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Member since:14.03.2007
Reviews:120
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I am not long back from a weekend trip to Blackpool but as I have already reviewed the hotel I stayed in, as I had stayed there before, I thought I would rewind to a business trip I had to Blackpool last year and a nice hotel I stayed in then.
The hotel in question for my business trip was the Belgrave Madison hotel, this hotel was recommended to me by a friend and I was very happy with his recommendation. My friend had told me of the great service, friendly atmosphere and the disconnection with what Blackpool is all about (ie) noise and hustle and bustle, and he was 100% correct.
The hotel is situated in a much quieter part of Blackpool, it sits on the queen’s promenade, north shore, it is actually right on the join of Blackpool and Bispham, it is set on the cliffs and has a beautiful sea view and whether the weather is good or bad the views of the sands and the Irish sea are a sight to behold.
Not every room has a sea view but they can be requested if you book early enough, all rooms are however en-suite and very well maintained and of fairly modern decor. I had a two night stay and found it to be very comfortable and the staff helped make the stay a very enjoyable one.
MY ROOM
There are 43 rooms in total and of course I cannot speak for them all but the one I stayed in was a very spacious double room, I was travelling alone but I never like single rooms so I always book a double (and hey you never know when you might get lucky LOL). The bed was obviously fairly new and certainly very comfortable and the furniture and fittings also looked to fairly new, it is possible this place has recently had a refit judging by how good everything looked but I am not sure of that being the case.
The room
was decorated simply but very nicely, it was all light cream in colour with just some darker trims to take away the plainness, the bathroom was actually good enough to have been given place in most people’s own homes, it was predominantly white in colour but had a very nice set of stone coloured tiles around the bath and wash basin to take away the basic look and it also had a nice mahogany wooden side to the bath, the bath also like the bed and furniture looked to be very new.
The room was spotless throughout and cleaned whilst I was out although it did not need it. On arrival there was three large stone coloured towels which were replaced the next day with a new set of three even though I had only used one of them, I know they were replaced because the next day I had white towels (probably done so customers know a change has taken place). The room alone was enough to make this a place I would visit again but there was much more to the hotel than just its nice rooms.
THE BAR AND RESTAURANT
The bar in this hotel was not run down and of cheesy decor like many in Blackpool; instead it had the look of a bar you would find in a much more up-market hotel in a much more up-market place, the decor may have been a bit old fashioned but it was still classy and gave a very relaxed and comfortable feel to the place.
The next thing I noticed about the bar was that as well as the usual choices of beers and lagers and the typical spirits on the optics, this bar was very well stocked with a choice of malt whiskey`s and it had a great selection of cask ales. The bar had a very relaxed feel to it on the first night of my stay as me and about ten other guests enjoyed a drink and a chat but the second night of my stay which was a Thursday night, was much more lively and the Karaoke was in full swing as people no doubt geared up for the weekend.
At the weekends the bar hosts cabaret acts and when it is in high season the cabaret acts are on from Wednesday through to Sunday. They also have quiz nights which a regular guest was telling me were very good and they have a small dance floor should the drink get the better of you and you feel like a boogie. The bar was as impressive as the room I was staying in if not more so and another reason to return to this hotel for sure.
The restaurant that they serve breakfast and evening meals in is again like the rooms and the bar, it is spotlessly clean and well decorated and welcoming, it has tables for one through to tables that would seat six if you needed them. I sat at a table for two as I needed the room for my laptop, I enjoyed a great full English breakfast as I edited my photos from the evening before, the waiter was happy to wait on me hand and foot even though I had my face stuck in my laptop and was probably a bit rude to him, with one word answers and hums and haws (for which I apologised of course).
The menu for evening meals was quite extensive with the usual suspects on there such as steak pie, fish and chips, chicken breast and the likes but it also had a decent selection of other foods such as the choice of three types of salad, an Indian and a Chinese curry dish and the delicious Italian stone bakedpizza that I had. The food and the drinks at both breakfast and evening meal time were the third reason I will certainly hold a return business trip here.
THE COST
I stayed at low season and I paid only £72 pounds for my two night stay which included both breakfast and evening meal. You can choose to book your evening meal in advance and save a couple of pounds or decide at the time to add it when you are there.
The hotel offer savings for long stays as well as great family offers throughout the year, for instance two adults and two children can enjoy a week’s summer break here for only £345 and that includes breakfasts. The hotel has a few special suites as well which sport four poster beds so if it is a bit of a romantic weekend you are after then they cater for you too and the rooms with four poster beds are only ten pounds per night more expensive than the normal rooms.
SUMMARY
I will definitely use this hotel again and the only reason I did not choose it for my recent family break is that my kids are both young and love to stay at the Big Blue hotel that surrounds the famous pleasure beach. The Belgrave Madison is ideally situated for business trips or for people looking for a quieter Blackpool break, you are far enough away from the hustle and bustle to get a relaxed feeling and a good night’s sleep but if you want to get involved in the typical Blackpool fun it is only ten minutes away.
I would recommend this hotel to business travellers, couples of any age and certainly to older couples looking for some tranquil time but if you have young kids then they will probably get a bit bored if you were to spend too much time in the hotel so perhaps couples with young kids should stick to the more typical Blackpool hotels and guest houses. I will be returning to Blackpool inSeptember to do a photo shoot and I am almost certain this will be where I stay and I look forward to it. The friendly staff and the terrific surroundings make even a working trip feel like a holiday!
MY SCORES
LOCATION: 9/10 (for what I was looking for and for a quiet break it was almost perfect)
SERVICE: 10/10 (the service I received deserves at least a 10 out of ten)
THE ROOM: 9/10 (comfortable and clean and a great view who could ask for much more)
THE FOOD: 8/10 (the evening meals I had were great and the breakfasts Good even though not well presented)
THE STAFF: 10/10 (each member of the staff that I had the pleasure of dealing with from the manager to the cleaner were top class)
VALUE FOR MONEY: 10/10 (the two nights I had for £72 were excellent value for money)
OVERALL: 9/10 (there was truly very little I could fault with this hotel, it was great throughout)
If you are heading to Blackpool anytime soon and you are lucky enough to be going kids free then I strongly suggest you take a good look at this hotel as your choice of place to stay!
The Belgrave Madison is easy to find. Take the M55, following the signs right into the centre of Blackpool. You will drive through a car park onto Central Drive. Take your first left and then right at the Promenade. Continue straight on to Bispham. The Belgrave Madison is on your right just after Bispham Tram Station.
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May 26th, 2009
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