Spring Storybook - Hotel stays from £45!*

Let us take you on a foodie adventure this spring across Great Britain and discover what makes Best Western stand out from the crowd.

The myth of British food

Let’s be honest, the British don’t have a brilliant reputation for food. We are the butt of endless jokes across Europe about the blandness of our palate. But check out the video below and the full length blog as we showcase what really makes British regional food served across Best Western hotels so special.

What's hot in our gardens?

Here at Best Western we believe home grown is best and many of our hotels have taken that belief straight to the dining table. Whether its honey from our own bee hive or rhubarb ready to be crumbled, find out what’s hot on our gardens this year by reading the full blog here.

Feeding lobster to the cat

One of the very (very) few positive sides to global warming, as it turns out, is that our steadily warming seas currently mean cheaper lobster, all the better for gourmets and gourmands to slather in garlic butter and wolf down. What we may not realise is that a hundred years ago it would have been the equivalent of eating a Pot Noodle. Read the full blog here as we take you on a historical gourmet journey.

Fresh daily bread

Wander round the side of the building between the hotel and the post office and you’ll find the enticing smells emerging from Best Western Kinloch Hotel’s very own bakery complete with original Victorian ovens and new head baker George Grassie. Check out George’s bio here and discover the journey that has taken him to a small Norwegian bakery and back.

The Wild Water Swimmer

You may not know this but at Best Western we have our very own Wildman, Mike Durkin. He’s our Head Chef at BEST WESTERN Ambleside Salutation Hotel in the Lake District but you are just as likely, probably more likely, to find him out in the lakes or tarns around the Lake District as you are in the kitchen. If you fancy following in his footsteps, or should that be strokes, click here to view three wild water swims we've picked out for you to enjoy. Or check out Mike in action below.

Extreme Sleeps

Clean sheets, comfy pillows, in-room tea and coffee, free Wi-Fi and a flat screen TV – I can picture the thousands of Best Western hotel rooms now. There was a time when this was all people craved from a night’s sleep away from home, but this has all changed thanks to extreme sleeping.

Fancy sleeping beneath the stars in some of the most picturesque parts of Great Britain? Well click here to get some inspiration to get you started.

The Rambler's Revenge

The Lake District evokes extremes of adventure and calm. Many hikers, climbers and swimmers, or even a combination of all three, come from miles around to get outdoors. And we don’t think there is a better antidote to a day in the hills and lakes than a massage at a hotel spa?

We call it The Rambler’s Revenge at the BEST WESTERN Ambleside Salutation Hotel.

The Short Story

Tony Jacklin is, in no uncertain terms, a golfing legend. The most successful British player of his generation, he won two major championships and is the most successful European Ryder Cup captain of all time.

Click here to find out more about how Tony has teamed up with a Best Western hotel to redesign a par 3 course.

Smells like Summer

Freshly cut grass, fish, chips and vinegar and a BBQ slowly cooking those longed for burgers. These are just some of the great smells of summer. So as the sun makes us all think about where we are going to spend those long, warm evenings why not let Best Western help with the daydreaming. We have teamed up with some famous faces to talk about what smells make their summers light up, click here to read. So what are you waiting for? Pass the sun lotion and get ready to explore.

The Wooooo! Factor

Remember those great ghost stories you were told as a child, that brilliant feeling of being terrified? Well whether or not you are still a believer in all things ghosts and ghouls, there is no denying in recent times that there has been some pretty ghoulish goings on in a number of Best Western hotels. From the giggling girl spotted at the BEST WESTERN PREMIER Queen Hotel in Chester to a very grumpy serving girl at BEST WESTERN Lion Hotel in Worksop. Relive those childhood memories ghost hunting at Best Western this summer, click here to read some of our best ghost stories.

If You Go Down To The Woods Today

‘Ahoy’ cries a pirate with a jaunty hat and a beaming smile. Giddy with excitement, the children greet their storyteller guide. A party of little princesses assemble in the grounds of BEST WESTERN PLUS Grims Dyke Hotel, Harrow, ready for a fairytale walk. Where will it take them? Into the woods where imaginations will run wild. Click hereto find out what makes fairytales so special.

Staycations

No two Best Western hotels are the same – each has its own unique personality and story to tell. With more than 275 hotels across Great Britain and unfortunately too many to squeeze into this section, we have selected three Staycations that are perfect for families looking for a getaway with a bit of personality this year. Click here to find a Staycation with a difference.

The Smallest High Street in Britain?

Have we discovered the smallest high street in Great Britain? 67 paces from end to empty end. A street with maybe five houses in total, all looking thick and hard and handsome. Houses you just know would be cool inside in summer and roaringly warm when the weather inevitably turned. Read more here about our recent trip to the Lake District and are big (sort of) discovery.

Walk With The Wild Guardians

Sunbeams glance through tress as you step out for a quiet morning walk. But you’re not alone. A large, dark pair of eyes watches you, then another and another. Soon the whole herd spots you and trots over to say hello. And with gentle nuzzles the Fallow deer residents of BEST WESTERN Whitworth Hall Hotel, Brancepeth, welcome you into their clan.

Roger the Goldfish

BEST WESTERN Rogerthorpe Manor Hotel, Pontefract has a very special resident. His days are spent swimming, playing in his castle and generally keeping an eye on guests checking in and out. We are of course talking about Roger the resident goldfish. And if you are feeling like some company on your night away from home, Roger will happily accompany you for the evening – just ask at reception. Check Roger out below...

Breaks with bushy tails

When researching Best Western hotels to appear on our early evening ITV3 sponsorship we made our way to BEST WESTERN Shap Wells Hotel, Penrith to meet the furry residents. The furry residents being red squirrels, with fewer than 140,000 in the UK we knew we were in for a treat. Click here to read the blog and view some of the pictures we took as we came face to face with the red squirrels of Shap Wells.

Queen of Arts

There’s art as far as the eye can see at BEST WESTERN PREMIER Queen Hotel, Chester. Vivid paintings, sculptures of dogs and giant tortoises. A five-foot high bust of Elizabeth II watches over guests as they check in at reception. The desk there has been fashioned from vintage trunks and suitcases from across the decades. Odd Roman gods. Kings and, appropriately, Queens galore. Read more here as we uncover everything this hotel has to offer.

How to Visit a Cathedral

Visiting a cathedral can be like walking around a great art gallery such as the Tate or the Prado. There is too much to take in and, before long you’re art blind and your calves ache from unyielding stone floors. Oh and it also can’t help if you can stay nearby – here are some top tips to visiting cathedrals in style this summer.

The Business of History

One egg or two for breakfast? Whirlpool or infinity pool? And what sort of cuisine makes your mouth drool? French, ethnic, fusion or Mongolian – you’ll doubtless find all of them within a five-minute walk of your hotel.

Let’s face it; the business traveller in today’s Britain has never had it so easy. Need a good hotel? Simply read the reviews on TripAdvisor. Looking for a decent meal? Look no further than Google. Even plane and train tickets are never more than a click away.

But it wasn’t always so. Rewind the clock just a few decades to the 1970s and organising your trip was a nightmare. In Victorian times, your troubles began when you tried to find a lavatory. As for travelling Tudors... say the wrong thing to the hotel doorman and before you know it, you’re being burned at the stake. Oh how times have changed.

A Famous Resident

What better way to end the #springstorybook than a tale about a famous old resident at BEST WESTERN PLUS Grims Dyke Hotel, Harrow. We won’t take all the glory, here’s Eddie from the hotel to tell you the tale...