Building of the new Marriott International Moxy Hotel will start at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in June this year and should be open for business by June next year.

The eight-storey structure will incorporate 224 bedrooms. Moxy is a Marriott lifestyle brand and there are currently 20 Moxy properties worldwide, the latest just open at Heathrow Airport and the largest with 437 bedrooms. Other Moxy hotels opening this year are in Southampton, York Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Joining a familiarisation trip to Poland as a guest of Marriott Hotels the writer enjoyed five-star accommodation at hotels in Warsaw, and Krakow (next month’s issue).

On arrival at Warsaw Chopin Airport from our BA flight we were quickly transferred to the 40-storey + glass skyscraper in the Manhattan-like business district where the five-star Marriott Warsaw occupies the top 20 floors, and is said to have more amenities than any other hotel in Poland. We could believe it as there are 523 bedrooms here and all have luxurious facilities and fabulous views over the city, as does the hotel’s unique 40th floor Panoramic Sky-Bar. Our large bathroom had no curtains or blinds up at the huge picture window, and this worried us a bit on behalf of female delegates, until we were told the glass was only one-way, ie we could see out but no one could see in, so that was all right. For those looking to hold meetings and events there are 28,000 square feet (2,600 square metres) of venue space, which includes 26 event rooms and a Grand Ballroom with seating for 700 delegates, all this complemented by an indoor pool, spa, fitness centre and five dining options. Continue reading →

There can’t be many airport hotels with a large and attractive outside area for al fresco barbecues and other eating in the warm months but the four-star Hilton London Heathrow Airport, which we experienced recently and which won the World’s Leading Airport Hotel award last year is one of a very few. Also much-appreciated by arriving guests, especially those arriving in inclement weather is the covered walkway connecting the Hilton to Terminal Four, an eight minute walk away and a fifteen minute ride on the Heathrow Express to Central London. Continue reading →

A recent cruise around Scotland and the Orkneys, the Shetlands and the Danish Faroe Islands gave the writer the chance to run a beer tasting of twelve local brews purchased. The tasting team of six was equally split with three of each gender and all the ales were tasted blind, with marks out of 10 given.

Top choice, with 39 points out of 60, was Edinburgh Gold from the Stewart Brewery, a golden ale with a healthy ABV of 4.8% and a bargain price of £1.99 for a 500ml bottle in Edinburgh supermarkets. Very close behind, with 37 and 36 points respectively were two light and clean-tasting beers from the Foroya Bjor brewery at Klaksvik in the Faroes, their Organic Light at 2.8% ABV and their Pilsner Light at 2.7 ABV, both costing £3 for 500ml bottles. Continue reading →

Only two films have ever won the double of the Palme d’Or at Cannes and the Academy Award for Best Picture, and one was director Billy Wilder’s 1945 The Lost Weekend about recovering alcoholic writer Ray Milland while the other was Marty, director Delbert Mann’s 1955 romance about decent, honest shy and awkward 34 year old Bronx butcher Marty (Ernest Borgnine) and decent, honest, shy and awkward 29 year old teacher Clara (Betsy Blair). Continue reading →