Golden Tulip Manchester, Manchester > Reviews > Football Lovers dream location!

Author's product rating:   

Value for Money	Average
Quality of Rooms	Good
Standard of Service	Good
Quality of Facilities	Good

Advantages:	Standard hotel facilities, if you are a football fan its right next to Man U
Disadvantages:	No mini bar in room, little to do in the evenings,

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

The Golden Tulip is located bang opposite the hallowed grounds of Manchester United Football Club. If you are arriving by train into Manchester Picadilly then its around a £6 taxi ride out to this area of Manchester. Its easy to get to those driving themselves to the hotel, its located just off the A56, with good links to the M60, M602, M56, M62 and M6.

The hotel is what I'd describe as a standard business persons hotel. It isnt the sort of place I'd recommend for a lovely break because its a large hotel with no real charm of its own, but provides a perfectly good nights accomodation for those in town on business. That is what brought me to the Golden Tulip last year when my company held an exhibition at the Old Trafford HQ.

You enter the hotel and walk straight into a large lobby. From here you will see the reception desk, and several rooms leading off in different directions.
Check in and you'll be given a key card for your door which can also be used to make charges in the restaurant and bar. They do preapprove a certain amount on your credit card, which you'll be asked for upon check in, to make sure you can cover the cost of the room.
The receptionsist will point you in the right direction of your room.

From the lobby if you turn left you'll go off towards all the rooms, if you cross straight over thats the bar, and to your right is the restaurant which is also where your breakfast will be served in the mornings.

Rooms

The Golden Tulip has 160 bedrooms including 1 executive and 2 junior suites. Bedrooms offer a choice of standard or executive style, all with showers and baths.

My room had a bath and shower en-suite, tea & coffee making tray, a hairdryer, trouser press, iron & Ironing board, colour tv with satellite TV and the opportunity to watch pay movies. The room also had free broadband wi-fi internet access. Room service was available on request and my room had a menu for this and a drinks menu for the bar.

My room had two twin beds both comfortable and featuring pillows and duvet sets. It was decorated in neutral colours and had double glazed windows which did sound proof it from the road next to the hotel.
The room was perfectly good for a standard hotel room, my only real moan was the lack of mini bar. The cost of the room was £100 a night, which I wouldnt have paid if my company hadnt been reinbursing me, its just too much for such a featureless place. However for the cost I'd expect to find a mini bar.
When I enquired about this at reception I was told that they used to have mini bars but were scaling this down at present. Why I wasnt informed.

Personally I think if you are only staying somewhere for one night, as a lone female the idea of dining alone in the restaurant can be entirely depressing, so room service really does appeal. Mini bars make it easy and discreet to select the nightcap or meal accompaniment of your choice without having to trouble the staff to bring you up your G&T etc. But that might bother some people less than it did me.

Facilities

The Hotel has a good restaurant for a hotel in its location. I wasnt expecting to find such a good menu and range of choice, although it was slightly pricey for what it was. The menu was modern european so a mix of the usual steaks, sausage and mash, and meat and veg to a selection of pizza and pastas, a couple of oriental dishes and salads.
I guess thats the benefit for them of being slightly out of the way of the city centre, once you are there you are unlikely to go elsewhere for the hassle of finding a cab etc. Or I think this is what they bank on anyway.
The resturant features booths with dark wood tables and seats and is low lit so it has quite a pleasant atmosphere. As I say I didnt actually eat in the restaurant but I did pop in to see what it was like and what was on offer. I would say you could have had a three course meal for around £40 per head. Wine started from £4 a glass or £15 a bottle, again a little pricey for the sort of place.

Additionally this hotel has what they call the lounge bar which also serves food, but a cut down version of the restaurant menu and mostly featuring sandwiches and burgers.

I spent a perfectly pleasant evening at the hotel, room service was prompt and easy to order, and tasty when it arrived.

Breakfast the next day was served in the main restaurant again, you walked in and selected juice, cereals, fruit, crioissants and other pastries from the selection on the side, and you could ask for items from a full english menu too. Coffee and tea was brought in a small pot per person, again fairly standard.

When I checked out, you are asked if you have driven to the hotel and they give you a chip to allow you to lower the hotel secruity gates that stop any car just driving in and out. My bill was all in order and provided promptly, I was checked out and done within 10 minutes.

Just one last thing to add, all the staff I encountered were smartly dressed, clean and tidy and polite if not friendly. I think the Tulip chain is obviously doing ok at this venue and should I find myself needing accomodation in this area again for business reasons would stay at the Tulip again.

Golden Tulip
Waters Reach
M17 1WS, Manchester
Country: United Kingdom
Phone Number: (44 161) 8738899