26th February 2020
Bournemouth was the very first seaside town I visited when I relocated down south from Yorkshire. It was also the very first beach my son Coby visited as a baby, along with the being the first time he dipped his tiny chubby toes in the English Channel and shovelled handfuls of sand in his mouth…Why do babies do that?!
Beaches on the South Coast
It seems everyone in Reading and its surrounding towns like to flock to a couple of beaches on the South Coast when the weather is nice. Bournemouth is one of them, along with West Wittering. Hastings and Weymouth seem to be popular choices too.
The benefit of going to Bournemouth is that it has clean, soft, golden sands, seven miles of it to be exact. Long flat promenades, two piers (Bournemouth and Boscombe), amusement arcades and shallow waters. You have visit to truly understand when I say there’s also a bit of a Mediterranean feel about it. Money has been invested in the beaches, the town is constantly going through regeneration phases and I even spotted some palm trees that had recently been planted by the side of the sands.
More than anything I love the Victorian, nostalgic yet cosmopolitan feel Bournemouth has.
A Bournemouth Hotel by the Beach
Hallmark Hotels invited me to try one of their Bournemouth-based seaside hotels, The Carlton. Located smack bang on the East side of the town you couldn’t ask for a better location to explore. With a zig-zag path making its way down the cliff edge it took us exactly 5 minutes to get from our hotel room door down to the sands. Not too sure I can say the same for the walk back up, but I guess that depends on how fit you are!
The Basics
- Hallmark Carlton Address: East Overcliff, Grove Rd, Boscombe, Bournemouth BH1 3DN
- Website: https://www.hallmarkhotels.co.uk/hotels/hallmark-hotel-bournemouth-carlton
- Do they have family rooms?: Yes
- Price Point: ££
- Parking: Yes, for £10 a day
- Dietary Requirements in the restaurant: Lots catered for, good vegetarian selections and a children’s menu is available.
The Hotels’ history
Over 100 years old the Hallmark Hotel Bournemouth Carlton (that’s a mouthful!) received a £1 million investment back in 2013 and the whole clifftop hotel was given a little spruce up in an attempt to return it to its former glory of 1903, when it first opened its doors to the public.
Our Room
There are 76 rooms altogether and I think we had one of the better ones. With pastel striped walls, a huge bathroom and plenty of storage it made for the perfect little spot for a weekend of relaxing and taking some time out… which was our main aim of the trip..eat and nap, then eat some more and then maybe nap again!
No dodgy old bedspreads, just big soft quilts and plenty of pillows. Don’t you just hate it when you get one solitary flat pillow at a hotel? I always end up calling down for another (if there’s not already a spare stashed in the wardrobe).
The bed was firm but soft and both Steve and I slept well. I loved having the big windows next to us. It meant we could open the door and enjoy the feel of the breeze whilst listening to the sea.
Dinner
The Hallmark Grill is the name of the restaurant located inside the hotel on the ground floor overlooking the outdoor swimming pool and beyond that, the sea. It’s pretty big and on the Saturday night we ate there, it was around half full. Big windows let in lots of light, whereas sparkly chandeliers and a dark red carpet make it feel quite formal, but at the same time quite relaxed too.
The outside terrace also looked pretty nice. I can imagine it being a good dining spot in the summer.
As part of our trip we were invited to try the brand new 2019 menu. For starters I had halloumi, my main course was the vegetarian curry and for dessert I had lemon cheesecake. All were fine, tasted fresh, hot…and quite comforting. However, Steve struck gold with the sticky-toffee pudding and he very kindly let me have a taste. I was instantly transported back to my childhood and it tasted exactly like the one my Mum used to make. If I could have bottled up that memory forever, I would have. If I was to eat at The Hallmark Grill again, I’d not hesitate to order it. In fact, it would probably be the first thing I’d do after check-in!
Steve and I ended up having a conversation about all the food we’d eaten on our travels and what we loved the most… one of mine was Orange cake on the top of a mountain in Madeira, and one of his was a Tagine in Marrakesh on my birthday about six years ago…surrounded by belly-dancers and talented entertainers!
What’s nearby?
Apparently, according to our friends that live in Bournemouth, the weather had been atrocious for the previous weeks before we arrived so the fact that the sun shone all day for us meant we were able to wander into town for some breakfast and coffee at South Coast Roast. Later on we wandered down the beach, played in the arcades, bought some rock for the kids and people-watched.
I had so many recommendations on Twitter about where to eat in Bournemouth. Turns out that the Hallmark Hotel Bournemouth Carlton is within walking distance of nearly all of them…they also have Deliveroo… we may or may not have ordered a sneaky Dirty Vegan on our first night there…it had been a long week and I was exhausted OK! 😉
There’s lots to do for older kids here, both Coby and Lucy loved the zipline over the pier when we came last year. There’s also the wheel to ride on, crazy golf or even museums.
Other than that there is so much to do and so much to explore. Check out Visit Bournemouth for more ideas.
The best bits
The staff were awesome and incredibly friendly. Our room view over the English Channel and the beach was the highlight but overall the location was spot on! You couldn’t ask to be in a better part of Bournemouth. I imagine the swimming pool would be a bonus when the weather warms up too. There’s also an indoor pool and WiFi is good, and free.
Parking is available in the car park behind the hotel where you’ll get a 50% discount if you provide your car details at reception. It costs £10 per 24 hours, which I think is good compared to the rest of Bournemouth.
Overall the Hallmark Hotel Bournemouth Carlton is clean, the shower was strong and hot and room service is available 24 hours. Oh and, the towels were big enough to wrap around my whole body. Sorry if that’s a bit random, I just hate those tiny towels you sometime get. There’s nothing worse!!
The worst bits
It’s a little dated. Worn carpets on the stairs, marked walls and old fashioned curtains. At the same time I like the traditional feel of the hotel, but do think it would benefit hugely from a little spruce up. Nothing major and it didn’t put us off in any way, I guess it’s just the little things like this you sometimes notice.
Oh, and I know I’ve mentioned it before in another hotel review post but I can’t stand those hairdryers where you have to keep hold of the button for them to work…The Hallmark Carlton has them unfortunately.
Conclusion
Ultimately, for me, it always boils down to one thing: would we stay again? And the answer to this is a resounding yes. The location and the view from our room would be the main reasons why…and the sticky-toffee pudding, of course!
Would I do anything differently next time? Probably sit in the cocktail bar for a bit and make more use of the spa, the treatments looked really reasonably priced and I’m usually a sucker for a good massage.
Thank you to the Hallmark Hotel Bournemouth Carlton again for having us, we had a lovely time.
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My stay at Hallmark Hotel Bournemouth Carlton was complimentary in return for a review on my blog. All the opinions in this post are honest and written by me. Photos also belong to Hello Cuppies ©
