Today when thinking about what I want from a city break I find myself questioning what is more important, the standard of a hotel or the location?
I have always viewed my hotel room as a base to leave my stuff and to freshen up but I have always wanted it to be close to all the things I wanted to do and see while in a location for a short period of time.
Here at Northumbria, we have high spec, en-suite buildings available just minutes from Newcastle's high street...
Over the past year, I have been covering the role of accommodation sales manager which made me think - why don’t I look at staying in student accommodation when exploring other cities. They offer so much: double beds, ensuite bathrooms and some with a kitchen so I could store drinks while I am there, as I am more of a diet coke than coffee kind of person.
So if you were on a budget would you look at staying in university accommodation? I still feel like it is a very unused part of the university over the summer. With flats that could house a full family, this poses a competitive alternative to several rooms along a corridor in a hotel.
Here at Northumbria, we have high spec, en-suite buildings available just minutes from Newcastle's high street, which makes me think is this more worthwhile than a budget hotel in a similar location? And another great aspect of student accommodation is the on-site facilities like pool tables, table football and laundry, something that doesn't always come with a hotel booking.
But where does one start looking for university accommodation for a weekend break, from my research I have seen that some are on booking platforms such as booking.com, hotels.com or even a new one I learned about universityrooms.com, which does what it says on the tin. But when looking there is not a lot of availability which makes me think about the accessible ways in which these rooms can be offered by Universities.
If you had the option available on a booking platform, would you pick a student accommodation room over a budget hotel? For me it's hard to say but I know I would not rule either out but it's great to know you have more options depending on the stay you are wanting. What would you pick?
Rachel Cottiss, Conference and Events Manager, Venues at Northumbria
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