redeyedonkey

I had a recent stay here and in the absence of many recent reviews on the couple of Manchester threads here thought I'd add some notes:

I stayed in the two floor suite - booked not upgraded as I had a charity event that required me being online/in the room for 24 hours (on YouTube...) so wanted to make sure I had a spacious room. It was surprisingly cheap being 30% cheaper than a much more standard suite at the DoubleTree or Hilton (I normally stay with Hilton) so I switched allegiance for a stay.

The hotel is very unique and has a lot of character and I was really pleased with the room. Whilst not the most modern room you'll ever stay in it was well furnished and (important for me...) the desk and desk chair were more than comfortable enough to sit in for 24 hours. I slept well in the bed and it was nice to have the upstairs and downstairs bathroom and the separation of the levels was perfect as I always prefer a one bedroom type suite arrangement if I know I'll have a lot of work to do in the hotel - something about staying in the bedroom all day makes having a lie down too tempting vs hitting the desk and working like a normal day.

As a 'switcher' from Hilton I found the room service menu to be a little more limited than I was used to and (more on that later) the food here wasn't the best - I ended up walking 3 minutes to stock up on M&S sandwiches and wraps for the 24 Hour charity event - not the intention when I decided to stay in a hotel for it and enjoy room service. Confusingly (and unlike most Hiltons) the room service menu didn't make clear what was actually available 24 hours and what was not but I was able to at least get something to eat in the middle of the night (which hasn't been possible at some US Hiltons, for example) so that was fine.

The room service staff were the most friendly at the hotel - though they did note they didn't like tips charged to the room apparently due to some dispute/internal politics with the hotel so declined a tip as I didn't have cash. Not really sure what that was about but it didn't seem to impact the service or cheerfulness.

The rest of the staff seemed disinterested and not really suitable for service jobs. My first night there was after a conference the day before in Manchester and I ate at the bar. One of two meals (the second I tried on the last night was actually good). It was awful - and to make it more confusing it was on the specials menu. First I was brought the wrong thing (after almost an hour), then when what I'd actually ordered turned up it was terrible and I couldn't eat it. Nobody seemed to care and wasn't offered a refund/alternative/anything. I mentioned it to the front desk as the staff in the restaurant didn't seem to care and they just shrugged it off (literally...). I don't really plan many more Marriott stays so I haven't followed this up with head office - no idea if that's even worthwhile? Hilton are generally pretty generous on the rare occasions something goes wrong and the hotel doesn't sort it out but I haven't seen much indication on here that Marriott takes the same approach/even replies much on social media post-merger but that's just me looking in from the outside.

I think if I was just staying here to sleep/work a bit in the morning and was out all day I'd have rated the place more highly but if you plan to rely on the hotel amenities and will be there for long periods you need to bear in mind the menu is a little limited and mostly not very exciting a selection even if it was good, and the service leaves a lot to be desired in the on-site bar/front desk.

Overall ratings:

Food/room service options+quality: 5/10
Room: 8/10
Staff: 6/10

One thing to note is that currently (2019 spring) there is a mass of construction locally. Don't expect to sleep in if drilling, hammering and cranes dropping things is likely to disturb you. That, again, wouldn't normally have impacted me at all as I'd have been up and out on a normal business trip, but I was hoping to sleep in after the event and imagine some families staying may find it annoying as you don't always want to be up and out first thing.

hockeyinsider

Probably because they don't want to pay taxes. Cash money makes it easy to hide.

EuropeanPete

SkiAdcock

Thanks for the update/trip report. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

TGLoyalty

Anyone stayed more recently?

Have more refurbishments off rooms taken place recently? Or just new TVs for the none Manchester Utd rooms?

Intl359Widget

Afternoon!

I recently stayed one night at this hotel and found their Ambassador recognition quite friendly with a complimentary drink and chocolate bar waiting for me in my room. They upgraded me from a Queen to a King since the hotel was nearly fully booked for a futbol event understandably.

The room decor was tasteful and I like that they kept the original wooden beams on the 4th floor and the hotel was all right for a Marriott of 20th century design.

The location was excellent and very convenient to a lot of restaurants especially the Peaky Blinders Manchester.

littlevoices

I stayed about two weeks ago, during the Euro 2022 women's football (soccer), where the Portugal team appeared to be staying. I had booked a "Manchester United" suite as at the time of booking (3 months in advance) it wasn't that much of a premium from a normal room. That was fun actually, and it's a nice change to their suites which I do seem to remember having in the past and thinking they were fairly standard. As a result I had a room (the treble, 1999), that had a number of football mementos in cabinets, a high quality Manchester United sofa and a really nicely done red tiled bathroom (shower only though). As a Titanium member, breakfast was in the hotel restaurant and was a fairly standard English breakfast buffet. I had a welcome gift of chocolate and a free drinks voucher for the bar. Each of the suites seemed to have a different theme, and in reception the same themes (8?) are there to entertain you whilst you do the check-in.

So overall, the hotel was due a refurb from my last stay (4-5 years ago?), at least for the suites they've done that, and it was definitely a more unique Marriott experience than normal. The area now itself is much more hip as well, with Spinningfields nearby offering multiple restaurants, supermarkets, cinemas etc. The only negative of this is that there is construction nearby, I stayed at a weekend so there wasn't noise, but just something to be careful of for the next 6-12 months.

Isochronous

What's the gym arrangement like here? No pool from what I can tell but the website mentions an off-site gym.

Steve74

First time I stayed here, they sent you up the road to a Bannatyne's gym - three minutes away. That gym is still there, standard commercial gym, and it had a pool in March 2007. But, there are now several closer low cost gyms opened in Spinningfields, so I don't know if they send you to Bannatyne's still. Ever since then, I've used Nuffield in the Printworks, 'cos I'm a member back home.

My recommendation anyway, would be to see if you can get a slot at Ultimate Performance's Spinningfield's site. World's best personal trainers. Ask for a go on the pendulum.

Yerumaa

Had a good stay here, friendly service and decent breakfast. If you can get a table next to the river it's a nice view to wake up with! The room is quite basic, and to be honest fell a little below my expectations for a 'flagship' Marriott hotel in one of the UK's biggest cities. For example, the room came without a fridge!?

One thing I was a little frustrated with was the ancient safe in the room: so old, it got stuck and I had to get maintenance to open it, which took a good hour. The safe looked like it belonged in a museum, so needless to say I didn't use it after that. Location is alright, but can be a bit of a walk, especially as there are no tram stops nearby.

oxfordjames

This has never been a 'flagship' Marriott, just a regular UK regional hotel.

Some interesting facts; this used to be the Le Meridien Victoria & Albert Hotel, Le Meridien also had the Clock Tower Hotel in Manchester (now Kimpton after substantial investment and renovations).

The owner at the time RBS, switched to Marriott when Le Meriden were in financial difficulties before the Starwood purchase.

This deal also included the now JW Grosvenor House, London & Renaissance Shelbourne, Dublin.

Yerumaa

I didn't know that! Interesting I guess I said 'flagship' because it appeared to be the best/most full-service option in Manchester amongst all Bonvoy properties, but maybe I just interpreted that wrong. When going in with regular Marriott hotel expectations this is a pretty decent choice.

marble35

I'm about to embark on c. 80 night stays over the next 6 months in Manchester. This hotel was the one I had my sights on & to achieve at least platinum status in doing so. Are there any recommendations on alternatives in Manchester? Preferably on the west side towards Media City. TIA.

DYKWIA

Hotel Football is probably closest to Media City - but you may have issues getting 60 nights there due to the football pre-bookings. There’s an AC also quite close, but you may have the same issue.

The V&A is pretty good, with a nice bar. It’s also just far enough from the madness that is Manchester city centre (especially at weekends). But then, that’s what you may be looking for

Steve74

The AC Salford Quays is actually marginally closer to Media City than Hotel Football - Media City is north of the river/ship canal. It's fine, it's an AC so it's a cookie cutter of any other European AC you've ever been to. If you're price sensitive, you'll go for the AC. The one time I stayed there, there was a coach party of Chinese tourists overnighting there, and it was bedlam in reception and breakfast. That might or might not be a deal breaker.
However, if I were you, and price is not an issue, I would be going for the V&A in a heartbeat. As DYKWIA says, its location a ten minute walk from St Peter's Square keeps you just far away enough from the madness and just close enough to what the city has to offer. The tram from St Peter's Square (10 minute walk) will get you to Media City in no time anyway.