I recently stayed at the Vermont Hotel in Newcastle. It is a city centre hotel and has views across the river. My room however looked onto the railway line and the church of St Mary's. The standard of the hotel was excellent and the staff were professional and hospitable.

I had an excellent meal in the hotel's restaurant The Blue Room. There is also a more informal and cheaper dining area called The Brasserie.

The one negative aspect was the position of my room which I found to be noisy. Being next to the railway line meant that there was a constant flow of trains throughtout the night and the clock on the church tower struck every 15 minutes. As a result I had a very poor nights sleep

The Vermont is an excellent hotel but choose your room carefully should you stay.