The Cow Hollow Hotel

The first thing you notice about The Cow Hollow Hotel is the attention to detail given to the hotel’s design, which creates a space that is both hip and stylish and also warm and cosy. It is certainly not your average run-of-the-mill corporate chain hotel.

The 16 guest bedrooms feature custom-made beds (made from old railway sleepers) and restored original features such as exposed oak beams, walnut sash windows, bronze chandeliers, stone and brick walls and polished floorboards. Some rooms also have marble fireplaces.

In-room amenities include comfortable king-size Hypnos beds, a television with Netflix access, ironing facilities and en-suite bathrooms with large rainfall showers. The rooms don’t have tea and coffee making facilities but you can call room service for hot drinks to be brought up to your room or pop down anytime to the Aviary Cafe on the lower ground floor for free self-serve coffee. Standard rooms are a tad small at only 13–14m² (140–150 sq ft), which may be an issue for some people, although the deluxe rooms are a little roomier at 18–20m² (194–215 sq ft).

There is one wheelchair-accessible room on the ground floor.

In addition to free coffee in the Aviary Cafe, the Plantation Bar adjacent to the hotel reception serves free prosecco every evening (6pm–8pm) with antipasto and other nibbles. The hotel bar is a nice spot to enjoy other drinks too (a simple pricing structure applies to all drinks: £5 beer, £5 spirits, £8 cocktails and £6 wine).

Other than small nibbles served with the free prosecco and the breakfast package (which includes granola, yoghurt, toast, croissants, fruit and orange juice) delivered to your room in the morning, the hotel doesn’t serve food. Their philosophy is to focus on running a great hotel and leave the food to someone else, and why would you spend your evening dining in your hotel when you’re staying in the heart of the Northern Quarter (a great neighbourhood known for its small, quirky restaurants).

Free Wi-Fi wireless internet access is available throughout the hotel.

Although it can hardly be described as a budget hotel, it is very good value for money (particularly on weeknights) when you consider the high standard of your accommodation.

It may be the hotel’s hip design that makes the first impression, but it is the little things that leave a lasting memory. Things like the free coffee and prosecco in the bar, the milk and cookies at bedtime and the breakfast package delivered to your room in the morning.

The Cow Hollow is right next door to the Police Museum are there are loads of hip Northern Quarter bars and restaurants in the immediate vicinity. The Arndale Centre, the Central Retail District, the National Football Museum, the Manchester Art Gallery and Manchester Piccadilly railway station are all within a 10-minute walk from the hotel.