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| signing and image are crisp and clean.Rollover to see window graphics for the food operation (24 hour) |
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:: Panoramic Views
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The occasional small towns and villages are often the only interruption, and French planners are so much better than our own at creating small dual carriageway bypass roads around them to keep town centres relatively free of through traffic. These roads frequently start with a ‘rond-pointe’ intersection at one end, loop around the town and then reconnect to the original route via another ‘rond-pointe’.
Often the roundabout is also the opportunity to connect to a new industrial area or a hypermarket. Frequently too, the junction is distinguished by a collection of modern hotels – perhaps a Formula 1, an Ibis, an Etap with a Novotel or Mercure at a higher standard, offering a choice of price and quality. These brands all belong to Accor, and they are becoming a familiar sight in the UK as well as on the continent, where Accor is already the largest brand. With over 4,000 hotels worldwide Accor continues to expand in the UK, with the 250 bedroom Etap Birmingham the latest to arrive, the first of 17 new Etap hotels planned for this country, with a stated desire to go to 300. In a separate review in a month or two I will be looking at one of the impressive new Novotels that the brand has also introduced into the UK.
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Rollover above for more signage. The food operation is a self serve system, paid for at a till at the end of the reception desk. Dispense machines are available for palatable coffee, and the area is laid up simply for a continental breakfast each morning.Below is the bathroom in a room for those with disabilities
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Not only is the Birmingham property the first, it will also be one of the largest, as a city centre property. The general intention is that the units will be smaller than this although reflecting the same brand style and standards.
Here the location has been selected for a combination of reasons. The newly developed ‘Bullring’ shopping centre is visible from the front door, but the hotel also provides cheap convenient lodgings for exhibitors at the National Exhibition Centre just down the road. It is but a short walk from the hotel into the main centre of Birmingham for theatres, concert halls and of course the nightlife. There is a large secure car park although from the cars parked on the surrounding streets it has been made too small for the demand the hotel is already experiencing.
The car park entrance is obviously not the main entrance to the hotel, but it still leads a guest into the main entrance lobby. The first impressions are of a bright well lit lobby, pale colours with sharp colour accents. The overall feel is of a clean bright environment. The space is left clear and uncluttered, with seating areas, phones etc. off the main thoroughfare leaving the guest approach to the desk clear and contributing to a spacious feel. This simple direct approach is typical of budget hotels, and is something that often over fussy lobbies in higher quality hotels would do well to look at against their own operations. This ‘route one’ approach means guests immediately see the desk and can manage luggage without having to trek across a vast lobby, or to negotiate chairs, occasional tables and the like along the way.
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