free membershipPublished by Holly Paton
“Great fun for everyone!” I wanted to experience the Big Blue Hotel in Blackpool because of how popular our myhotelbreak deal has been and the excellent reviews we have been getting from our customers! So I decided to go on a last minute overnight break and I was not disappointed.
Following our drive from Lanark (a town just outside Glasgow), the drive was straightforward down the A74 and M6 which took approximately took 2 hours 40 minutes. When we arrived, I was so surprised at how central and modern this 4 star hotel was! Even better it was right next to Blackpool’s main attraction – The Pleasure Beach. We arrived late at night so I was nervous about not being able to get a car park space at this busy hotel, however we got one no problem even on a busy bank holiday weekend!
From arrival, it was apparent that this was a busy hotel, particularly popular with families, couples and groups, however it created a buzz about the place. Inside of the hotel was very modern, very clean and check in was straightforward. The lady on reception was very friendly and said that we had been upgraded from a deluxe double to a suite (perks of the job). She informed us that the hotel always tries to upgrade their guest if the rooms are available, I thought this was a nice touch.
Our suite was on the top floor of the hotel, so thank goodness for the lifts! Our room was amazing, when you walked in, it had its own hallway leading into the different rooms including the bathroom and seating area which had opening sliding doors to the king-size bedroom.
The seating area was very spacious which included a 40 inch TV, coffee machine, magazines including Vogue and GQ for men, flowers and my favourite part – a bottle of complementary wine! The bedroom was equally as spacious with the king sized bed which also had a flat screen TV and additional tea and coffee facilities including special teas and some shortbread – YUM!
The bathroom had a separate shower and bath with many high quality toiletries.
Because we arrived after 9.30 PM we missed last orders within the Blues Bar and Brasserie, however we were informed that we could still order from the room service menu. We both opted for two margarita pizzas and two drinks. This arrived promptly within 15 minutes of ordering and came to £30 (including a £5 supplement for room service tray) which we thought was reasonable for a four star hotel.
We had a great night sleep – the beds were extremely comfortable and spacious! Within our bedroom you were directly facing all the thriller roller-coaster rides.
We decided to go down for breakfast at 9.00 AM which was based in the Brasserie which was fairly quiet, it was lovely and air conditioned. As far as buffet breakfasts go, I always get nervous about the quality and heat of the breakfast. This buffet breakfast however was amazing – one of the best I have had!
There was a lot of choice and the chef cooked in front of you. The friendly chefs also informed us that they had already done 200 covers yet this did not affect the standard of the food. There was a wide variety of choice from the full cooked English breakfast to a wide variety of cereals, fruits and breakfast pastries – my favourite being the pain au chocolat. I was also impressed that you could order cappuccinos, lattes and my favourite the hot chocolate – which I would strongly recommend if you have a sweet tooth like me!
After breakfast it was time for us to check-out and head over to the Pleasure Beach! We headed down to reception and was greeted by Tom. He was very friendly and explained the must see attractions of Blackpool. It should be noted that the hotel offers discounted rates for other tourist attractions. Tom spent time with us going through all the information about the pleasure beach by providing us with our wristbands (included in the price) and a map of the attraction. The hotel allowed me to leave my car within the car park whilst I explored the sites. I believe it is people like Tom that deliver excellent customer service really make your stay!
Pleasure Beach
When departing from the hotel, we were pleasantly surprised that the Big Blue Hotel have their own entrance to the Pleasure Beach where you can avoid the long queues. The wristbands allowed you to stay in the theme park for the full day even if you decided to leave the theme park. There were also lockers for £2.50 to leave your bag in for 4 hours which was also handy! We spent 4 hours at the attraction. The award winning attraction is an ideal family day out or the young at heart, it has something to suit everyone with 125 rides and attractions. If you are a thrill seeker like me I would recommend you going on “The Big One” and the “Infusion”. Considering it was bank holiday weekend, the queues were short and we were waiting no longer than 5 minutes for most rides.
Overall this break was fantastic value for money, the Big Blue Hotel was very central to the Pleasure Beach and was very modern with friendly staff going the extra mile to make the stay enjoyable. I couldn’t fault any of the food I had during the stay and would highly recommend a night or two here at this four star hotel!
If you would like to experience a break that is “great fun for everyone” we are running a great offer to the Big Blue and Pleasure Beach which includes wristbands to the pleasure beach – click here!
