insideKENT Magazine Issue 67 - October 2017 | Page 128

GETAWAYS
BRIGHTON HARBOUR HOTEL & SPA:
THE ULTIMATE WEEKEND GETAWAY
AS A BRIGHTONIAN, IT’S VERY RARE I GET THE CHANCE TO STAY SOMEWHERE IN MY OWN
CITY AND LOOK UPON WHAT IT OFFERS AS A VISITOR WOULD. AND, AS A WRITER, I’M OFTEN
LOATHE TO USE THE WORD COOL — IT’S DUG ITS WAY DEEP INTO CASUAL SLANG; ITS MEANING
NOW AKIN TO ‘OK’, WHICH HAS STOLEN A BIT OF ITS SHINE. BY DEFINITION, ‘COOL’, AS AN
ADJECTIVE, MEANS ‘FASHIONABLY ATTRACTIVE; IMPRESSIVE; EXCELLENT’, AND THE BRIGHTON
HARBOUR HOTEL & SPA FULFILS EACH ONE OF THESE DESCRIPTIONS WITH BELLS ON. IT’S
MADE ME WANT TO MOVE AWAY, JUST SO I CAN COME BACK AND STAY – THIS IS A WEEKEND
GETAWAY WELL WORTH TRAVELLING FOR. BY POLLY HUMPHRIS
As embodies the relaxed signature style of the
Harbour Hotel group (there’s a few in the pack,
including Chichester), the Brighton Harbour
Hotel – hotel, restaurant, cocktail bar and spa
– has been developed to relish bit by bit and
is instantly relaxing from the minute you enter
the bright reception area. The staff are
welcoming and smiley — a feature so often
missed by other hotels who appear to confuse
the term ‘luxury’ with ‘uptight’; the walls are
decorated with textured wallpaper and quirky
prints and paintings, and the atmosphere is
upbeat and jovial.
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Don’t be fooled into assuming this equates to
lacklustre effort, however. Everything from
the entire staff to the finishing touches in each
bedroom, a staggering 35 of which offer
spectacular views across Brighton’s iconic
seafront, has been expertly planned and
executed. It’s a well-oiled machine, confident
in its position as a destination hotel that’s as
suitable for couples and families as it is for
businesspeople, or groups of friends.
The rooms are gorgeous; a lesson in how to
do luxury linen in style, and with all of the
finishing touches you’d expect from
somewhere so chic. Decorated in a consistent
shade of either blue, pink, or red (with
contrasting splashes of colourful artwork and
fashionable geometric-print furnishings),
plump duvets, Oxford pillows and Egyptian
cotton sheets make up beds so comfy you
won’t want to leave; clean white bathrooms
with power showers are stocked with White
Company toiletries; and flat screen TVs are
standard. Forget free WiFi (which, of course,
is provided), they even throw in
complimentary decanters of gin and sherry
in every room.