Hotel du Vin & Bistro Cambridge

About Hotel du Vin & Bistro Cambridge

Hotel du Vin took over a row of Grade II listed buildings at 15-19 Trumpington Street, parts of which date back to medieval times, and opened here in 2007 after a thorough restoration. The address is a good one - the Fitzwilliam Museum is a minute's walk south, the Mill Lane punt station a minute west, and King's Parade three minutes north - and the buildings themselves give the hotel a slightly rambling, staircase-heavy character that suits the city.

The 41 rooms and suites are individually designed and named after wines and vineyards, in keeping with the group's habit. Custom-made beds with Egyptian cotton linen are standard, as are well-appointed bathrooms with either a monsoon shower or a roll-top bath, and the better rooms have exposed beams or original fireplaces. Reclaimed dark-stained floorboards, restored fireplaces and a good deal of art run through the public rooms, which include a bar, a snug and a cellar space used for tastings and private dinners.

Bistro du Vin, the ground-floor restaurant, serves French classics in a room that is warm and deliberately informal, with plenty of natural daylight during the day and candlelight in the evening. The wine list is the point of the place - long, well chosen and priced across a wide range - and the sommeliers are happy to talk it through. There is no spa or gym, and parking is limited, so most guests arrive by train and walk or take a taxi from the station a mile away. For a stay focused on the museums, the colleges and eating well, the position is close to ideal.