Last week we stayed at Jurys Inn Hinckley Island Hotel in Leicestershire. It’s a perfect base for visiting Drayton Manor indeed the hotel has a cracking family deal on at the moment – bed and breakfast and tickets for Drayton Manor for £150 (two adults and two children).
Both the kids loved the hotel, and before I give you my review, I thought I’d give you an insight into what my ten year old son wrote to his friends in France:
“Dear Aston and George,
This hotel is life. I wish this hotel was our house. The bed is so comfy. Really good duvet and even dressing gowns and slippers! The TV had Horrible Histories on it too. CBBC, cbeebies, all the Freeview channels, Citv and tinypop. The room is really wide, and we have two double beds! My bed is in front of the TV. There is a shop in the lobby where you can buy chocolate.
The restaurant is really cool because they have a big motor bike that they call the ” Triumph”. They also have old motor biking helmets that look like they were used for racing there is a silver one a black and white one and a cool brown leather one. There are old posters showing The Triumph – they are very cool looking posters. Also the seats look a bit suede (says my dad) and they are so comfy also they are using paper straws instead of bad plastic straws.
The swimming pool was great. I took my googles and dived for pennies. Mum sat in the jacuzzi. I found a pound in the changing room lockers! I wish you two had been there!
From T”
So, you have heard what Master T thought, but what did the adults think? Actually we were really impressed. The exterior is a little underwhelming if I am honest and really belies the quite glamorous interior.
Jurys Inn Hinckley Island Hotel Leicestershire – Review
Also it does not give you an idea of just how huge the hotel is. The hotel reception is open and airy, with the Marco Pierre White restaurant to the left. On the right there was a bar and then the Triumph (motorcycle themed) bar and restaurant.
Our room was huge with two double beds for the four of us. What made the feeling of space was the fact that the room was not just long, but extra wide too. The bathroom was similarly large. There was a TV with freeview, tea and coffee making facilities and lovely towelling robes.
As Master T mentioned we had our evening meal in the Triumph restaurant. There were a couple of large screens playing football. We were far enough away from these so they did not bother us (not sports fans!). There were lots of other families with children in the restaurant too, so it was a nice relaxed atmosphere.
Mr Wonders ordered a burger:
Master T a chicken burger from the kids’ menu:
Miss H ordered cheesy garlic bread and cheesy chips (and as you can see the cheese was generous!!)
Finally my baked Camembert (yes, we are a family that likes cheese!)
The following morning we had breakfast in the Marco Pierre White restaurant (this is included in the B&B tariff). It was a help yourself buffet, and it was fabulous, I love a hotel breakfast! A few photos:
As check out is not till 12, we spent an hour in the hotel pool (note: you need to book the pool ahead of time for an hourly session, but I rang and booked for the slot half an hour later) we went in at 11am on a Saturday morning with several other families. It never felt too busy or too noisy. I spent the last twenty minutes of our hour in the jacuzzi relaxing happily on my own. Children under 12 are not allowed in the jacuzzi, sauna or steam room. Oh and it’s an adults only pool after 7pm too – so worth noting if you have children or desperately wish to avoid them 🙂
All in all a great family stay, in a beautiful hotel that welcomes kids and is close to Drayton Manor. At £150 for bed and breakfast and theme park tickets, this is a cracking deal. I have always been a bargain hunter and wholeheartedly recommend it.
Jurys Inn Hinckley Island invited us to stay but as always all my opinions are my own.