What a Splash! (Splash Landings Hotel (Alton Towers))

Member Name: emmakate06

Product:	Splash Landings Hotel (Alton Towers)
Date:	21/02/09 (346 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Spacious rooms, easy access to attractions

Disadvantages: Very expensive in peak season

I stayed at the Alton Towers Splash Landings hotel in February 2007 for their Towers and Treats event. It cost £168 for 2 adults 1 child and 1 infant including free access to the Towers and Treats event, unlimited rides on oblivion and various other rides in Old Mcdonalds farm, a 2 day waterpark pass for the 4 of us and a buffet breakfast with one nights stay.

Arrival - The hotel has a large foyer area with a caribbean theme, my son immediately ran over to the large windows which feature throughout the lobby and overlook the Cariba Creek waterpark and it is a fantastic sight. The reception area was very quiet and although we had arrived 4 hours before the official check in time we were able to access our room straight away. The reception staff were very friendly and provided us with an information booklet, a guide to what was taking place in the hotel and our entrance wristbands for the waterpark and theme park. This did confuse us slightly as we had been posted wristbands 2 weeks prior but on arrival we were told these were no good and needed to be replaced, no explanation was given as to why, but this wasnt a problem. The reception staff are more than happy to answer any questions you may have and if you are unable to check in to your room early they have a storage room located behind the reception desk to store your luggage if you dont want to leave it in your car. On being handed our room key we were given clear directions to our room and told where we could locate the lifts, so off we went to our room!
The room - Pleasantly surprised having read a number of reviews of this hotel before. The room continues with the caribbean theme and has seaside themed carpet and beachwashed style furniture. Our room also featured a double bed with the mattress made by silent night which was very comfortable. A dressing table area, bunk beds, television, tea and coffee making facilities, spare plug sockets which were especially handy for us travelling with a baby, a hairdryer is also provided. Despite the 2 beds, and dressing table area the room was still very spacious and left us with plenty of room to move around even with the moses basket in place next to the bed. Our room was well lit and overlooked the outdoor pool area of cariba creek. The bathroom was slightly on the small side though large enough if only staying for a couple of nights. There is a bath, sink, shower over bath, toilet and plenty of room around the sink for all your toiletries. You are also provided with a bundle of imperial leather goodies which you are encouraged to take home with you if you dont use them during your stay. This was a nice touch.

Food - You are welcome to use any of the restaurants in either hotel and you can access the original Alton Towers hotel via a covered walkway. There is an a la carte restaurant called the secret garden which was too expensive for my liking so we opted for the buffet style restaurant in Splash Landings. It was £18.95 per adult and £6.95 for a child, this was great for us as our 8 year old eats adult meals now so he really got his moneys worth and probably ate more than me. £18.95 was quite a fair price for an adult I thought as you would easily pay that for a 3 course meal in a restaurant and of course this was all you can eat so you always tend to eat a little more than you usually would. Drinks arent included in the price and although the drinks arent cheap, they are no dearer than your average hotel so we were happy with the cost. The food on offer in the buffet was nice and their was a wide choice, from your usual chips and burgers for the kids to more oriental style food, mexican and traditional english such as cottage pie. There is also a salad bar along with baked potatoes.
Food is also available from the bar area by reception between the hours of 6pm and 6am and offers sandwiches, pizzas and light snacks. There are a variety of cocktails available along with childrens cocktails which I love as it makes children feel so grown up for some reason!! There wasnt a room service menu in our room but Id imagine you could phone the bar to order your food and just pop out when its ready which would be ok.

The waterpark - access to the waterpark is on the ground floor. There are ample changing facitilies and their is also a swim shop in case youve forgotten to pack your swimwear. We didnt go in here so im not sure whether its pricey or not. There are plenty of seating areas around the waterpark for when you want a rest and you are able to take your towel in and purchase drinks and snacks by the poolside. There are plently of water attractions for young and old alike and they have a fantstic ride called the master blaster which is the scariest water ride ive ever been on and would highly recommend to all thrill seekers out there. There are some smaller slides also and a separate infant and toddler pool though this often seemed busier and more crowded than the larger pool so we just took our daughter in the shallow end of the larger pool which she really enjoyed.
Entertainment - The hotel does offer evening entertainment and varies from singers to karaoke to magicians and this was all in one night. We didnt stay up for it due to travelling with a baby for the entertainment programme did look good and full of fun for both adults and children. There is a shop called The Shack by the lobby where you can purchase your magazines and newspapers and there is an arcade room on the second floor by the buffet restaurant which offers numerous slot machines, grabber machines and air hockey tables.

Overall we really enjoyed our stay here and I thought the price we paid was very fair. The prices for hotel stays do shoot up in the summer months and in peak holiday times so be wary of this as you may not get value for money and I can imagine that the service may not be as good when the hotel is full capacity. I would definitely stay here again though would probably opt for a weekday or when they have special deals.

This is my own review and has featured on another review website.

Summary: Enjoyable but expensive