Southend Airport has quietly been rebuilding itself since a brutal period during the pandemic, at one point ceasing passenger service altogether. With a bargain flight from the seaside town to Berlin, I decided to try the Holiday Inn Southend – the only hotel within a reasonable distance of the airport.
This stay was arranged by IHG Hotels & Resorts. The property has not edited or approved this review – the first time they see it is when it is published.
In this post:
First impressions
I’d arrived for this trip in my car and parked up directly outside the hotel. I imagine most people needing a hotel will be arriving by train with the station located close to the airport terminal. Both the station and terminal are around five to ten minutes from the property. It’s worth noting that the walk is not covered, so bring an umbrella if the weather is rainy.
Parking costs £15 per night with ‘Park, Stay & Go’ packages also available to keep your car there for the duration of travel.
The hotel has a modern look both from the exterior and once you enter into the reception area. We were warmly welcomed by the staff during this check-in process, where you can also find a small area to print documents if needed. The ground floor bar didn’t open during our stay though.
The room
For this one night stay, we were located on the fourth floor on the hotel. This floor is the highest available for rooms and provides views across to the airport’s apron and runway if you get one of the rooms facing north. Thankfully, we got one of these with us staying in one of the Executive Rooms.
The Executive Rooms are between 25 and 38 square metres large with plenty of space to move around and, most importantly, enough room to open luggage without tripping up on it.
The room features a large double bed with decent linens which, alongside a good mattress, were comfortable. Being a hotel situated within close vicinity of the airport, the rooms are soundproofed very well. Although bear in mind that this is Southend Airport with its ten or so flights per day all of which depart before 9pm is unlikely to cause as much havoc to sleep as staying near Heathrow.
UK power outlets can be found on both sides of the bed albeit without USB or USB C ports – so be sure to bring your international adapter if you’re visiting this hotel from outside the country. On one side of the bed there’s also a telephone, which they speedily answered when we needed some emergency toothpaste, and three drawers which I suspect aren’t used all too often.
In the corner is an arm chair and lamp that is well positioned to angle towards the television – which itself was more than adequate. It did not have any specific internet capabilities like Chromecast but, unlike some other chain hotels, they did not stop people from plugging in their own devices via HDMI.
An excellent desk can be found next to the window, where I spent around three to four hours working. That’s high praise for a hotel desk and chair as too many properties skimp out with poor quality working spaces. WiFi speeds were excellent for remote working with downloads of 57.40mbps and uploads of 35.03mbps. Two UK power outlets can be found here as well as two USB type A ports, making up for the lack near the bed.
Towards the entrance door a large wardrobe can be found featuring just a handful of hangers and serviceable ironing facilities. Next to the usual tea and coffee facilities can be found alongside a KitKat per guest as well as still and sparkling water. Beneath this the in-room fridge can be found, which did a pretty good job as far as hotel fridges go, as well as the safe for belongings.
The bathroom was spotlessly clean during this stay with it featuring both a handheld and rainfall showers in addition to a sizeable bath. Thankfully, unlike many of their sibling Holiday Inn Express properties, this had a more solid glass divider as opposed to a shower curtain.
This Holiday Inn utilised ‘Soak’ products for their shampoo, conditioner, hand and body lotion which I am not particularly familiar with. While it is not quite as good as the Apotheke products I found at IHG’s Staybridge Suites I visited in Newcastle, they smelt fine, didn’t make my skin itch and were more than serviceable. After all, it’s probably better than having to carry your own when you’re chancing a trip with personal item only on easyJet!
Now, onto the thing that you’re most interested in from this review – the apron and runway views. Considering that London Southend isn’t a heaving airport, you still can find some decent views of easyJet Airbuses departing and arriving. Having the view of this from your room is rather relaxing if you’re an avgeek like me. While you can’t see the full runway, you will see the aeroplanes take off as they go towards the north east. I suspect those on lower floors won’t have too much of a problem viewing the aircraft either, owing to the lack of obstructions in front of the building.
Amenities and food
If you’re staying in one of the rooms which face towards the main road and hoped to see the airport, don’t be disheartened. Also on the fourth floor and accessible to everybody is a lounge or coworking area. This has excellent lighting and views thanks to the large windows which look both towards the airport and towards the Essex coast. This is quite a nice place to relax, especially when the weather is nice on the day you visit.
Heading up the stairs takes you to the 1935 Rooftop Restaurant and Bar – its name harking back to the year in which the airport opened. Owing to this being on the fifth floor, it does provide the best views towards the airport. This is also open to the public to visit, where I noticed a number of people with Flightradar24 open during my evening visit.
I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the food for the evening meal, which the hotel included with this stay. While it can probably be best described as gastropub-style, the flavours of the katsu chicken and pasta were excellent – regardless of this being a hotel restaurant.
Prices were on the higher side, which is expected at an on-site hotel, but they were not outrageously expensive.
Unlike my trip to Newcastle I didn’t have my dog with me, however for an extra charge you can bring your canine friend to this property. They even provide a dog-specific menu!
The quality of the dinner is why the breakfast perplexed me – it felt like we were eating at a different restaurant to the night before. The food consisted primarily of Full English items alongside a smaller range of continental foods. It was a bit heavy on the cooked items for my preferences and could have done with a few fresh pastries in place of the slightly stale ones offered. Likewise, a coffee machine or the option to upgrade to freshly made coffee would have been welcomed in place of the brewed coffee.
Elsewhere on the property, there is a gym on the first floor. It’s small and, in fairness, the Holiday Inn recognise this by dubbing it the “mini-gym”. Up to two guests can book to use it for one hour maximum at a time which seems a good compromise – even if sixty minutes is a little short for most workouts.
The equipment on offer is on the older side but perfectly serviceable with a decent selection including a treadmill, crosstrainer and exercise bike. A bench, multi-function weights machine and up to 20kg dumbbells can be found here too. This is not going to replace your full at-home workout, though it at least means you can get some fitness in during your stay.
Conclusion
At its core, this is an airport hotel – and it functions very well as one. I slept excellently and getting to the terminal was simple. The dinner was an unexpected highlight, while a desk in the room combined with speedy WiFi meant that I could stay well connected with my work prior to travelling. The gym is perfectly formed for a quick workout to keep up with fitness while travelling.
Breakfast could be improved with the additions of freshly prepared pastries and barista-made coffee. In reality, this is minor in the list of needs from a hotel airport. If I needed a place to stay near Southend Airport, which is wholly likely as they offer a growing selection of cheap flights, I wouldn’t hesitate to stay again.
