Wednesday

Review: Mercure Bristol Holland House Hotel and Spa


Last month, Rich and I celebrated our 6th anniversary of being together. We had planned to spend a weekend away somewhere with a spa but life got in the way and we didn't get around to it. Then, in a wonderful example of perfect timing, I was contacted and offered the chance to review a Mercure hotel of my choice. I chose the Mercure Bristol Holland House Hotel as it would give us the opportunity to visit both Bristol and Bath, and there was an on-site spa. Perfect!

Mercure Bristol Holland House Hotel is a 4 star hotel half a mile west of Bristol Temple Meads station. It was converted from a 1970s office block opposite a council estate but it's exterior is deceptive. Inside, it has a sleek, sophisticated interior that exudes relaxation.

We were greeted on reception by Monika, who was very helpful and answered all of our questions clearly and thoroughly. She gave us two keys, explained the timings of all the facilities, booked us in for dinner at 7pm and off we went to find our room. 

The Room

We had been booked into a superior double room, with a glorious king size bed! 
The room had satellite TV, a large wardrobe, hairdryer, air conditioning and free wifi. Yes! Although the wifi was low bandwidth, I had no issues using it for browsing the internet and blogging, and you can purchase high bandwidth wifi if you need it. 
 I loved the capability for plugging your MP3 player into the TV and playing it through the speakers. 

Miniature toiletries! Yes!

Look at the size of that bed! It was so comfortable, with plenty of room for starfishing without pushing Rich off the edge! The Egyptian cotton sheets were crisp and cosy in equal measure. I had such a good night's sleep!

The Facilities

The indoor heated pool was open until 11pm, which I was very impressed with. We had such a busy day and it was great knowing that the pool would be open until late. It has three comfortable recliners and a shower at the poolside so you can rinse off before and after entering the pool. As the pool is unsupervised, you need to go to reception beforehand to fill in a form and receive a key to get into the changing rooms, which have showers, hairdryers and a huge pile of white fluffy towels. They also have lockers for a £1 deposit, so you don't need to worry about keeping an eye on your things. Last entry to the pool is at 10pm, and we were happy that the only other people in the pool left at that time. We had a whole hour of uninterrupted swimming, meaning I could splash about and practise my "synchronised swimming" without judgement!
 In the afternoon, Rich and I spent some time in the Phoenix Bar. It's filled with squishy sofas and comfortable chairs, and is very well-stocked. You can buy a whole range of bar food, from cheesy garlic bread to fish and chips. The large windows covering an entire wall let in a lot of natural light and, of course, there's that free wifi I mentioned earlier. It was the perfect place for me to settle down to a bit of blogging.

The Spa
As an anniversary treat, Rich treated me to a full body massage in the onsite Spa Naturel. Although well signposted, it was a little difficult to find as you need to leave out of what looks like a fire exit. It turned out that the spa is in a little outbuilding in the car park, although once you're inside, you'd never know it.
I waited in the relaxation lounge with a glass of water, with soft, relaxing music playing in the darkened room until my very lovely therapist Jodie picked me up. I was a little nervous as I'd never had a massage before and didn't know what to expect, but Jodie explained the whole process to me before she began. The room was dark, lit with candles, soft music playing, and filled with a wonderful scent of lavender. I had a few knots in my back, so Jodie had to be quite firm at first, but after she'd kneaded them all out, it was very relaxing and calming. I came out after an hour, feeling like a new woman! 

My stay at Mercure Bristol Holland House was wonderful. I will definitely be staying next time I'm in Bristol, and booking myself in for a massage, and I fully recommend it to anyone else visiting the area. Thank you to everyone at Mercure for a wonderful stay! 

By the way, if you enjoy reading my blog and would like to see me up for a Cosmopolitan Blog Award, you can nominate me for Best Lifestyle Blog here. I'll send virtual cake to everyone who nominates!

8 comments :

  1. My brother lives in Bristol so I know the area well. I've walked past that hotel so many times and I would never have guessed what it looked like inside. It looks like you had a great time, I hope you enjoyed Bristol :) xx

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    1. It doesn't look like much from the outside but it's so lovely inside!

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  2. This really was perfect timing, funny how life works out! Bristol is definitely on my list of places to visit, for the street art! My other half is a HUGE street art fan! xx

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    1. It was one of those moments that just couldn't have been more perfectly times! You can't avoid the street art in Bristol. It's amazing!

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  3. I do love to stay in hotels me and my partner do it very regularly, one of my by far favourites was The Cumberland on oxford street I highly highly recommend it! Great post!

    Jamie-Lee|Glitter Infatuation Beauty Blog!

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    1. Ooh that sounds very fancy! I love hotel stays too!

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  4. It's nothing short of brilliant when life works out that way. I love Bristol, such a great city. The hotel looks wonderful, (that pool!) I love a big bed, starfishing is one of life's great pleasures.

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    1. The pool and the bed were definitely my highlights haha!

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