On arrival, we drove around the back of the hotel to the car park: full and a bit cramped to try and get a large 4x4 parked, so the car was left in the side street, which was well lit, had plenty of room and was free. Check-in was a matter of handing over a credit card for an imprint and deciding which breakfast slot to book and we were swiftly pointed in the direction of Room 205. I hauled the large case up the stairs and through a rather characterless side corridor protected by a fire door to the room. Key in lock and open door? Not quite, the door half opened and was then stopped by the bed. On the right-hand side entry to the room was impeded by a chest of drawers so it was a matter of holding the large case out front and shuffling into the room. Odd.
Presumably that meant the space had been taken up by a vast and luxurious bed, (the night having cost £165 after all,) but no, the bed was a mean double of four feet width: a size I had not seen in a hotel, anywhere in the world, for many, many years. At least it left plenty of space between the end of the bed and the window.
There wasn’t plenty of space in the bathroom. Personally, I have always been against swinging a cat of any type, but I do like a bathroom where one is able to actually turn around without the necessity of coming out backwards. It was as if the architect or designer had decide to install a compact version of an under-stairs cloakroom (but with no height restrictions,) and then throw in a shower as well. I have never seen such a small bathroom, no such a small sink. It was like trying to wash (and shave,) in a finger bowl. The only shelf for shampoo and the like in the shower was so high up my wife would had needed steps to get to it – and no ladder had been provided.
However, like the room, it was all spotless.
After dinner in a nearby restaurant, we retired for the night. The thick black-out curtains were drawn and it was immediately apparent that they stood a couple of inches all round, away from the wall allowing the light from the substantial street light tight outside the window pretty free reign. On the plus side, there was no trouble finding the bathroom in the middle of the night: or reading a book. The bed was equipped with a duvet which had a sufficient Tog value for coping with the next Ice Age so, it being only mid-September, that ended up on the floor but there was no lighter alternative cover available.
Next morning, the tea/coffee facilities were located in a drawer of the chest, and after splashing around in the miniscule bathroom, we descended to the dining room for an excellent breakfast and then departed.
