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Review
A must read --Wedding - 1st aug 2010 -
A perfect British escape
--Entertainment News - 5th july 2010
For anyone planning a special getaway in the UK, this book is a must-have --Real Travel, September 2010
Polizzis' research takes the hassle out of hotel selection --Real Travel, September 2010
A perfect British escape
--Entertainment News - 5th july 2010
For anyone planning a special getaway in the UK, this book is a must-have --Real Travel, September 2010
Polizzis' research takes the hassle out of hotel selection --Real Travel, September 2010
Product Description
Are you sick of trawling the internet or combing through guidebooks desperately searching for that somewhere special for a break away, only to be disappointed when your chosen destination doesn't live up to its promise? In this must-have guide Alex Polizzi, presenter of Channel 5's The Hotel Inspector, takes the hassle out of hotel selection, revealing her pick of the very best places to stay in Great Britain. Whether you're searching for a boutique city bolthole or luxurious country house, cosy bed & breakfast or Michelin-starred restaurant with rooms, you'll find it here. And you can rest assured that all 52 of the outstanding destinations featured - one for every weekend of the year - live up to award-winning hotelier Alex's famously exacting standards. Each of the hotels is described in absorbing detail, allowing you to really get a feel for the place and your hosts. In every case Alex makes it compellingly clear why it is so very special. In each entry her advice encompasses everything from which room to choose and what to eat, to where to go in the local area, ensuring that every aspect of your perfect British escape is covered. Entries are accompanied by a range of sumptuous colour photographs to give you the real flavour of your chosen destination, while all-important travel information is also included to ensure your journey is as smooth and trouble-free as possible. With its winning combination of expert advice, insider tips and sumptuous photography, Alex Polizzi's Little Black Book of Hotels makes compulsive reading for the armchair traveller, as well as essential reference when planning any trip away.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Much as Alex writes in her introduction that she wants the book to be more than `hotel porn' it still is! No book featuring lovely hotels and hideaways, with great colour photography, is not going to be lust inducing. And this is a very nice selection of properties around the UK.
Knowing Alex's very high standards when it comes to service, facilitates (not to mention cleanliness) means that without exception you already know what you have here is a book of 52 places to stay that are not going to disappoint.
I would disagree that the book contains 52 `secret' destinations across Great Britain however - some of the hotels are in no way under wraps. I would imagine most people who know UK hotels a little have heard of Cowley Manor, Browns, Hotel Tresanton, the new Lime Wood hotel, Terra Vina and the Hotel Du Vin chain! That said there were also some great smaller properties I'd not heard about before.
It was especially refreshing to read about the inclusion criteria of the book, and to know that none of the hotels had paid to feature (not always the case in books of this ilk). What this has also meant is the book does have smaller guest houses, Restaurants with rooms, and B&Bs alongside the bigger hotels.
As a reference book I would have preferred to have seen the pricing information in the footnotes on the page of each hotel entry and not hidden away in the Gazetteer at the back, but then this would most definitely have ruined the `lust' effect!
With the hotels that Alex is involved in directly, or her family own/run, it would have been nice (and appropriate I think) to mention this in the review of each, not just in the introduction. If they are worthy of being in the book then I see no harm in speaking more personally about them.
As a source of inspiration and a compendium of interesting and high quality places to stay in the UK this is a good book. Its not exhaustive, its nicely illustrated, and its got some great `things to do' for every entry which I found to be a great resource and really helped to sell the destination alongside each hotel.
Knowing Alex's very high standards when it comes to service, facilitates (not to mention cleanliness) means that without exception you already know what you have here is a book of 52 places to stay that are not going to disappoint.
I would disagree that the book contains 52 `secret' destinations across Great Britain however - some of the hotels are in no way under wraps. I would imagine most people who know UK hotels a little have heard of Cowley Manor, Browns, Hotel Tresanton, the new Lime Wood hotel, Terra Vina and the Hotel Du Vin chain! That said there were also some great smaller properties I'd not heard about before.
It was especially refreshing to read about the inclusion criteria of the book, and to know that none of the hotels had paid to feature (not always the case in books of this ilk). What this has also meant is the book does have smaller guest houses, Restaurants with rooms, and B&Bs alongside the bigger hotels.
As a reference book I would have preferred to have seen the pricing information in the footnotes on the page of each hotel entry and not hidden away in the Gazetteer at the back, but then this would most definitely have ruined the `lust' effect!
With the hotels that Alex is involved in directly, or her family own/run, it would have been nice (and appropriate I think) to mention this in the review of each, not just in the introduction. If they are worthy of being in the book then I see no harm in speaking more personally about them.
As a source of inspiration and a compendium of interesting and high quality places to stay in the UK this is a good book. Its not exhaustive, its nicely illustrated, and its got some great `things to do' for every entry which I found to be a great resource and really helped to sell the destination alongside each hotel.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I bought this book thinking to add to my reference material on good places to stay around Britain. No such luck!
There are some interesting entries, and the descriptions are okay, but the costs are hidden away at the back of the book, not with the main entries. I'd looked most of them up (very boring!) on the web before I realised. And some of them really are too well known to class as "interesting".
Overall, I'd recommend spending the time on the internet and using Tripadvisor rather than investing in this one.
There are some interesting entries, and the descriptions are okay, but the costs are hidden away at the back of the book, not with the main entries. I'd looked most of them up (very boring!) on the web before I realised. And some of them really are too well known to class as "interesting".
Overall, I'd recommend spending the time on the internet and using Tripadvisor rather than investing in this one.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Book your next UK based holiday without this hotel guide book at your peril. Just like the Mr. and Mrs. Smith hotel website, this little black book, published by Quadrille, is the definitive guide of the really charming, delighful, well-run places that we all want to stay at. The author says it all about the ethos of this book in two accurate sentences:
"This book is intended to celebrate the hotels, B&Bs and guest rooms that deserve attention for the effort they make to look after their guests. Of course I have included some grand and expensive places to stay, but only those that don't rest on their laurels and do give anyone who digs deep into their wallets a really spoiling experience."
Alex Polizzi can make these claims in a calm, well-qualified and experienced voice. Her pedigree is redoubtable. After Oxford University, she trained at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hong Kong, followed by a spell with Marco Pierre White at the Criterion and then for a number of hotels under the Rocco Forte banner. Born within the hallowed Forte famiglia, she is the daughter and work partner of Olga Polizzi, the stylish owner of the Hotel Tresanton in St. Mawes, Cornwall and the Endsleigh Hotel, near Tavistock in Devon. Alex has included some of the family hotels in this guide book, because "They are all extraordinary places to stay and wouldn't have been included otherwise". I concur.
Supposing you wanted to stay somewhere for each week of the year, there are 52 personally chosen destinations, and Alex and her co-author Piers Gladstone guide you through which room you should choose, what the specialities of the kitchen are, what to do and where to go in the surrounding area, as well as a page introduction on those essential ingredients: location, design, ambiance and service. The photography and quality of presentation are alluring. You can hear her no-nonsense tone, her insightful delivery, her punctillious attention to the slightest detail on every page. Like a gripping story, with colourful plot and intriguing protagonists, I could not put this book down. I know many details to be spot on: I have been to stay at many of these places, and she speaks the truth. I have noted others for future trips, and feel safe in her judgement.
If only this book could be handed out on day one to every fresh faced student at hotel management college. In an industry with so few barriers to entry, "The laudable characteristic that all the hotels in this book have in common is this dedication to try and get it right." That should be every aspiring hotelier's ambition, and it should not take an inspector to point it out.
"This book is intended to celebrate the hotels, B&Bs and guest rooms that deserve attention for the effort they make to look after their guests. Of course I have included some grand and expensive places to stay, but only those that don't rest on their laurels and do give anyone who digs deep into their wallets a really spoiling experience."
Alex Polizzi can make these claims in a calm, well-qualified and experienced voice. Her pedigree is redoubtable. After Oxford University, she trained at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hong Kong, followed by a spell with Marco Pierre White at the Criterion and then for a number of hotels under the Rocco Forte banner. Born within the hallowed Forte famiglia, she is the daughter and work partner of Olga Polizzi, the stylish owner of the Hotel Tresanton in St. Mawes, Cornwall and the Endsleigh Hotel, near Tavistock in Devon. Alex has included some of the family hotels in this guide book, because "They are all extraordinary places to stay and wouldn't have been included otherwise". I concur.
Supposing you wanted to stay somewhere for each week of the year, there are 52 personally chosen destinations, and Alex and her co-author Piers Gladstone guide you through which room you should choose, what the specialities of the kitchen are, what to do and where to go in the surrounding area, as well as a page introduction on those essential ingredients: location, design, ambiance and service. The photography and quality of presentation are alluring. You can hear her no-nonsense tone, her insightful delivery, her punctillious attention to the slightest detail on every page. Like a gripping story, with colourful plot and intriguing protagonists, I could not put this book down. I know many details to be spot on: I have been to stay at many of these places, and she speaks the truth. I have noted others for future trips, and feel safe in her judgement.
If only this book could be handed out on day one to every fresh faced student at hotel management college. In an industry with so few barriers to entry, "The laudable characteristic that all the hotels in this book have in common is this dedication to try and get it right." That should be every aspiring hotelier's ambition, and it should not take an inspector to point it out.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Not for Hotel Inspector fans
I think most people would buy this after becoming aware of Alex Pollizi through the Hotel Inspector TV series. Read more
Published 16 months ago by M. Richards
Chris's opinion
I love Alex Polizzi's stylish and sophisticated Little Black Book of Hotels. Her writing is professional and informative and along with the excellent photographs you almost feel... Read more
Published 20 months ago by Chris
For very big pockets only
The author's intro to the book says the selection is such that there is something for every pocket. I totally disagree: I have searched online for almost all suggested hotels, and... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Licia
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