I usually resist Valentine's day, particularly those over-staged, over-priced three course dinners that appear to be so popular with couples with nothing to say to each other. But this February 14th, my husband and I took off by bike to a new, local hotel in Bermondsey recently voted one of Europe's trendiest hotels in Tripadvisor's Travelers' Choice Awards.
And for just over a hundred pounds, we had a night, dinner and breakfast in not necessarily the most stylish or trendiest hotels I have stayed in in Europe, or even in London, but certainly one of the friendliest. That may not be a criteria that is automatically high on your list when choosing hotels; nor was it mine, but I have come to think it is just as important as location, facilities and certainly style. We arrived to a smiling face at reception and a welcoming bar/restaurant (this is somewhere I would spend time as a woman on my own) before landing in our well designed room. Having spent one gruelling evening in Las Vegas waiting for ice to be delivered (admittedly, the Venetian has 3,000 rooms, but it was also half an hour walk to the bar), I was delighted to receive our bucket in the Bermondsey Square Hotel within minutes.
I liked the way they provide keyboards for you to use with the flat screen iMac in the room, should you be here on business, and appreciated the girl in reception happily hunting for an umbrella for our foray into the winter drizzle. We had dinner in the Woolpack - a wonderful, genuine mix of very drunk locals fresh from a funeral, gaggles of gay guys sipping chilled sauvignon blanc and appreciative smokers inhaling deeply in the back terrace in the rain. We were glad to have avoided the flakey and pretentious Garrison that somewhat inexplicably insists on describing itself as a pub.
I really liked the 'Meet the Street' section on the hotel web site – this an operation fully rooted in its local community. We got a free paper, unasked for late check out and a lovely breakfast with tea served in a brightly coloured teapot complete with knitted tea cosy. It is worth noting that the Bermondsey Square Hotel's friendliness isn't confined to its human guests: a doberman was being welcomed with a big smile for its five day check in just as me and my valentine were leaving. We can't wait to come back in the summer.
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