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The best new UK hotels that opened in October
From beds catering to rugby fanatics in the Welsh capital to rooms with views of one of England’s finest gardens, Ianthe Butt picks her most hotly anticipated places to stay
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Your support makes all the difference.Autumn has brought with it a bevvy of exciting new openings for bedding down around Britain. Here are six of the coolest.
LEVEN Manchester, Manchester
Pandemic pause aside, Manchester has been a hotbed for new hotels in the last few years, from the glitzy Stock Exchange Hotel (one of the first to offer rooms to NHS workers during the height of the crisis) and Hotel Brooklyn (which has in its inventory 18 stylish, accessible rooms co-designed with Motionspot catering for disabled travellers) to laidback cool Ducie Street Warehouse.
Fresh on the scene is 42-room LEVEN Manchester, five minutes from Piccadilly Station (ideal for travel-by-train staycations) in the village – a neighbourhood known for its diverse LGBTQ+ community, happening bars and indie shops. Inside a former cotton warehouse, interiors riff on the building’s industrial roots with exposed brickwork and timber floors zhuzhed up with playful green velvet couches.
The lounge and lobby has both a long wooden table for co-working, and a brass-topped bar for post-work negronis, where local DJs spin tunes at night. Rooms range from life-size doubles – with soft grey and blue palettes against statement black marble – through to “living the dream” (two bedroom duplexes with spiral staircases). All have Naturalmat mattresses, Grown Alchemist refillable toiletries, glass water bottles and plenty of plants. Other sustainable touches include energy efficient windows, water systems to help reduce consumption, and cultural programming which celebrates local artists. A cocktail bar and restaurant will arrive in 2022.
From £89, room only; liveleven.com
The Parkgate Hotel, Cardiff
Much to the delight of rugby fans, The Parkgate Hotel – just moments from the city’s famed Principality Stadium – opens this month. With Wales crowned champions at this year’s Six Nations, the buzz around Welsh rugby has reached fever pitch. The Parkgate Hotel, operated on behalf of the Welsh Rugby Union by The Celtic Collection (behind swish Celtic Manor Resort in south Wales’s Usk Valley), is set to be the place to stay during the autumn’s Six Nations series, and beyond.
The 169-room property sits inside Cardiff’s grade II-listed former Head Post Office and County Court. Decor – by Goddard Littlefair – is all understated glamour. Bedrooms have eye-catching geometric-patterned headboards, metallic oversized anglepoise lamps and walk-in showers – or baths – lined with Elemis potions. Welsh produce (think Brecon lamb, Hafod cheese, Severn & Wye Penderyn whisky-cured salmon) will take centre stage at Justin Llewelyn’s The Sorting Room, a brasserie restaurant with days-gone-by panache thanks to deep leather sofas and twinkling chandeliers. There’s also a courtyard tapas restaurant, tea lounge, rooftop spa with infinity pool, and hospitality packages on offer for the big games.
From £133, B&B; theparkgatehotel.wales
Sloane Place, London
After a swift stop-start open and close in 2019, boutique newbie Sloane Place in Chelsea has finally thrown open its doors properly. The funky sister hotel to the historic Sloane Club next door has 27 rooms spread across five storeys in an attractive Victorian red brick building on Lower Sloane Street, close to the Saatchi Gallery, Royal Court and King’s Road. Hand-drawn pictures of broom bush streak across bedroom walls, alongside rich ochre and navy cushions. Stylish without being OTT, rooms also have writing desks – should the area’s literary history inspire you to put pen to paper – Hypnos beds and bathrooms with Molton Brown goodies in fixed dispensers.
For £30 extra a night, dogs are welcome, and Battersea Park – 20 minutes away – is perfect for morning walks. In fine weather make a beeline for brunches of American pancake stacks or Eggs Florentine on the al-fresco terrace, or at the main restaurant there’s all-day dining by Bernhard Mayer and Maryono Mayono which riffs on their respective European and South-East Asian heritage (cafe vibe by day, more occasion-feel at night). For nightcaps, check out art deco basement bar The Hideaway, where fortnightly on Thursdays there’s rip-roaring live music. The hotel is also almost 100 per cent powered by green energy, and a tea partnership with King – known for their organic, biodegradable infusions – ensures a decent brew is always available.
From £200, B&B; sloaneplace.com
Stay at Leonardslee House, Horsham, West Sussex
For the first time this month, horticulture nuts will be able to bed down in one of 10 rooms at historic 19th-century Italianate-style Leonardslee House in West Sussex. Set on the fringe of the High Weald, rooms have gorgeous views out to the property’s famed 240-acre gardens, which include a grade I-listed forest, striking Victorian rock garden and rare colony of wild wallabies.
While Leonardslee House is already famed for its Michelin-starred restaurant Interlude, helmed by Jean Delport – who weaves seasonal ingredients such as cauliflower mushrooms, birch tree sap and nettles picked from the gardens into his multi-course tasting menus – and its classic afternoon tea, its 10 rooms are set to be just as talked-about. With design overseen by Johnson Park interiors, elegant rooms are about as cottage-cool as it gets, decked out in subtle pastel blue, blush pink and jungle green, with vintage chandeliers, marble bathrooms, frilled armchairs, contemporary canopied beds and elegant cornicing. Each features statement fabrics and wallpapers by a quintessential British design house, including a romantic bridal suite by Lewis & Wood with freestanding nickel bathtub.
From £350, B&B (breakfast basket), leonardsleegardens.co.uk
Selina Liverpool, Liverpool
Hot on the heels of their openings in Camden and Brighton, affordable flashpacker favourites Selina have just touched down in Liverpool, a short walk from Lime Street Station. Taking over the historic Hatters Hostel, the brand has smartened up interiors at the 72-room property with signature Selina pastels – with double rooms dressed in sage green, millennial pink and slate grey hues, alongside funky patterned throws and cushions, while suites are adorned with contemporary art.
There are also family rooms – sleeping up to four – and pared-back dorm rooms for up to 10 to snooze in. As with other Selina properties, the local community and events play an important part, with programming set to include new start-up mentorships, ethical business classes and new parent workshops. There’s an on-site coffee shop, tucked-away beer garden and a bar and restaurant are set to open in due course.
Room rates £tbc; selina.com/uk/liverpool
Hyatt Centric Cambridge and Turing Locke, Cambridge
Chain hotels aren’t always known for being forward-thinking when it comes to sustainability; however, the Hyatt Centric Cambridge sits in the heart of the Eddington neighbourhood, an area developed by the University of Cambridge as a possible blueprint for future sustainable living in the UK. Eighty per cent of the property’s roof space is kitted out with solar panels, there are electric car charging points, and an electric shuttle bus whizzes guests into the city centre.
Furniture and lighting have been sourced from responsible suppliers in partnership with climate positive business Dodds & Shute – think sustainable timber from certified forests, biodegradable packaging and reusable laundry bags. A clever rainwater management system employed in the entire Eddington area captures and treats stormwater runoff to filter and redistribute to homes for flush toilets and water gardens. Plus, in the central courtyard, there are bird and bat boxes to encourage wildlife.
The 150-room property is in easy reach of Cambridge’s leafy parks and river for punting adventures, and rooms have art deco touches and superking beds. Also opening in the same building is 180-room aparthotel Turing Locke, where each suite has a fully kitted out kitchen and interiors by design studio AvroKO. Dining options available to guests at both are KOTA – sister restaurant to Cambridge’s popular NOVI – for baked goods, coffees and Finnish-style charcoal-cooked suppers, and Dutch for zingy cocktails and tapas. Both have a focus on locally sourced, meat-free and vegan options, and there’s a co-working space and rooftop terrace to boot.
Rooms at Turing Locke from £120, room only; lockeliving.com/en/cambridge/turing-locke
Rooms at Hyatt Centric Cambridge from £130, room only; hyattcentriccambridge.com
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