Newcastle has quite a competitive four-star hotel scene – with representation from all the major hotel groups. On a recent domestic city break with my dog in tow, I stayed at IHG’s Staybridge Suites in the eastern part of the city centre. Here’s my thoughts and what it was like staying at a dog-friendly hotel.
IHG Hotels & Resorts provided this stay for review purposes but did not receive editing rights or copy approval – the first time they see it, is the same time it is published.
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Location and getting there
Staybridge Suites is located about one mile from Newcastle Central Station, where East Coast mainline trains arrive at. The nearest Metro station, which provides extensive access to Newcastle and the surrounding regions, is Manors around ten minutes walk away. I parked my vehicle in the hotel’s car park which costs £13 per day with charging points available for electric vehicles at an additional charge.
As for getting around the city, this location is mixed depending on your perspective. The city isn’t huge and you can reach the Gateshead Millenium Bridge or Tyne riverside in 10 minutes, but you are not directly in the heart of the city centre. That may actually be a positive, if you wish to avoid the raucous crowds on the weekend evenings, or a negative, if you wish to step straight into things. For me, this wasn’t a bother and I found the location perfectly decent for a city break.
First impressions
We were greeted by two very cheerful hotel staff who were at the property for most of our visit. The reception area, with the heavy use of wood panels, felt a little dated but the experience was swift and easy, with the staff noting the use of a 24 hour pantry located behind this.
The ground floor also played host to the dining area for breakfast, which was eerily quiet at all other hours during our stay. It was quite a nice area to relax in and there was access to still and sparkling water as well as hot drinks at all hours. More on the breakfast later
The room
During our two-night stay, we were in a One King Bedroom Suite with Living Area located on the property’s second floor – the largest room type available at this hotel at 39sqm versus most rooms being 30sqm.
Straight after entering the room, you’ll be in the living and kitchen area. This is a thoughtfully designed space which seems to have been well maintained since the hotel was last refurbished back in March 2024 – with few signs of scratches, marks or stains around the room. The living area had enough room for four people to sit around comfortably. A television with Freeview can be found opposite the main sofa, albeit without any Chromecast or internet functionality disappointingly.
I really liked having a kitchen in my hotel room. While this was a short city break, I can imagine this being a nice feature to have on a business trip when you want a bit of normality. The kitchen features a combination microwave oven, dishwasher, large fridge with freezer section and hob – along with all the kitchen paraphernalia one might need.
This was a nice feature for the room – and notably, all rooms regardless of price at the hotel have living and kitchen spaces albeit they are not separated from the sleeping area. The only nag here was there only being one chair to sit at around the breakfast bar, perhaps an extra folding stool could’ve been an option here. This space could also be used to work at, in lieu of a dedicated desk, but I probably wouldn’t advise sitting here for too long.
Ground coffee to use in a cafetiere, milk sachets, tea and instant coffee are all provided in room.
The 2024 refurbishment was clear in the section of the room owing to the plug socket having both USB-A and USB-C ports to charge your mobile device. This is a nice addition but also a little bizarre when they were nowhere else in the rest of the room. WiFi mostly worked at respectable speeds during our stay though we did experience some connection issues on the Saturday evening which seemed to resolve by Sunday morning.
As for the bed and it was a very comfortable mattress to sleep on with soft sheets to match. The aesthetic of the room was equally cosy with warm lighting and nice prints on the wall. Air conditioning was passable during this unseasonably warm late May bank holiday. The room stayed at around 21 degrees with the control panel seemingly locked for guests, albeit the air flow seemed stronger in the living and kitchen area. It could’ve been better.
An identical television to the living room can be found opposite the bed, which I didn’t use during this stay. This is where the only plug sockets can be found in the room sans any USB ports. The lack of any plug sockets or USB ports around the bed is lamentable for a hotel refurbished so recently.
And finally, the bathroom. It was clean and sizeable while the water had more than enough pressure and warmth. Towels were strangely branded with Hilton tags, which I didn’t expect to see – though they were exceptionally soft and nice to use!
I particularly like the amenities available in the room by Apotheke. It’s quite an upmarket ‘Brooklyn-based’ Canadian-made brand that has a nice feel and a fresh smell. The use of these large pump bottles are certainly something I can get behind compared to the extensive use of miniatures pre-Covid.
Being a longer stay hotel, light touch service is provided on weekdays (towels, bed making and rubbish emptying) with a weekly thorough clean provided. The ‘light touch’ service is not provided on weekends under the guise of not disturbing guests – something I’ve not heard a hotel claim before.
How was it staying with a dog?
As mentioned at the start, I needed to bring my dog with me on this trip – and this property is dog-friendly but you do need to do a couple things. First, you need to contact the property before the visit to let them know you are bringing a pet – this is so they can prepare a pet-friendly room for you. I presume they designate a set of rooms for this purpose. Second, you need to pay a fee of £15 per night for your pet in addition to the room rate and alongside a refundable £100 deposit at check in. The hotel does have size and weight restrictions, albeit with a 10kg dog this wasn’t an issue, as well as prohibiting animals from being in the public areas of the hotel.
In return for that £15 per night fee, they provide bowls, a toy, treats, a guide to pet-friendly Newcastle and cleaning post-stay of the room. They do not provide any bedding, cages or food for your pet, so you will need to bring your own. On a short stay like this, that fee is acceptable but it does feel a bit expensive for longer stays considering what you’re getting.
For Scarlett and me, it was a good stay – as the routine of heading outside for use of the grass and walking are normal habits for her. It was all very comfortable, the staff were great with her and everything was well organised, which is all you can ask for on her first holiday. If you are thinking of a dog-friendly city break, I can recommend the experience here.
Breakfast and other amenities
Now, Breakfast – probably the only part of the experience I can’t recommend. As mentioned earlier in the review, breakfast takes place on the ground floor and is served as buffet style. The pastries and bread are all fine if a little uninspiring while the bacon was cooked to my liking (slightly crispy).
The biggest culprit was the powdered scrambled egg, which just tasted disgusting and is all too common in hotels at this level across Britain. Coffee was bad, albeit I suspect this is because the ‘proper’ coffee machine was out of order during our stay. It was all just a bit worse than I expected, unfortunately.
It’s a shame because the rest of my stay at this hotel was good. In short, grab a couple of croissants and bananas down here, make a coffee in your room or head out to one of the many excellent establishments in walking distance from the hotel.
Elsewhere on the ground floor, you can find a small workout room with a limited selection of weights and cardio equipment. I couldn’t get any better pictures as the keycard wouldn’t work (likewise a couple of times for the front door out of hours!).
Next door, a laundry room with washers and dryers can be found. This is extremely handy, particularly as you’re unlikely to get the dry sunny weather we had during our visit!
Conclusion
Staybridge Suites is a comfortable, spacious and well rounded hotel suited for both long stays and city breaks alike in Newcastle upon Tyne. The location is decent and provides a good access point for around the city centre or wider North East area. I enjoyed this visit and the ability to bring my dog with me made it quite memorable as our first holiday together. I slept pretty well considering the heat during our stay and the rooms are very well maintained, albeit some amendments with extra power outlets around the bed would be needed. I recommend staying here but, if you’re anything of a foodie, just skip the breakfast and treat yourself to something better in the city.
Staybridge Suites Newcastle is a member of IHG Hotels & Resorts and the ‘One Rewards’ programme. Points pricing is dynamic in line with cash prices, but on the whole you are better to just pay cash for a propety like this. Pricing for the Standard Studio Room seem to fluctuate from approximately £90 to £160 depending on market demand and seasonality.
