Tag Archive for thistle

| 9 November, 2011
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The Thistle Grand Bristol

Two agendas, three people, high standards required, central location essential, compromise forgotten… not too much then!

Having used Thistle hotels before, we knew that it was unlikely we’d be disappointed by choosing the Grand Hotel in Bristol for a reunion get-together with an old friend.Thistle Bristol Exterior

Situated on Broad Street, right in the centre of the City, close to lots of bars, restaurants, shops, theatres and all the other great facilities Bristol has to offer, the Thistle Grand is situated in one of the oldest parts of the town and despite its central position it offers ample car parking, a leisure club and pool and a certain old charm and style that many modern hotels often lack. The immaculately-dressed doorman, who always greets you with a smile, the excellent reception staff who made the whole check-in process a pleasure and indeed the professionalism and pleasant manner of all the staff we met helped to ensure that this was a memorable stay throughout.Thistle Bristol Room

The rooms are beautifully finished in subdued tones, complemented with some stylish fixtures and fittings which include flat-screen TV. The room we had was huge, with a high ceiling, modern and clean bathroom and sumptuous and comfy furniture. It really was a nice place to be!Thistle Bristol Tyrells Restaurant

It goes without saying that we had to sample some of the delights the hotel’s Tyrell Restaurant had to offer. Despite being fairly quiet when we arrived, the atmosphere was very pleasant. The huge windows look out onto the street and the subtle lighting and huge ornate pillars ensure that most tables have private aspects but without losing the atmosphere. The food and wine was really excellent too, capping the evening off with smiles all round.

The buffet breakfast offered all the usual goodies, freshly cooked and easily served. However, and we’re sticklers for this, the coffee seemed to take an age to get to the table. There’s nothing worse at breakfast than not having a good strong coffee to blow the cobwebs away right at the start. Even then, the waiters were just filling the cups individually. We eventually managed to persuade them to leave a nice big pot of the stuff on the table for us to work through.Thistle Bristol Swimming Pool

Aside from the somewhat trivial coffee issue, the Thistle Grand was probably one of the best choices we could have made. It is a traditional, yet very stylish home-from-home in what is probably one of the best locations you could hope for in central Bristol. It offers top quality rooms, excellent food and drink, superb service and top-quality leisure facilities. Parking is a breeze, and reasonably priced too at only £8 per day. All the visitor attractions such as the Clifton Suspension Bridge, The waterfront, @Bristol, the Banksy Gallery, the SS Great Britain are all close at hand.

Would we use the Thistle Grand again? Most certainly! It proved to be a perfect venue for a relaxing leisure break in the heart of this busy, bustling city.

Mr C
October 2011.

Category: Travel, Holidays and Hotels | Tags: , , ,
| 10 February, 2011
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The Thistle Hotel, Cheltenham

If a job has to be done, then it might as well be done properly. A Sunday appointment in Cheltenham, which let’s face it isn’t a million miles away, gave us a perfect excuse to spoil ourselves with an overnighter in a nice hotel, away from the domestic chores that have to be done and where someone else cooks the meals and washes the dishes.

We chose to stay at the Thistle Hotel, just outside Cheltenham, where we were offered a room upgrade upon arrival. Who were we to say no, eh! The room was lovely: crisp clean bed sheets,Thistle Cheltenham Bedroom immaculate bathrooms (yes, two!) and a level of comfort we really hadn’t anticipated. There was even a huge 2-person Jacuzzi bath with its own TV in the en-suite. There was also some really pretty mood lighting in the bathroom comprising of coloured lights, but unfortunately we failed to find a way to JUST have those on without the ceiling spotlights. Maybe there was a way, but we failed to find it.

The pool and spa, though quite busy when we arrived, were a really welcome indulgence and the staff were more than helpful in showing us the ins and outs of the changing facilities and the pool. Being lazy so-and-sos, the bar and restaurant were pulling us more strongly than the gym, but from what we could see, it had all the latest equipment and was in a lovely setting, overlooking the lawns beside the tennis courts. Despite the fact that the pool changing room floor was very wet, probably due to the aforementioned busy spell when we arrived, everything seemed well-kept and in good order. There’s a really nice steam room just off the side of the pool and this all helped to relax and wind us down ready for dinner.

The bar and restaurant staff were extremely friendly and helpful, despite some confusion with our billing arrangements. We actually had to go back to receptionThe Thistle Hotel Cheltenham at one point during our meal to ensure that everything was in order before we could sign for our what we’d ordered. Other than that the food was excellent, well presented, and service was accompanied by lots of smiles and pleasantries. Breakfast was also of a very high standard on the Sunday morning.

In terms of service and quality the Thistle Cheltenham is a really good bet for those wanting to spend some time solely as an escape from home, where the hotel experience itself is the key. The location is better suited for those wanting the convenience of the M5 and A40 rather than the proximity to the town itself. It’s a few miles into the centre of Cheltenham from the hotel, so popping out of an evening on foot is restricted to a walk around the hotel environs.

Other than that it was an enjoyable and relaxing stay, and we would certainly not hesitate to give it ‘The Thumbs Up’ for those wanting a similar break to the one we just had.

Mr C

Category: Travel, Holidays and Hotels | Tags: , , , ,
| 14 June, 2010
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Thistle Hotel Cardiff

The Champagne Bar

On Saturday we went out to The Champagne Bar in The Cardiff Thistle for lunch. Before you ask, this is not something we do routinely on Saturdays, it just happened to be ‘my nearly birthday’. The real thing is tomorrow but Tuesdays, being workdays and schooldays, aren’t ideal days to go out and celebrate really.
Thistle Cardiff Restaurant
I’ve got to say, I was well impressed with the whole thing on Saturday. Having lived in Cardiff for a long time now, I’ve seen the Parc Hotel go through various guises through the years. I’ve had the occasional drink there and been to a few events but haven’t been there recently. To be honest, from the outside it hasn’t changed much and could do with a bit of a tidy-up but inside is a different story.

We were greeted by a lovely member of staff who asked us if we wanted to go straight to our table or sit on the comfy chairs in the contemporary-looking bar area first. We opted to sit on the very strokeable, velvety chairs to look at the menus and as it was The Champagne Bar, obviously we all went for a glass of bubbly to get in the spirit. I just love champagne and if money was no object it would always be my drink of choice. We asked if we could just have some starters to share where we were sitting rather than go our table and within minutes a dish of olives along with bread, oil and balsamic vinegar was with us. We tried to eat slowly but as is usual with ‘sharing’ dishes, we wolfed them down in minutes.

The staff left us for a while as we were genuinely savouring the champers and weren’t ready to move to our table. They seemed to sense when we were ready as before we had time to even think about the word ‘restless’, they called us to our seat in the award-winning Hamon’s Restauarant. And wow, the food was just so, so good. I had crispy pork, with a Thistle Cardiff Entrancesort of caramelised, red cabbage and mash and it really was to-die-for. Everyone in our party must have enjoyed their food as nobody left anything on their plate. We left a respectable gap before asking for the dessert menus and once again in spite of the fact that it was a relatively small menu, I wanted everything on it. I went for the bread and butter pudding with a Jack Daniels sauce. And loath as I am to use the expression….. OMG! It was the yummiest pudding ever. One of the girls had the chocolate fondant with clotted cream and I’ve decided that next time I go to The Thistle in Cardiff , that’s the one I’ll try!

So yes, if you’re ever in Cardiff, which I’m reliably told is one of the ‘most happening cities in Europe’, why not stay at The Cardiff Thistle and then you can pay a visit to The Champagne Bar without worrying about getting home at the end of the evening.

Mrs C

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