Imperial Hotel with Escape Salon & Spa

Beautiful entrance, nice restuarant and bar, terrible room/​bed, and the lift was so small that only 2 people with luggage could fit at a time. The floors creaked, the carpet was raised, limited outlets, and even the bed sloped! The noise from the bar across the street was obnoxious until 2:30 a.m. when I closed my window. There was no airconditioner so the room was stuffy. Then at 6:30 a.m. they started unloading and rolling the beer kegs down the street below our window. That incredibly loud racket persisted until 7:30 a.m. So disappointed!

We booked an airbnb but that bed was totally crap! So what to do? Stay up all night. ruin our stay in Cork or book a hotel? Within 2 seconds we decided to do the last. The Imperial was perfect!
Okay… not really perfect. I think it used to be perfect. Like around the year 1985? You could everywhere see the signs of poor maintenance. In the bathroom, at the windows, in the dining room. Our room was also very noisy. We had one which was situated next to the street.
But hey… we didn’t complain. The bed was perfect. We slept like roses. The breakfast also was very nice. It was a wise decision to go here.

A great place to stay while in Cork. Close to th English Market. The staff is quite friendly and the rooms are fairly nice. It is not 5-​star but it is about as good as you will get in Cork.

Nice enough hotel but the car parking is crazy. It is AT LEAST a ten minute walk to the carpark. The map to get there is quite confusing too.
I checked in at night and the taxis parked out front made it impossible to actually park. I had to ring the hotel to get them to come out to give me directions to the car park which were really confusing.
The carpark is also a bit creepy particularly at night. This hotel needs to introduce a car-​parking service. Had to walk for close to 15 mins in the rain with my case. Would gladly have paid 10 euro to have someone that knew where they were going park my car.
At the very least someone come with you or give you a preprogrammed sat nav. Current system is a disaster.
Cork hotels were full that night but regretted my stay in this hotel. I should have made the journey home a day early.
Won’t be back

Expected a lot for the price. Sink would not drain, they could not fix it. Moved us to a room which was damp, both me and my partner got sick. The door in the bathroom of the new room would not shut.
Leaks in the ceiling near the function room. Leak was coming through a light fixture which would be a serious fire hazard.
Car Park was 10 min walk away, stayed there over x-​mas, got soaked by rain retrieving my car. Could not gain access to the parking on new years day as power was off, got soaked again trying to swipe my card outside to get into the parking lot which was locked up with no power.
Service and food was good but hotel was a shambles along with the parking situation.

We were told at check in that our room might be a bit noisy because of a wedding that started at 3:00 pm. We went out to dinner and returned around 10:00 figuring we could go to sleep. The reception was being held in the ballroom below us. The level of noise was ridiculous. The band did not stop till over midnight and it was so loud that even with the fan on high we could hear every word the singer was bellowing. Will never stay here again or recommend it to anyone else.

First time here in years and I was so disappointed! The lobby and cafè was amazing really had my expectations high but the room was bad! Walls were scratched and marked, furniture was broken, water stain on the ceiling, the carpet from the loo to the room was tore, duvet was so heavy and felt cheap, I plugged in my straightener and fuse went and to top it all off they never emptied the bathroom bin from the last people in the room! Very grossed out by that as I could see what was their!
Went to the bar and was charged € 5.20 for a bottle if miller, sane bottle that you get in a box in Dunnes for € 15 and the residents bar was closed at 1am? Very early I though!
Only reason I’m even giving this hotel two stars is the staff on front desk were so friendly! And the only good thing about the room is that it had a fan!
I paid € 109 for one night without breakfast and feel like I was robbed! Will not be staying here again! I’d say if you want to waste money stay the night otherwise just come here for tea!

Not a fan, I’m afraid.
Like Sean E mentions, the car park is 10 minutes walk AND costs € 9?! What? C’mon. And there is no valet option. Plus it is not clear that this is an option so we ended up circling on a busy Friday afternoon, getting jammed into one way streets, finally parking at the shopping center (which does not allow overnight), checking in, then my husband went back out, retrieved the car from the shopping car park, moved it to the Imperial car park, which took about an hour with construction, etc.
GET A VALET.
Ahem, ok. Beyond that I just wasn’t terribly impressed with this hotel. It was a nice setting for the wedding we attended and the food was nice, etc. However the rooms left much to be desired. For the price (over € 200/​night) you’d expect something a bit nicer than threadbare carpets, acrylic duvet covers, dusty fans, stained ironing board/​mattress, etc. We overlooked the exhaust/​vent system. There were pigeons sitting on our windowsill all hours making annoying pigeon noises. The washroom was teensy tiny.
On the plus side — the service was really quite good. No complaints there. Geraldine in reception was lovely. They set us up with a babysitter for both nights (Agnes, who works in the café!) who was really nice and took good care of our baby while we had some drinks and dinner (two-​handed!). This is the reason for 3 stars, because otherwise we were verging on 1−2…as I couldn’t WAIT to bolt out of there.
The wifi is free, and it is OK. Spotty on occasion but I’ve not found ONE HOTEL in all of Europe with good wifi so this perhaps is just standard fare.
The restaurant (complimentary breakfast) is OK. The breakfast appears to be geared at older people that need help chewing. I stand by my plans to avoid all «hot breakfast» buffets that have eggs in loaves. It’s a bad sign. The meal was quite bland and I opted to pay for breakfast elsewhere the next day. Again, the service was very good but the product a bit lacking.
Overall, I can’t say I’d be back. However, it was convenient to stay due to the wedding being hosted and the staff really is the shining star of the operation. With some major updates to the rooms, a new reign on the breakfast offerings and a VALET option, it could easily be 4.
Great location in Cork City.

Really liked this hotel and the staff were super nice. But a few things let it down… Not a huge fan of the fact that the carpark is a ten minute walk from the hotel and also costs € 9 to park in?
The restaurant «the Pembroke» was fairly lively but the food was pretty disappointing — chewy steak and slightly burned chips.
Awoken at 4am by rowdy guests of the hotel — a complaint to the reception didn’t sort it. Complained to the manager the next morning and they knocked € 20 off the bill which was decent enough.

Imperial Hotel staff give superb care and attention to detail for every aspect of the Cork setting.
We arrived to a wonderful tea service. Room comfy n everything you need for a pleasant stay.
We have stayed from coast to coast in Ireland at some fine hotels and resorts; Imperial Hotel’s expert receptionists help you in every way even with paying your e tolls. Its location is perfect for visiting all of Cork’s notable sights. Well worth staying here or even popping in for tea or the bar!

This was my husband and my last stop in Ireland on our honeymoon. The hotel is very nice, however the room was very small and reminded us of a shoebox… however the spa, restaurant, bar and town make up for it. With all Cork has to offer, having a small room helps get you out and about to enjoy it all! Unfortunately, it flooded the night we were in Cork so we did not get to venture out and about… instead I took advantage of the Escape Salon and Spa… I highly reccommend… they have an incredible hydration pool area where you relax before you go in for your spa treatments… my massage was so good, I ended up falling asleep! (That has never happend before to me! So relaxing and needed!)