can always move it to the other side of the room. The staff were friendly and pleasant, and dealt with our requests swiftly and with no fuss. The Black and White cocktail bar was nice, a little soulless but the staff knew their stuff. It is not in Brighton town centre, but on the marina which has many restaurants and bars and cinemas and things, but we enjoyed the 45 odd minute walk to the pier and it was very windy!! We opted for one bento in bed and one continental breakfast, very simple and very fresh. An absolutely perfect start to the day, and a perfect night all in all. No problems and no qualms in booking for a return visit. I wouldn't pay the full rate though, but get a good deal and the place is a real find.