navelfluff

I just stayed here for two nights this week and really liked it, so I just rebooked for the next two weeks.

Location couldn't be better - right at the bottom of the Piccadilly station ramp, and close to Piccadilly Square. Thanks to a recommendation in the Hilton Deansgate thread a colleague and I had dinner at nearby Bundobust - a must do when visiting Manchester!

I booked a kingsize deluxe room and wasn't upgraded, but the room was "executivized" for me with free water and soft drinks in the fridge plus crisps and nuts and a (very small) bottle of wine. Although the room was quite compact, it was very comfortable and I loved that the window could be opened.

WiFi is free for all users regardless of status and was fast - around 40 Mbit/s.

Breakfast was very good with a wide selection of hot and cold items in the buffet. I was told that as a Diamond I could also have anything off the cook-to-order, e.g. eggs benedict or omelettes menu free of charge.

The highlight though was definitely the bar. As Diamond HH I was given two drinks vouchers. Stay in a Holiday Inn or Novotel and these vouchers are good for a draft beer, house wine, or house spirit with mixer. Not here though! I asked for a G&T and was asked what type and whether I wanted a large one. I asked the bartender to recommend me something - always a good thing to do with bar/restaurant staff - so he prepared me a Martin Miller's gin served with strawberries and peppercorns. Weird but tasty. He was thrilled that I enjoyed it so much and told me quite a bit about that gin and the others they had behind the bar. The next night I did the same with another bartender and this time she prepared me a native Manchester gin (technically it's from nearby Warrington) - Thomas Dakin - served with oranges and juniper berries. I also ate in the bar, unusual for me, and the food was acceptable.