Radisson Edwardian Manchester, Manchester

...a fantastic rate for the Radisson Edwardian I made my reservation there.

I made my reservation over the phone directly with the hotel to secure my rate of £75 for the room for the night, however reservations can be made on their website www.radissonedwardian.com/manchester.

*~*Locating the Hotel*~*
The hotel is easy to miss on busy Peter Street as the entrance is set away from the pavement; I was armed with maps ...
...of glass double doors with Radisson Edwardian etched into the glass.
As you enter the hotel you are greeted with the reception area on the left and running through the middle of reception are fantastic leather sofas with complementary newspapers on the tables.
As I arrived I was greeted with a friendly smiley staff member eager to check me in.
Check in is at 2pm and I had called to advise that I would be arriving later that ... more

As another of my friends prepares to tie the know another hen night involved a hotel reservation to be made in central Manchester.

As there were no rooms left where the actual hens were staying in, my friend and I tried to get the best rate for a hotel not too far away. As I got a fantastic rate for the Radisson Edwardian I made my reservation there.

I made my reservation over the phone directly with the hotel to secure my rate of £75 for the room for the night, however reservations can be made on their website www.radissonedwardian.com/manchester.

*~*Locating the Hotel*~*
The hotel is easy to miss on busy Peter Street as the entrance is set away from the pavement; I was armed with maps to ensure that I didn't end up at the wrong location.
I arrived into Manchester Piccadilly after costing up driving and parking it was cheaper to go by train.
I arrived into the train station and went to the main exit to catch one of the free buses that dropped on Peter Street, Oxford Street Station is closer to the hotel but is still quite a walk so I decided to get the free bus and travel a little further to save my weary legs!
The bus stopped directly outside the hotel which is located next door to Pizza Express and I made my way inside.

*~*Reception*~*
The hotel's entrance is simply two sets of glass double doors with Radisson Edwardian etched into the glass.
As you enter the hotel you are greeted with the reception area on the left and running through the middle of reception are fantastic leather sofas with complementary newspapers on the tables.
As I arrived I was greeted with a friendly smiley staff member eager to check me in.
Check in is at 2pm and I had called to advise that I would be arriving later that day and secured the room with my credit card.
In order for the lady to retrieve my booking I was asked for my name and a credit card to store my details should I decide to run off without paying the bill, this is standard procedure in most hotels now unless they have been pre-paid.
As I had received a staff rate of £75 I was asked to show proof of my employment which again is standard procedure if you have a Travel Agency discount.
I was then given 2 key cards for the room and asked if I would like a wake up call or newspapers delivered to the room which I declined.
I was directed to the elevators and also advised where breakfast would be the following morning.
I walked straight ahead towards the elevators which were located to the right opposite the bar which was the room next to the reception. The elevators are operated with a key card which must be slotted in to allow the lift to move through the 14 storeys. As I arrived on my floor I had to use the key once more to access the bedrooms.
All bedrooms have key card entry.

*~*The Bedroom*~*
As I entered the bedroom I was greeted with several switches on the right hand side, the first two illuminated when pressed the first told the maids that the room was ready for cleaning and the second displayed the do not disturb sign.
The next switch was to power the main lights in the bedroom and required your key card to be left in at all times.
The next switches operated the lights at the entrance to the room.

Directly facing me as I walked into the room was the glass desk which had a gorgeous brown leather swivel chair for any corporate business man needing to do some work in the room, all rooms also have Modem and broadband access and power sockets a plenty on the desks for laptops or in my case straightners and a hairdryer (which I didn't need) and if you have a laptop with wireless internet this can be used within your room free of charge.

Next to the desk in the left corner of the room was a mini bar stored behind a walnut coloured chest with sleek glass doors, the mini bar contained sensors so if you lifted a product out of the mini bar you would automatically be charged. Drinks ranged from £2.00 for a soft drink to £5.00 for a miniature spirit.
Above the mini bar was the tea and coffee making facilities complete with Typhoo teabags and Nescafe Coffee but sadly no biscuits!

The windows were large and were partially frosted to provide more privacy from the rooms above, curtains were lacking however and in place were blackout blinds that pulled across the window.

The room had a soft chair in the corner next to the window to allow you to relax and watch television in comfort. The television is by Bang & Olufsen and the remote control is so large and heavy and is not the easiest to operate but differs a lot to the tv's found in most 3* hotel rooms.

Our room was a twin and it was separated by a glass shelf where the telephone was located. Luxurious duck down pillows are on each of the beds along with a suede chocolate coloured throw to throw some colour into the contemporary pale walls.

The bathroom is split into two zones the dry zone and the wet zone.
The dry zone is a wooden floor with free standing wash bowl, a stylishly illuminated mirrored dressing area and walk-in wardrobe. Behind the mirrored cabinet is a high powered hair dryer to save you packing on for a one night stay.
The wet zone features a walk-in shower, bath and toilet, and is stocked with luxurious toiletries from a well known brand.
The wet and dry zones are a fresh new idea and work really well.

*~*Bars and Restuarants*~*
The hotel has a funky modern bar called Opus One, Opus One has been one of Manchester's liveliest and popular restaurants. Opus One serves innovative modern British food, presented in a modern, contemporary way.
The surroundings are amazing, with soaring ceilings, velvet red walls, high gloss black woodwork, antique gold wall coverings and bespoke furniture in black crocodile skin hide and a fantastic red chandelier its easy to forget you are in Manchester and feel as if your actually on the other side of the continent.
We visited the bar at the end of the night to purchase a bottle of wine which cost £20.00 this included the service charge and was charged to our room, the bar was lively and extremely busy for Manchester, however my friend and I appeared to be the youngest there!
ALTO
Serving breakfast only, guests can relax in this light and airy space which forms part of the new spectacular atrium this is located next to the lifts directly opposite the reception area and can be entered through double glass doors serving only between 8am and 11am

*~*Checking out*~*
Check-out is 11am at the hotel, as we arrived there was quite a queue but it seemed to go down pretty quickly and we checked out hassle free, our bill came to a total of £105.00 but this included drinks from the bar, our room only rate and room service so it was pretty reasonable.
We split the bill and paid on separate cards and we were both provided with an itemized bill.
The hotel is excellent and is great for a treat if you plan on going to Manchester for more than just a night on the town, it is located close to many great bars such as Brannigans, Teasers and Life.
The printworks which is located closer to the MEN Arena includes the Hard Rock Café and Tiger Tiger and is a taxi ride of approximately £5.60.

*~*Conclusion*~*
This hotel is definately for couples or business travellers as it has little facilities for children and to be honest you would be walking on egg shells watching them in the room with the amount of glass decoration.
The hotel features an indoor swimming pool, sauna and steam room that is complimentary to hotel guests.
Many other features includes the Spa area to book treatments anda health club.
I would definately stay at this hotel again as I feel I got such a great deal for the stay and think it would be a great place for a weekend retreat with hubby to be as a pre-wedding stress free break.

Higly recommended. 

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