Hotel reviews – Newgate & Jurys Inn
October 26th, 2011
It’s been a while since my last hotel review so I decided to come back with two hotel reviews in one, I couldn’t decide which hotel to write about so decided to go for both. The hotels are Jury’s Inn on Scotswood road and the Newgate hotel on Newgate Street. They are actually both quite similar as they both have a central location at under half a mile from the centre and are AA 3 star rated.
Newgate hotel Cardiff
On price things are quite close too with Newgate starting at around £60 for a double room and Jury’s coming in at around £80 (still good value I think). Part of me thinks that the extra £20 is for the name as Jury’s is quite a famous chain. Still with a brand name hotel you are almost always assured of a certain level of quality, I suppose that’s what you’re paying for.
Jury’s in Newcastle has been voted one of best hotels for Stag and Hen parties because of its location etc. But they do mention on their site that they “may” require a £100 security bond on arrival, who knows who this applies to but I’m guessing it’s mainly those stag and hen parties that they are marketing too.
Jurys Inn Newcastle
Aside from the price Newgate does seem to be a more “low key” affair as they have less rooms and are situated slightly further away from the main nightlife. One thing I do like is they have free parking for all guests whereas Jury’s charge £10 a day. Also both hotels have free Wifi in all rooms which is handy.
So I decided to list both hotels because I feel they are both really good value for money given the location. Personally for me the Newgate hotel would be my first choice, the cheaper room rate and also free parking swing it. Also I value my sleep and Stag/Hen parties aren’t known to be the quietest at night but who knows how big an issue this could be at Jury’s. Hopefully the review of both hotels helps if one is booked (Jury’s has over 110 rooms so it’s likely to be Newgate) as I really feel both hotels are great value, if you’re looking for somewhere cheap but comfortable in a great location one of these two should fit the bill. I hope to have more hotel reviews in the near future so come back soon.
Hotels in Newcastle : A review
October 7th, 2009
So i thought it was about time i did a general roundup of hotels in Newcastle for you all to browse. In this post i thought i would just list a few of the hotels that represent a broad spectrum of what is available when it comes to accommodation on Tyneside, both expensive and budget. I suppose part of the problem when you go onto alot of the big hotel booking sites is there are just so many options to choose from that it becomes impossible to make a decision. Its especially hard if you want to stay in a specific part of a city like London Victoria and have never been there before. I suppose most people weigh up the basics like star rating and distance from the city centre but in reality there are so many other things to consider when booking a hotel than a simple selection of statistics isn’t enough to make an informed choice. I suppose this is one of the reasons so many people prefer to stay in a hotel they have been in before if they do decide to travel back to a city. However this approach is not very adventurous to say the least and there’s a world of new hotels to stay in Newcastle so why keep going to the same place? I always find it difficult to review hotels from a prospective of someone other than myself as we all have different requirements by and large. Actually i did a review of a different set of hotels a while ago but you cant have too much of a good thing can you? Still here is a quick roundup of a few of my favourite hotels to help you on your next holiday to Newcastle.
- County Hotel by Thistle. This is a 3 star hotel right in the city centre and my favourite thing about it is the character as its a 19th century listed building which really adds something different from your average hotel in the city. Still even though its quite an old building you can expect many mod cons such as wifi a fitness centre and even underground car parking! Prices are around £100 a night but it can be hard to get a room as they are often fully booked which i suppose is always a good sign.
- Dene Hotel. Another 3 star hotel here however this one is much cheaper coming in at around £50 per night. I suppose your thinking why is this hotel so much cheaper if its still 3 star visit Britain attested? This reason is simple on one level and it’s because it’s on the outskirts of the city, about 4.5 miles to be exact. Still its a favourite for people just visiting Newcastle short term (especially for the football) as its pretty cheap but still offers a good standard.
- Royal Station Hotel. Who can resist a hotel with “Royal” in the title! I think we could all do with a touch of class now and again and this 3 star hotel in Newcastle city centre could just fit the bill. Rooms are around £100 a night for a double. They have quite a few facilities including a leisure club with good size pool. Still remember not to prioritise things link this unless its a facility you plan on using as you can bet it is factored into the price.
Ok so that was a quick roundup of a few hotels and hopefully there is something there to fit everyone’s tastes. All of the Hotels mentioned are visit Britain attested which i always try to be sure of when booking, its just some extra reassurance i find when booking. Be sure to check out their sites above if you are interested.
Cheap hotel review : Waterside Hotel
June 20th, 2009
Ok so i thought i would do another review here at cheaphotelsinnewcastle. This time is a 3 star hotel in the quayside area of Newcastle Upon Tyne. Weekend rooms start at around £60 – £75 for a room which is very reasonable for a hotel right in the heart of the city as its only around half a mile from the city centre. One great fact that you will like about this hotel is that it has free onsite parking which is very rare in most city centre hotels all over the UK and not just in Newcastle.
I suppose the great thing about this hotel is that its in an area that has the best of both worlds. You have the picturesque quays with the river Tyne snaking down thought the many tourist destinations such as the millennium bridge. At the same time you also have great access to the many bars and restaurants that are right in the centre of town such as The Gate and Club Mushroom. Since the quays area is quite quiet at night is great to know you are going to be able to do all your partying in town and be assured of a good night’s sleep when you get back to the hotel. This really isn’t the case with many of the cheapest hotels that are dotted around the biggest nightspots.
Another good factor for this discount hotel is that its Visit Britain attested which is always a good thing in my opinion as so many hotels in the cheaper range are going self certified now, im still as sceptical as ever about how this works. Anyway if you want to check this hotel out you can visit them at www.watersidehotel.com
Online hotels market
May 18th, 2009
I was thinking today (i have been known to do it) about how the internet has changed the face of online travel with hotels specifically in mind. Its not just here at CheaphotelsinNewcastle that ive seen some great deals lately but all over the net. It often makes we wonder what people did before they had the web to search and compare accommodation from all over the world at a single click. I suppose the main avenue used to be travel agents who would often book the entire trip including the flight and all accommodation. The problem with this method is that you didn’t actually know the price of the different parts of the package, ie some would be cheaper but some really expensive and so the price of the overall trip would even out.
The main advantage with booking the parts of your holiday separately is that you can see what everything is costing on an individual basis and so try to get the price down for those parts individually. This has become so common these days that i have seen alot of high street travel agents go bust as they just cant compete with the online dealers. In a way it makes sense because the costs of owning a high street travel agent are so high with staff and rental overheads that i cant believe more of them haven’t went out of business. Thing is this whole situation isnt location specific as i have seen it with cheap hotels in London too which is new.
One thing that i do still find quite surprising though when looking at some cheap hotels in Newcastle is how few of the hotels have their own booking online booking service. Was looking at the Hadrian hotels site today and they too are sending people to a third party at eviivo. Ive never heard of them before but they sound quite similar to a company called Avvio who do alot of business in Ireland. I understand that it does cost to setup an online booking service but these actual hotel sites have to realise they are essentially advertising a third party product on their own site. It really makes we wonder how much your average small hotel is losing in commissions every year due to bookings on their own site.
Cheap accommodation Newcastle
April 5th, 2009
Ok so everyone is looking for cheap accommodation these days and not just for tyne-side but all over the uk and further afield. Its not just the credit crunch but i think there is a trend for people looking for discount hotels to match the cheap flights they might take to get to their destination. The important thing to remember when booking any kind of accommodation is that you do not want to compromise on a standard level of quality in most cases. For this reason i don’t usually recommend 2 star hotels. For some it can often be about the cheapest deal possible no matter what grade the hotel (think stag dos) however this can often be a mistake as the reality of a very poor hotel can hit home very fast. With this in mind i have decided to list a few different but budget types of accommodation that you can find in Newcastle.
- Gibside Hotel is situated about 3 miles from the city centre and you can expect to get a taxi right to the heart of town for under a tenner. The hotel is 3 star and you can expect to pay between £50 and £60 for a double during the week and maybe £70 at the weekend.
- New Northumbria Hotel is actually quite close to the city centre and has been awarded a 3 star status by visit Britain. It is a bit more expensive that the last hotel but at around £70 for a double per weeknight but it does have more facilities. It also has a Mediterranean restaurant on site which has been recommended in a number of guide books. The main plus point though is its only about a mile and a half from the city centre.
- Express By Holiday Inn isn’t my favourite hotel chain but it does represent good value coming in at around £60 for a double on a weeknight. I think this is good value for this type of accommodation. Its mainly seen as a business hotel as it is very close to some of the main business parks. There is also free Wifi and free continental breakfast in the mornings.
As you may be seeing now there is alot to choose from when it comes to deciding on cheap accommodation not just in Newcastle but all over the north of England. The most important factor has to be location think carefully what things you need to be close to and how much it will cost or how long it will take to get you to them.
Newcastle hotel review : Swallow imperial
March 25th, 2009
Heres a first for this blog! A review of a hotel i have recently just stayed in called the Swallow Imperial. This is a 3 star hotel and would be classed as a really cheap buget hotel in my opinion. One think to note is that the hotel is currently under renovation. This means that there is no bar or breakfast facilities but it does mean the price is really great for people who do not intend to use these services anyway.
Prices start from around £40 for a double room per night. This is great value for a hotel of this type within a reasonable distance to the city centre. All of the rooms are finished well and feature colour TV,trouser press and hair dryer. The bathrooms are also finished to a high standard and are quite spacious for a 3 star this side of Newcastle. This hotel would ideally suit stag or hen parties in my opinion as it is pretty cheap and just a short taxi ride in the main nightlife area of the city.
Book early for cheap deals in Newcastle
February 28th, 2009
Its amazing the price difference in some rooms if you are prepared to book early! I have seen some reductions of up to 50% on certain hotels in Newcastle and i think this is true of all seasons and not just at peak times. You can usually apply this strategy to your flight over as well as the hotel room so you should always seek to combine the two and book at the same time. It really makes me wonder sometimes why people book a flight weeks or even months before hand and then expect to book a cheap hotel in Newcastle the week before they arrive!
It also makes sense to book early for other reasons as it allows you to plan what you are going to do much better. I know many people still like the idea of just turning up somewhere and seeing what happens but i still think there is something to be said for a little bit of planning. This is especially true for the peak seasons when the city sees a major influx of tourists and visitors and many of the top events and attractions become overbooked.
Newcastle is probably most famous for its football team but don’t expect to turn up the weekend that they are playing and get a cheap pair of tickets! With such as large fan base in the city tickets for home games are very hard to come by especially if you leave it too late. Expect to pay between 3 and 4 times the face value for average seats at st James park for a home game.
As mentioned all of these problems can be solved if you book ahead of time. Not only will you have a more stress free holiday but also probably a cheaper one.
Cut back on costs to find a cheap hotel
February 15th, 2009
Newcastle has one of the most famous (if not successful) football teams in the country and has many people flying in every fortnight to watch one of the local games at St James Park. For many finding a cheap hotel will make the difference between going and not. I think the most important thing to think about is what facilities you absolutely have to have in any prospective hotel and what things you can do without. For many football fans a discount hotel is a must and so they can often be the most determined bargain hunters. The first thing you want to keep in mind are the many smaller hotels that are just a small distance from the city centre. For example the Swallow Imperial hotel is just a 4 minute taxi drive from the main city but offers a much better room rate than those closer to the main attractions. When i stayed there last autumn the service and the price were both great and the rooms were better than many more expensive hotels around the bigger cities that i have stayed in.
People also always say to me how important the essentials are to them such as breakfast in the morning but i think to a large number of people visiting the town its not actually that relevant. For example if you are going for a heavy night out in the clubs and bars such as Tiger Tiger at the Gate or the Mushroom bar in the centre of town you are never going to be up in time. When you think about it, it makes sense if you are out till 3 at night that you will never be up before breakfast service finishes at 11. As such this often represents wasted money as you are paying for a service you are not taking advantage of. Its worth thinking about all of these expenses when you are booking a hotel and what things you can cut back on in an effort to save money.
Map of hotels in Newcastle
January 31st, 2009
Many people are just like me in that if they don’t know a city very well its hard to visualise just how close the hotels in it are to the city centre and other important attractions. This is why i love google maps so much because it allows me to quickly see the entire city at any scale i want. Using the map below means finding cheap hotels in Newcastle no longer needs to be confusing and in a few clicks you could find your ideal hotel.
Finding cheap deals on the web
January 18th, 2009
These days everyone is looking for cheap deals on hotels but most people don’t actually know what they are looking for or the right way to find a great deal. The first thing to realise that hotel prices can vary greatly and not just between hotels but often in the same hotel and even for the same room. Its not uncommon to find a hotel room as much as 50% cheaper by using a different method to book. Price comparison sites have sprung up all over the internet and offer you the chance to search hundreds of hotels at the click of a button.
The first thing to keep in mind when you are searching on one of the websites is to make sure you are comparing exactly the same deals. For example its not uncommon to find the price comparison sites hiding some taxes and other charges that you will eventually have to pay, so always read the small print. You also need to look at the different date ranges that it is possible to book on. You could find massive savings if you are prepared to stay at off-peak times or even on a strange date like checking in on a Sunday night. Hotels are always keen to offload empty rooms when they are running at low capacity so its worth putting a few different dates into your search and see what you find.