Staycation at the Mercure Bristol Grand Hotel - Bristol, UK
Bristol, a city in South West England straddling the River Avon, and popular for bridges, boats and balloons has a fascinating heritage and a history. My family and I decided to go there on a weekend getaway to get a change from the normal routine. Our first stop after reaching the city was the Bristol Zoo where we spent an amazing and thrilling time with some fun filled activities, after which we checked in to our hotel, Mercure Bristol Grand Hotel which had a prime location in the city.
The hotel has parking available right outside the building but we parked in Mercure's own secure and covered car park that costs £8.5 per night. Luckily, the car park was just adjacent to the hotel's main building so it was hardly a few steps walk until we reached inside the spacious and welcoming lounge and headed towards the reception. After an extremely smooth check-in, we took an elevator to our room which was on the 3rd floor of the building.
The hotel has parking available right outside the building but we parked in Mercure's own secure and covered car park that costs £8.5 per night. Luckily, the car park was just adjacent to the hotel's main building so it was hardly a few steps walk until we reached inside the spacious and welcoming lounge and headed towards the reception. After an extremely smooth check-in, we took an elevator to our room which was on the 3rd floor of the building.
Mercure Bristol ensures that it provides all the important things to the guests so they had provided a hair dryer, iron with stand, toiletries, fresh clean linen, kettle and a tray with coffee/tea and a packet of scrumptious chocolate cookies. We have had a long day strolling around the Bristol Zoo and the Bristol town center during the day, and were a bit of out of steam so we just had some tea and after some rest, decided to go to the spa.
BabyN' loves jumping and splashing in the pool, so going there before checking out was a must for us! The leisure centre at Mercure Grand not just had a huge pool, but a Jacuzzi (my favourite place to relax), a gym and spa too! After all the day's walk, I really felt like getting a massage, but had to skip it due to lack of time. The leisure center is located in another building adjacent to the hotel and is not connected, which I initially thought might be an issue, but it wasn't a problem at all. Inside, they provide lockers and towels and also plastic bags in case you need them but make sure to take your own toiletries if you require them. They also have hair dryers, which are always handy to dry the hair after a swim! After spending almost an hour relaxing and having fun in the pool, we got changed and headed to The Keeper's restaurant at the Mercure Grand where our reservation had already been made. I was already quiet hungry by that time, so we settled in and decided on the food.
Starting off with the refreshing Virgin Mojito (£4) and a glass of pineapple juice (£2.65) , after which we were served our mains that included fish and chips (£11.50) that came along with hand cut chips, mushy peas and tarter sauce. The second main was Pan fried Sea-bass (£14.95) that was served with mash potato, rosemary and chili butter. I also wanted to have sweet potato fries (£2.95) so also ordered them, and they were amazing! For the dessert, we had the delicious Brownie Ice cream Sundae (£6.45).
Our king sized bed was comfortable and very spacious for all three of us to fit it in and although there was a separate roll over bed for BabyN' just beside our bed but with a small partition, I just made him sleep next to me on the same bed because it was a new place for him. I didn't want him to feel petrified in the middle of the night generally when he wakes up to see my face and to ensure that I'm around. I had an extremely sound sleep, and was glad that I woke up all ready for some more exploration of the city, the next morning. We headed straight to the Keepers restaurant for breakfast where the buffet was already served. Really liked the variety of the food and also the hot drinks. They had a separate counter dedicated to hot drinks which was self-service and included different kinds of tea, cappuccino, mocha and hot chocolate to cater to all the hotel guests.
The hot full English breakfast included scrambled eggs, baked mushrooms and tomatoes, hash browns and bacon. They also had assorted cereals, fruits, bakes and juices. After we got fueled up for the fresh new day of exploration, we packed up and left the hotel to explore a bit more of Bristol by foot. We passed the University of Bristol, The Galleries and Bristol Shopping Quarter to name a few. After a quick sightseeing, we headed back to the hotel for check out so we could see the rest of Bristol by car. The stay at Mercure Grand was amazing, and I would definitely recommend it!
I have not stayed at the Mercure hotels before but reading your review shows that its a nice range of hotels with clean and comfy rooms and delicious food too. I will definitely consider them next time I am travelling.
ReplyDeleteI love a staycation and it sounds like you had a fab time
ReplyDeleteWow the Mercure hotels look great! Always great to find time relax even if it's a staycation. Glad you had a good time.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you were pampered right smartly at the Mercure.
ReplyDelete`I love Bristol - this looks a fabulous hotel, I have never stayed with Mercure before. Kaz x
ReplyDeleteI love a staycation too! Especially in a gorgeous hotel, those fish and chips look amazing!!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great place to stay and the food looks yummy, especially the breakfast. We co sleep so I'm glad there was enough space in the bed
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a great place to stay with a really delicious breakfast, we'll have to look into a trip!
ReplyDeleteI really want to go to Bristol as the zoo is on my bucket list, sounds like a lovely trip x
ReplyDeleteStaycations are a good idea. It's less money and hassle especially with little ones I suppose but there is so much to discover within the UK x
ReplyDeleteBristol isn't somewhere I've ever thought of visiting but this looks like a lovely place to stay and those cocktails look amazing! ♥
ReplyDeleteThis place looks so nice. And comfortable be stay and enjoy yourself. Bristol is on my places to go and visit.
ReplyDeleteOh that looks fabulous - we've stayed in Bristol before but this looks much nicer than our normal stopover!
ReplyDeleteBristol is such a wonderful city - so glad you had such a good stay!
ReplyDeleteWe always stay in a Mercure when we visit Exeter, such a fab brand of hotel.
ReplyDeleteI've only been to Bristol a few times, which is a damn shame seeing as I'm so closer (only over in Reading). The Mercure hotel looks amazing though, definitely somewhere I'd stay :) love the shampoo and conditioners too, funky little bottles! x
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to Bristol in years but what a fab time you had and the food does look amazing x
ReplyDeleteThe hotel looks lovely! I love the little touches such as the chair and the bee photo! Cute.
ReplyDeleteI have always wanted to go to Bristol because the street art is amazing and it would be so much fun. Lovely hotel x
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to Bristol yet... Really want to go though!
ReplyDeleteOh wow what a stylish hotel right in the heart of Bristol. The kitchen and bar look ace
ReplyDeleteLaura x
bristol is a fab city and this looks to be a great hotel x
ReplyDeleteThe Grand has changed ownership a few times over past few years. The last brand that owned it really cut corners on catering. I have run training courses there over past 5 years but stopped a year ago as we switched to a more reliable one. I'm glad to see it looks like it's back up to a good standard!
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