What a magical Hotel this place is.
When arriving, you drive around the corner to look straight on at a wacky water feature placed in front of the very nice looking hotel. Parking the car is no problem with the hotels own car park which is right next to the hotel.
You enter the hotel and it takes you a little longer than usual to get to the reception desk as your to busy looking around at all the detail and themeing in the hotel. The staff at reception are very polite and friendly and make you feel extremely welcome. Your bags are tagged up and taken to your room for you if you arrive before 3.
Walking over to the balcony and you start to see part of this extremely well themed ship, you look up into the roof to see this huge hot air balloon and down on the bottom floor is the ship its self with propellers slowly turning around on the reception level.
The rooms are a good size and come complete with towels, hand wash, soaps and shower gel. Also a kettle with tea and coffee sits on the desk which is very handy after a long day at the Water Park or theme park. A TV with free games to play and an Alton Towers channel to help you plan your visit is also sits I the corner of the room. The beds are very comfortable and are very warm and cosy.
The Secret Garden Restaurant serves very nice food for all the family although it is a little expensive for what you get. Also drinks at the hotels can end up costing you a fortune at £2 for a coke.
The gardens at the back of the hotel are a great place for photos with a huge fountain, a wooden hut, rockery and a seating area. This makes a great place on a summers evening to sit back and relax.
Overall I think this is a fantastic hotel and a great way to top off a visit to Alton Towers. To make the most of your stay though I would make a trip to the hotels in the winter when they are less busy and you can make full use of the water park and spa.
