Motel One Newcastle

About Motel One Newcastle

Motel One Newcastle stands on High Bridge, one of the narrow lanes running off Grey Street, and it is the pick of the city's lower-priced hotels for anyone who cares about design. The German group's formula is simple: keep the rooms small and the public spaces generous, spend the money on beds, bathrooms and furniture, and charge less than the four-star competition. It works better here than the price suggests.

The rooms are compact at around sixteen square metres, but they are properly finished - large rain showers, decent mattresses, blackout curtains, air conditioning, flat-screen televisions and free wi-fi. Storage is minimal and there is no wardrobe in the conventional sense, so this is not a hotel for a fortnight's luggage. For a two- or three-night city break it is more than adequate, and the soundproofing is better than the central location would lead you to fear.

The ground-floor lounge is where the character lives: a big, high-ceilinged room with velvet armchairs, bookshelves, an open bar and a nod to Newcastle's engineering history in the fittings. Breakfast is a buffet charged separately, and the bar serves through the evening. There is no restaurant, but that hardly matters given what is within a hundred metres.

The address is the real selling point. Grey Street, the Theatre Royal and the Grainger Market are all a minute or two away, the Quayside is a ten-minute walk downhill, and Central Station is about twelve minutes on foot. Monument Metro station is round the corner, which puts the coast and the airport within easy reach. There is no parking, so leave the car at a park-and-ride or a nearby multi-storey.