Staybridge Suites - Cardiff

 

The Staybridge Suites, Cardiff

This is a different type of hotel which is part of the IHG group normally under the Holiday Inn umbrella. So, what makes these different?

The best way to think about these is that they are like a small flat/studio flat in a hotel. Each suite comes with a small kitchen area so it can be used for self-catering. I booked a suite with a separate bedroom with a dock side view. Cheaper options of a studio flat are available as are slightly cheaper suites with the separate bedroom without the dock side view.

A 5 night stay during mid August 2023 cost me just over £800 in total so it is good value.

If you are planning on visiting Cardiff be aware that the taxi drivers do not tend to accept card payments.

Checking in

The reception area is clean and tidy and the check in was quick and the person behind the desk was friendly and polite. As with all hotels you are asked for your card you intend to pay with as you check in, but you are not charged until you check out.

Here there is also has a display of provisions which you can purchase within the hotel. However, you will pay a premium for this convenience. As there is a ‘one stop’ shop within a 2-minute walk and a Co-op about a 10 minute walk there are plenty of other options.

There is a meeting area and small breakfast dining area as well as a lounge/den area in the communal part of the hotel.

After obtaining the key card I went to my suite. This does require you to go through a door to the lift which has a key card lock on it which is becoming more common in hotels to increase security.

The lift was fast and stated it was for a maximum of 13 people or a metric tonne. Well, if 13 people were in there they would need to be very good friends. The lift ‘announcements’ were in both English and Welsh so you may leave knowing the Welsh for ‘lift going up/down’ as well as which floor you are on.

The Suite

This is based on the suite I had with the separate bedroom. There is a cheaper alternative of a studio suite with a walk in shower rather than a bathroom.

The suite is a good size and the one I had had a kitchen/dining area a lounge area in an open plan style. The separate bedroom was a good size with a king-sized bed and the bathroom was fairly large, larger than the one I have at home. There was also a small balcony overlooking the dock area.

There were pleanty of power points in the suite and they were well positioned.

The kitchen/dining area:

This was well laid out and had a two ring induction hob, a combi microwave and oven, small fridge, dishwasher, sink and pots, pans, kettle, toaster, crockery and cutlery. Really everything you need to make a dinner if you wanted to. There was also a small round table with two dining room chairs.

The oven/microwave combi I did have a go at using on the microwave setting but it does not have a turntable to put the food on so I found it was slightly uneven in its heating. I learnt to stir the food a bit more often during the heating to get round this.

I didn’t use the dishwasher as there was only me and I didn’t generate enough dirty dishes to make this worthwhile. I did do washing up in the sink using the washing up liquid provided. The water from the tap could have been hotter for this but that is only a minor gripe.

My minor concern about cooking here is the fire alarm system as it was not clear if the detector on the ceiling was a smoke detector or a heat detector. Whilst I am not in the habit of burning my food I decided not to risk cooking too much, just in case.

The lounge area:

Here there is a sofa and a flat screen tv with some extra cupboard storage space below the TV. There was also a standing lamp for reading. As I had opted for a suite with a separate bedroom I also had a small balcony the access to which was through a door at the end of the lounge area. The balcony was a good size for two people and had two metal chairs and a small table. Good for enjoying a glass of wine in the evening looking out on the dock area. The only gripe here is that the sofa seat did have a visible stain on it, it looked like a coffee/tea spill.

The bedroom:

This consisted of a king-sized bed which was very comfy but the mattress may be a little firm for some people. The bed linen was clean and the pillows provided had different levels of firmness as well. There were two bedside tables with a draw in each – the kind of draw you need to push in slightly to open. These, however, did have a layer of dust along the metal frames.

There is another TV in the bedroom and I do slightly question the need for 2 TVs in the suite but again this is a personal thing. Againt one wall there is a good sized wardrobe with a small chest of draws which gave plenty of space for your clothes. There was also a code safe and ironing facilities.

The bathroom:

This was a decent size probably larger than most hotels I have stayed in. The towels provided were the standard hotel ones but they were clean and not rough. The shower was a good size and the ceiling was high enough for me to be able to get my arm over my head. The shower was a little under powered but at least it was hot enough. The sink was a good size and the mirror large enough to use.

Now the IHG group has stopped providing small bottles of shower gel and shampoo to reduce the plastic they use. Instead, they have larger bottles with the plunger type mechanism. These are fixed to the wall in a holder which can only be opened with the correct allen key. Whilst I do appreciate this does reduce the plastic waste generated, I was not overly fond of the smell of the gel provided. Now this doesn’t mean it smelt terrible, it just wasn’t for me so perhaps taking your own would be advisable.

Daily servicing of the rooms during the week is provided but you can put the ‘no servicing required’ sign on your door. I’m not one for having my room serviced each day I am staying in a hotel, so I only had it done twice. If you are there over a weekend and would like your room servicing, you are asked to request this with 24 hours notice.

As an IHG club memeber I also had complimentary WiFi which is always a nice addition.

 

The Food

Firstly, the Staybridge suites do not have a restaurant so for lunch or evening meals you either have to cook your own in the suite or find a local pub or restaurant.

However, breakfast is provided on a buffet system like most hotels do. There is a good range for both continental and cooked breakfast and this is included in the price of the suite. I opted for the cooked breakfast each morning I was there. Whilst the quality was fine, considering there was no extra charge, I found it was a little on the cold side. Now I accept they can not really cook this to order but better ways of keeping it hot could be looked into.

For those who like egg at breakfast (I am NOT one of those) the only option was scrambled and there is no option to have them cooked in a different way. The toast is self-serve and they have proper toasters rather than those terrible conveyor style ones. The bread looked better quality than you get in most hotels and the option of white and wholemeal was there.

Now, yes, I had a gripe which was the coffee machine. It looked like a bean to cup machine, but the coffee was not a good quality one. I suspect from the taste that the beans were there for show, and it was actually instant coffee. I also became suspicious of this being a bean to cup machine when I saw that there was only one lot of coffee beans visible, but it was offering both normal and decaf coffee. Now this is not possible if the same beans are used. After the first morning I then made a cafetiere of coffee in the suite and took it with me to the breakfast room for breakfast during the rest of my stay.

The Social Hour

The Staybridge suites offer a social hour from 6:30 to 7:30 three evenings a week but the days these are run varies from place to place. At the Cardiff one this is Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. These are designed for you to meet and chat with others staying there. Very few people, during my stay, took advantage of this but I did get chatting to one other guest on a couple of the evenings.

Here beer, wine, soft drinks as well as nibbles such as cheese and biscuits, humous, bread from a french stick, crisps, a selection of salami and olives are provided. This is all included in the price of the suite which is a nice addition to your stay. For vegetarians there are options as only the salami would be off the menu for them, but vegans would find this very limited. As I am neither this wasn’t an issue for me personally.

Sleep Quality

The bed was comfy and the curtains cut out virtually all the light from outside so this is always good for a good night’s sleep. I did sleep well each night during my stay the only issue was the couple in the room directly below mine were moving the chairs and table around their room’s balcony past midnight most nights. As the balconies are metal this was quite loud but this was not done for long so it was not a major issue. As I was on holiday I didn’t have an alarm on so didn’t affect how much sleep I got. However, rubber 'stoppers' on the table and chair legs may improve this.

Check Out and Final Score

Check out:

This was quick and efficient and again the person at the desk was friendly and polite. They were able to book a taxi to Cardiff central station for me.

Final score:

Check in & out: 5/5

The room/suite: 4.5/5

Breakfast: 3.5/5 (a bit too cold and poor coffee from machine)

facilities available: 4/5

cleanliness: 4/5

Total: 21/25

I have included the social hour in with the facilities with a small deduction for the lack of vegan options. If I had been vegan, this would have been a bigger deduction.

Right to reply

As with most of my hotel reviews this was sent to Staybridge suites for them to respond to if they wished. I recieved a responce thanking me for the review and let me know they would look into the issues I raised.

This content reflects the personal opinions of the author. It is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and should not be substituted for impartial fact or advice in legal, political, or personal matters.