Accommodation suggestions and reviews

[Techniquest]

Just come back from my latest multi-stay trip, and I've already reviewed on here The Railway Hotel in Faversham so I'll skip that one. However I did get a new location in the book, Hebburn Bed and Breakfast, Hebburn, Newcastle.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I booked, but I dived in and hoped it would be OK. I had to make sure I got on with getting there on Thursday as I hadn't noticed it was a 1800 finish to check in time. Fortunately I was going to be in Newcastle well before then, will teach me to check these things better next time. It was done very quickly and my £60 for two nights (breakfast was extra £6 a night, not for me ta. £3 for cereal and toast, possibly with tea/coffee too) is paid. I'm shown my room and she wasn't wrong, this place really hasn't been open long, it's very modern.

My bed is rather comfortable, I've got a pretty good size TV too with tons of channels, the shower's extremely powerful and did an amazing job of de-rancification. Room was of a good size too, comfortable pillows, good tea/coffee provision too.

It's only an 8 minute walk from the Metro as well, with bus route 27 to/from Newcastle and South Shields also passing by very close by. Asda's on the route to/from the station so very handy for stocking up on supplies. Including a trip on the Metro and the walk, it's probably about 30 minutes from Newcastle Central Station, so I highly recommend checking it out.

I honestly have no complaints about this place, it's on my list of accommodations to return to. A full review will be posted on TripAdvisor too soon, my sister's watching The Voice and it's very distracting!

 

[Crossover]

Well I am at Buchanan Galleries at the moment. Checked it just after 2pm so got first pick of rooms and I have gone for the view, way up on Floor 17! Although I am next to the lifts, I have hardly heard anything - it seems pretty quiet so far. Nice rooms and PI now don't limit the inclusive WiFi to 30 mins, so although it's client limited to 0.5Mb down and 0.25-0.3Mb up, it is fine for bits of browsing

 

[Blindtraveler]

Iv never used that one, must be a great view! I believe you can still pay for premium internet.

 

[Crossover]

Iv never used that one, must be a great view! I believe you can still pay for premium internet.

I'll post some pictures I've taken later. Yes you can if you want to stream etc
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Oh yes, the other thing this one has is power sockets in abundance. Single socket by the bed (something often lacking, I find) with 2 doubles on the desk - one of these has a light plugged in but it can be unplugged. The kettle has its own socket again!

 

[Crossover]

Attached are a couple of pics out of my room window at PI Glasgow Buchanan Galleries, one by day and one by nightfall. The hotel remained quiet through the night, though looking at the state of Glasgow the morning after, it may have been better being higher up away from the chaos!

I decided against breakfast at the hotel in the end, instead opting for Wetherspoons next to Queen St, so can't comment on the restaurant

If the price is right, I would certainly recommend the hotel, though

 

[Cletus]

Stayed at the Stratford Westfield Premier Inn last week, 9th floor (room 926 I think) overlooking Stratford International.
Fairly good views into the hole, Eurostars can be seen going off to Temple Mills at the end of service and also 395's going through fast back to Ashford in the morning peak, so fairly rare sightings.



Poor quality picture.

 

[Kite159]

Stayed in a couple cheap & cheerful guest houses this past weekend

London - Silkhouse, Hackney

Location - 4/5 minute walk from Homerton station on the North London Line, quiet (bar the odd idiotic boy/girl racer accelerating hard), rooms are a bit basic (they have a TV, and a cupboard, that is about it), shared bathrooms. Down points is that the bed only had one thin pillow, and felt like needing a bigger duvet. But for £30 (room price, breakfast was extra) with less than a week's notice is quite good value for London, with reasonable connections.

Glasgow - Belgrave Hotel, North West Glasgow

Location, 5 minute walk (slight hill) from Kelvinbridge subway station, 20 minute walk to Charing Cross [for those who want an early start on a Sunday], quite a few shops along the route, and pubs. Room again was a bit basic, but at least it had an ensuite toilet/shower, and tea/coffee/biscuits. Nice staff who emailed the day before asking for a rough ETA as you need to be checked in by around 8pm.

Free breakfast (although bit late on the weekends) and free wi-fi. Room thankfully wasn't on the road side, but overlooked other houses, no ability to adjust heating through.

Both I would happily rebook (although for Glasgow, if I can get the Charing Cross guest house I had in May would be better as they look after the room keys for you)

 

[Techniquest]

Shame about the shared bathrooms in that Hackney one, although the rest of it sounds worse than a hostel!

I stayed last night at 247 Hotel, Oldham. Formerly a Travelodge, but comfortable beds, good pillows, friendly and informative staff, only about 10 minutes walk from Oldham King Street (although to be fair Napier Street doesn't look nice, I was on edge in both directions, day and night, walking that way, would suggest following the path along the A62 instead), good size rooms, properly powerful decent shower too.

WiFi was free, and had a tendancy to randomly drop out but back in quite quickly. Ask at reception for a code for it and they'll set up a receipt with it on for you.

Breakfast I didn't end up having (see trip report when it goes up this week for why), but decent options available and for reasonable money too. All in all, considering I only booked it 6 days before my stay I did very well indeed for £29!

Definitely adding this one to my list of places to return to, another pleasant surprise stay!

 

[Crossover]

Shame about the shared bathrooms in that Hackney one, although the rest of it sounds worse than a hostel!

I stayed last night at 247 Hotel, Oldham. Formerly a Travelodge, but comfortable beds, good pillows, friendly and informative staff, only about 10 minutes walk from Oldham King Street (although to be fair Napier Street doesn't look nice, I was on edge in both directions, day and night, walking that way, would suggest following the path along the A62 instead), good size rooms, properly powerful decent shower too.

WiFi was free, and had a tendancy to randomly drop out but back in quite quickly. Ask at reception for a code for it and they'll set up a receipt with it on for you.

Breakfast I didn't end up having (see trip report when it goes up this week for why), but decent options available and for reasonable money too. All in all, considering I only booked it 6 days before my stay I did very well indeed for £29!

Definitely adding this one to my list of places to return to, another pleasant surprise stay!

Ah, we had someone doing some work for us stay there - only reason I've heard of it. (One of our places isn't far from Broadway). The only place I've stayed round there us Broadway Travelodge when I needed to be in work extra early - served the purpose well enough. The Boat and Horses gets good reviews from people though

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Just a heads up that the hotel overlooking the approaches to Gare de l'Est in Paris that I mentioned a few pages ago has changed hands; it is no longer a Timhotel but is now known simply as "Hotel at Gare du Nord". The staff are the same and will understand any requests for the specific rooms 405, 406, 505 and 506.

 

[pne]

Just a heads up that the hotel overlooking the approaches to Gare de l'Est in Paris that I mentioned a few pages ago has changed hands; it is no longer a Timhotel but is now known simply as "Hotel at Gare du Nord". The staff are the same and will understand any requests for the specific rooms 405, 406, 505 and 506.

What's special about those rooms?

 

[Peter Mugridge]

What's special about those rooms?

Scroll back to post number 243 on page 17 and see for yourself.

 

[pne]

Scroll back to post number 243 on page 17 and see for yourself.

Right, thank you!

 

[ThePannier]

Stayed in a lovely hotel in Grasmere a few years back with my family, not strictly train-related although I do recall we did get the train at one point during our stay in the lakes on that occasion.

Hard to remember the name, maybe 'The White Swan'? I'll look it up.

 

[andyb2706]

I usually go to the Severn Valley Railway a couple of times a year and stay in Bridgnorth rather than Kidderminster.

Bridgnorth is a more pleasant town than Kidderminster, sorry if any of the readers here are from Kidderminster but this is just my opinion and I usually stay in The Croft B&B just off the main square in the upper part of town.

The B&B is reasonably priced an example of this is that I have booked there this year in August for a few days (as I am doing a driver experience course on a Western) and it is costing me £40 a night B&B for August!!

Breakfast is very good and the building is quirky. Would recommend this place if any of you are staying in the area.

 

[Techniquest]

Off-topic but enjoy the Western driving experience! I did it in 2006 and thoroughly loved it!

 

[D6975]

Any recommended hotels around the Bristol Temple Meads/Parkway area?

I'm interested in this railtour in June time, however the start/end times will require a hotel close to either Temple Meads or Parkway area which doesn't cost £150+ (http://www.pathfindertours.co.uk/index.php/tour-calendar-reader/events/the-don-and-went.html)

Unless I try and board it at New Street and try and get a cheapish hotel around the Birmingham area or risk a 12 minute connection/10 minute connection for the first/last XC services from Basingstoke.

Holiday Inn Express Bristol City Centre is 53 quid for the friday night 5/6/15. Walking distance from TM.

 

[Kite159]

Holiday Inn Express Bristol City Centre is 53 quid for the friday night 5/6/15. Walking distance from TM.

Bit late for me I'm afraid, booked early morning advance to Burton to meet up with the tour train.

 

[Ash Bridge]

Any of you much travelled chaps stayed at the Crewe Central Premier Inn lately? Have booked 2 rooms for late May, for my wife, daughter, mother & self in conjunction with a wedding we are attending in deepest Cheshire. Was wondering mainly what the food was like in the adjacent pub e.g. in the evening and also at breakfast, some of the reports on TripAdvisor are not too promising...
Thanks!

 

[Blindtraveler]

With this 1 Id take TA with a large pinch of Salt. Iv overnighted there once but broken journeys and gone for a meal there many times. If you like standard no nonsense pub grub your fine, they do a good job, quick, hot and taisty.
The PI is good too.

 

[Ash Bridge]

With this 1 Id take TA with a large pinch of Salt. Iv overnighted there once but broken journeys and gone for a meal there many times. If you like standard no nonsense pub grub your fine, they do a good job, quick, hot and taisty.
The PI is good too.

That's sounds good enough for me, wasn't expecting Michelin star ratings, thanks for getting back

 

[Blindtraveler]

No bother. What you often find living Oop North is that Crewe isa good split point if using the WCML and as Im fond of a good no nonsense pub meal I use the Brewers Fare inbetween trains a good bit.

 

[Kite159]

Tottenham Guest House, Seven Sisters.

The good:
Location - Less than 5 minutes walk from Seven Sisters underground/national rail station, couple supermarkets nearby (Tesco Extra & Sainsburys Local) with other options for food available.

The member of staff I dealt with when checking in was friendly, showed me to my room and where the shared bathrooms was.

The bad:
The location, I overlooked the main-line which is lovely to hear 315 motor noises when they accelerate/decelerate for Seven Sisters station, but there must be some set of points north of the station which make a bit of noise. The noise is little in comparison though as the guest-house is above a pub, which had loud music playing until 2 am.

Steep and narrow stairs, and the rooms weren't the biggest (had enough room for a small cupboard, a bedside table and a single bed), shared bathroom probably is showing the ages of many visitors.

And not the guest-house's fault, but I had a couple of slightly drunken ladies talking very loudly during the early hours (probably still drinking).

I would put it onto the ones to avoid list, although I might be being harsh as I only paid £27 for a Friday night, but the one I had a couple weeks ago was better. Maybe it would be better during the week without the loud music from the pub.

 

[Crossover]

Any of you much travelled chaps stayed at the Crewe Central Premier Inn lately? Have booked 2 rooms for late May, for my wife, daughter, mother & self in conjunction with a wedding we are attending in deepest Cheshire. Was wondering mainly what the food was like in the adjacent pub e.g. in the evening and also at breakfast, some of the reports on TripAdvisor are not too promising...
Thanks!

The Brocklebank I am sure was where there was a forum meal a few months ago - as said elsewhere, it was no nonsense but the food was reasonable enough

 

[richw]

Any of you much travelled chaps stayed at the Crewe Central Premier Inn lately? Have booked 2 rooms for late May, for my wife, daughter, mother & self in conjunction with a wedding we are attending in deepest Cheshire. Was wondering mainly what the food was like in the adjacent pub e.g. in the evening and also at breakfast, some of the reports on TripAdvisor are not too promising...
Thanks!

Premier inn food I've always found consistent. As with any large chain I find the food is never bad, but never something I would recommend to friends. I know exactly what to expect and the food will be no nonsence what it says on the tin kind kid stuff.
The only difference is the staff mannerism and approach.

 

[Ash Bridge]

The Brocklebank I am sure was where there was a forum meal a few months ago - as said elsewhere, it was no nonsense but the food was reasonable enough

Premier inn food I've always found consistent. As with any large chain I find the food is never bad, but never something I would recommend to friends. I know exactly what to expect and the food will be no nonsence what it says on the tin kind kid stuff.
The only difference is the staff mannerism and approach.

Thanks chaps, appreciated!

 

[Merseysider]

Adequate: EuroHostel Glasgow - I got there at 23:30 and it wasn't until 00:30 I could actually go to sleep, due to a combination of: booked room already filled, keycard not working, and a reasonably priced bar on the ground floor. With student discount, cost me about £14 for the night. Location ideal.

Bad: Coventry station waiting room - it is not easy to fall asleep on a rock-hard bench with two partitions dividing the seats.

 

[trentside]

Speaking of Glasgow - has anyone stayed at the Z Hotel, close to Queen a Street station?

Reviews look pretty good, so I've booked a night there in March.

Further to this - can't recommend this place highly enough. Two minutes from Queen Street, amazingly clean and friendly. The night I was there they were running a free cheese and wine buffet, which was excellent. Room was small, compact and windowless but a comfortable bed, an excellent shower and tea/coffee facilities.

http://www.thezhotels.com/z-glasgow

Sadly can't say the same for the Harbour House B&B in Wick. Not that clean, a nasty smell of cigarette smoke in the communal areas and an overcooked breakfast. I'm pleased to say that the bed was at least clean and the view fairly pleasant.

 

[les.]

Not one particular hotel or B&B but I can thoroughly recommend a place as a whole.

Plockton, which is 2 stops from the end of the Inverness-Kyle line, which was recently voted the 2nd most scenic village in the UK. You get a brilliant view of Plockton as you snake around Loch Carron before arriving at the station.

There is actually budget accomdation/bunkhouse on the actual platform itself, but if you want a bit more comfort then there are a number of hotels and B&B's in the village itself.

The village centre is a good 10-15 minute walk from the station though, but each time I have stayed there I have informed the place I was staying at that I would be arriving by train and they have picked me up at the station.

The village itself is stunning and some of the views will take your breath away. I usually stay at The Plockton Inn which is also an award winning seafood restaurant but there is also The Plockton Hotel (an award winning seafood restaurant too) and well as several B&B's. There is also The Plockton Shores restaurant where Michael Portillo ate on his train journeys programme.

So, if anyone is doing the Inverness to Kyle line and needs an overnight stop then Plockton is the place to stay I reckon as there isn't really much actually at Kyle.

http://www.plockton.com/

 

[Kite159]

Another London guest-house

A to Z Hotel, Acton

Location, around a 5 minute walk from Acton Relief Line on the Great Western (currently half hourly service, would imagine once Crossrail is up and running frequencies will increase), seems to be a 20 minute walk from Acton Central on the North London Line, although I was lazy and caught the 266 bus from Acton Town centre.

It's on a busish road, but thankfully my room was at the back of the building, room was rather tiny (made even tinier by having an en-suite shower/toilet fitted), bed was similar to travel-lodge (hard mattress), so took a while to get comfy, I was 3rd floor and the stairs are a bit steep and narrow, so not the sort of place you want to use as a base-camp for several days with a large suitcase. Friendly staff, and I think a free breakfast is included in the price.

For £30, probably the best guest-house so far.