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Bournemouth Day 1 – it’s all about the seaside!

Theresa and I started our day at Bournemouth with a very good weather - perfect for our long day of walking. We arrived at Woodcroft Tower Hotel at 9am sharp and picked up keys to some of the rooms to check. The rooms were standard with large windows, and the beds we’re orderly done – things were obviously kept very neat because they have many chambermaids. The dining room is quite spacious and they serve different types of breakfast and dinner. The atmosphere of the place was a bit old school and conservative their location is close to the beach, pier etc & Bournemouth’s huge selection of restaurants. A great place to stay if you’re looking for basic luxury accommodation, though not really enjoyable for young groups but families & elderly will certainly enjoy their stay here.

After Woodcroft, we went to the Golden Sovereign Hotel and were met by Hugh who was just finishing with the guests’ breakfasts. We even got offered some fruit which I gladly accepted as I hadn’t had breakfast yet. It was a great atmosphere in the place. Hugh was very relaxed and talked to us with his seemingly trademark pipe. Golden Sovereign has a lot of character. There are a lot of Tiggers from Winnie the Pooh around which is pretty cool. Apparently, Steve got one from guest once to say thanks and now the place is overrun with little toy striped tigers. They’ve got a great location, right near the beach (although most places in Bournemouth are) and there is a real personal touch here. There are bowls of fruit on the living room table, videos for the kids to watch and even a huge fish pond and a beautiful outdoor area out the back. They get a lot of return custom, and the huge amount of thank you notes hung up on the wall prove that they are definitely doing their job right.

After finishing with Golden Sovereign, we went straight to Studland Hotel (which was quite a walk!). Sashi and Linda gave us a tour of the property and we we’e impressed by the awesome sea view that you get from some of their rooms. Most of the rooms are ensuites, and all very tidy. This Hotel is good for young groups, businessmen and family and maybe not for very old people. The hotel has lots to offer when it comes to fun and dining, very close to the beach and they’ve got a Thai restaurant, bar and an area for catering (perfect for the seaside wedding

Heading on to Woodcroft Hotel we met Cherie and had a bit of a roam around the property. Most of the rooms are ensuites, tidy and bright because of the big windows. they’ve got a spacious dining room; it was very quiet during the time when we roamed around because almost all the guests were out. Cherie also mentioned that children below 12 only have to pay half price.

Carry on after a rushed lunch

After a rushed lunch on the go, we wandered down to the Glendevon Hotel, where we were met by the manager Richard. We sat down to drink our lemonades in the front room, which was a really nice space to chill out in. Richard also owns the Babbacombe Hotel across the road, and so is really flexible with group numbers. The rooms were of a pretty good standard, all of them being ensuite. There is also a fantastic function room and bar downstairs for residents and groups to use. In a good location, this is in one of the main Bournemouth town hotel areas, so you are surrounded by a lot of other hotels and of course near the beach.

We arrived at The Manchester Hotel at 2pm sharp to meet Lucinda, who was very accommodating and gave us a tour of the property. The place has a nostalgic 70’s atmosphere as most of the furniture were from that period, with tidy rooms. What fascinated me was their bar & dance hall because it was very spacious and of course still very 70’s, the dining rooms were enormous, Lucinda said that those rooms were used for wedding receptions. They actually got pool tables which guests can use it for free. They’re location is easy to find. Groups can actually organize a party inside the property if they like to, this place is highly recommended for party groups.

After the Manchester, we wander straight across to The Fairmount Hotel where we meet the very charismatic Maryann. She is the owner and is an absolute character which adds a lot to this place. But it stands apart as a great little place anyway. Perfect for groups (especially stags) as there is a bar downstairs and Maryann keeps groups in line without the need for deposits and bonds. The rooms are of a very high standard, with very clean bathrooms, and lots of space. Like a lot of the others, the location is also excellent near the beach and town. I would definitely recommend this place. The vibe is relaxed and you would have a really comfortable stay here.

The last appointment of our first day was at the Russell Court Hotel - right on one of the main roads, Bath Road, so there is brilliant transportation links to a lot of places. Not that you need it though, as it is very near town and the beach. It’s a big place and definitely has all the facilities that you would need in a hotel. It has a restaurant and bar which was where we had our meeting. It’s a lovely, big space. The staff seemed friendly enough, and happy to help out. There’s also a lift which makes a good change from climbing lots of stairs!