We were kindly invited along to Brooklands Hotel for their Museum Discovery Break at half term jumped at the chance knowing it would be perfect for our family.
Brooklands Hotel opened in 2010 and is built on the site of the world’s first purpose-built race track. This luxurious, modern and contemporary four star hotel has 131 bedrooms and suites, plus an in-house restaurant and also spa with facilities too.
Located right next to the Mercedes Benz World track we arrived on a lovely dry day with lots of people experiencing the track in various cars and doing stunts.
As soon as you enter into the Hotel via Reception you will notice on the floor of the lobby a curved path of the Solomon Straight which was part of the old Brooklands race track which the 4 star hotel is built on.
Noah and Isabella were both very excited about our hotel stay here, Noah kept saying he was going on holiday and the thought of a night away from home was very appealing to them. With the added excitement of seeing the racetrack right outside there were smiles all around.
Heading to room 400 which was located right outside the lift, I couldn’t wait to see the children’s faces when we opened the room to the door. Staying in an executive family room before we even arrived I knew it would be spectacular and with 48sq metres we knew that there would be more than enough space for all of us.
Opening the door to our room was spectacular, we were instantly drawn to the floor to ceiling windows which offer a panoramic view overlooking the Mercedes Benz World track, and a glimpse as Brooklands Museum just behind too. You don’t need to worry about the noise either, as you honestly couldn’t hear any noise coming from the track at all.
In the family room we had two extremely comfortable king size beds, and Egyptian cotton sheets for the perfect night’s sleep. Now we just had to decided who was sharing with Noah or Isabella – a decision which is harder than you think.
As soon as we got into the room, Noah and Bella ran straight to the window to check out the view. In Bella’s words “she could see the whole world from here” and they were so excited to see cars on the track and watch them whizzing around. Noah immediately wanted to unpack his little suitcase, and water no time putting his clothes away, and popping all his teddies on the bed. We’ve never had a night away without Ted – so we knew he had to come on this adventure too.
We had a lovely welcome treat when we arrived, a bottle of bubbles for us, fruit juices for the children and some delicious cakes to sample too. The children’s favourite addition to the room we’re a cute cuddly dog Teddy called Brook. Immediately Noah cuddled Brook and introduced him to all his other Teddy friends too.
The set up of the room was ideal, there was plenty of space for the children to relax with their colouring books, teddies or relax on the bed and watch the TV. Or we could all comfortably sit on the sofa, chill with a drink and watch the cars on the Mercedes Benz racetrack through the impressive panoramic windows.
As I’m sure most parents with toddlers can relate that dining out as a family is always a nervous event. However after seeing the restaurant at the hotel we knew that we wanted to sample the delicious menu here.
Heading to 1907 Restaurant, which is located on the ground floor of the hotel the children were very excited and promised to be on their best behaviour. Armed with colouring books and fidget toys we headed to our reservation. With a 1930’s inspired decor it was in keeping with the historic grounds it was built on, and even the name of the hotel in the year of which the famous race track was built.
As soon as we arrived the staff were very inviting and friendly towards Noah and Isabella’s. Engaging in conversations with them, and taking an interest in their colouring books and toys. Just this little gesture makes a huge difference when eating out with children, and made them both very happy to have some interaction.
Looking at the menus we were all very spoilt for choices, but with big appetites we all decided to try a 3course dinner – after all it was our little family break away. As predicted both Noah and Isabella decided on identical dishes (saves any arguments) they chose the garlic bread with a side salad, pasta with tomato sauce and finished off with a generous helping of strawberry ice cream.
The dishes all looked absolutely delicious, and the taste test from Noah and Isabella was a firm 5 out of 5, and with clean plates after each course it was clear to me that they both throughly enjoyed their dinner. Just wish I had the skills of the chef here, as at home they never eat like this.
For us we both chose the calamari as our starter, this is always my go to favourite when out for dinner. However this was like nothing I’ve ever tasted before, the taste was exquisite and certainly made my taste buds tingly.
The mains was a really hard decision, I always try and choose something which I wouldn’t usually have. So I opted form the Trio of Lamb, and let me tell you this was incredible, I savoured every bite and didn’t want it to end. Mark decided on the Titan Burger.
Now Marks eyes were bigger than his belly, and his burger defeated him, so much so that he couldn’t even sample a desert and opted for a latte. However I spotted on the menu the Lotus Biscoff Cheesecake (if you know me, then you will know that I can always find room for pudding) from the first bite it was like I had died and gone to heaven – it was incredible.
After dinner we decided to head back to our room, and watch the sun set over the race track. It was great to be able to all relax together, and it felt like a home away from home. We all had the best nights sleep that evening, the beds were so cosy that I could easily have stayed there for longer. Even the children slept soundly, so much so that I had to call down to reception and change the time of our breakfast as everyone was still asleep – now this is a good sign of a great nights sleep.
For breakfast there was an incredible buffet selection which comprised of cereals, fresh fruit, pastries, breads, or on the other side was the traditional hot items such as sausages, bacon, a variety of eggs, and grilled tomatoes. There was also a selection of fruit juices and hot refreshing to choose from. This was the perfect start to our morning before we went out exploring again.
Throughout our whole stay here we received excellent customer service, and the staff always went above and beyond for us. From the welcoming smiles when we arrived, to the staff interacting with the children, and all the personal touches – it really did make a huge difference to our stay here and we have created some fantastic family memories. We even had a few tears when we checked out as Noah wanted to stay on holiday a little longer.
Included in the package is a family visit to Brooklands Museum, which is literally a 5minute walk from the hotel itself. There is so much history at the museum where you can see Concorde, classic planes, Formula 1 racing cars, bicycles from across the years, visit the Bus museum and also enjoy the spectacular war planes in the aviation area too.
This was the perfect ending to our family overnight stay, we all throughly enjoyed ourselves and can’t wait to visit again. Noah is already asking when we can go back and visit again, he kept calling it a little holiday. I loved seeing how excited Noah and Bella were on this adventure.
