hotel roof terrace

For our summer holiday in Palma de Mallorca, we were excited to discover the Innside by Melia hotel brand for the first time. As a ‘next generation’ hotel concept, it has a cool approach to affordable luxury and lots of modern touches.

The majority of our time was spent at the sleek, urban Innside Palma Center and then we had a change of scenery over at the brand new Innside Palma Bosque close to the port. Even on a relaxing city-beach break, we couldn’t help hotel hopping and it turned out to be a wise move, as the two hotels complemented each other perfectly.

Innside Palma Center

Innside Palma Center is a stylish boutique hotel in the north of the city, close to the main train station and the old quarter. It has a creative, relaxed feel with contemporary rooms and artworks from a local gallery throughout the hotel.

Our Innside corner room was spacious and pristine with a juliette balcony, plush bed with high quality linen, large LCDTV and best of all, a free minibar with soft drinks replenished each day.

The Swimming Pool

The jewel in the hotel’s crown is the fabulous rooftop, Garabato Sky Bar, complete with a mezzanine sun deck and the most heavenly pool. We spent some time there soaking up the sun with strawberry smoothies and grazing on tasty Mallorcan burgers and Katsu pork sandwiches. It’s also a chilled place to enjoy evening drinks at a very reasonable price – a large glass of Pedro Ximenez was just 3 Euros.

Breakfast

We hadn’t planned to have breakfast at the hotel every day, but we were offered a tempting MeliaRewards members deal at check-in. It was worth it, as we appreciated the luxury of rolling on down to the lovely Garabato Restaurant in the morning. The breakfast buffet was very good and we were able to start each day with eggs on toast with jamon Iberico or smoked salmon, mini pastries, muffins and proper coffee.

One of our favourite spaces in the hotel was the cosy ground-floor library filled with a well-curated selection of art and fashion books and magazines.

Most notable about Innside Palma Center was the friendly and efficient service. All of the staff were so friendly and helpful, from the charismatic front desk manager who welcomed us to the hard-working breakfast and pool bar team. Everything was so perfect that we were sad to leave.

Innside Palma Bosque

Our second home on the trip was the newly-renovated Innside Palma Bosque, which has just been relaunched as an Innside hotel. It’s one street behind the port and is convenient for taking a bus to the many sandy beaches along the coast.

While Innside Palma Center has an intimate feel, Innside Palma Bosque is sprawling and minimalist with an open-plan lobby, lounge with a DJ and restaurant on the ground floor. There are still a few telltale signs of the old hotel as the new property completes its transition, however we were impressed with our Innside Premium Swim Up Room on the edge of the magnificent outdoor swimming pool.

The Room

This superior room came with a large king-size bed, smart TV, free minibar, Nespresso machine and the most enormous free-standing bathtub in front of the patio window. If you love swimming and lounging on your own private terrace, it’s worth booking one of these rooms for that extra luxury.

Lunch at Syndeo Restaurant

The hotel’s Syndeo Restaurant with its open kitchen is also a real highlight, as the food, ambiance and staff are top notch. We enjoyed our lunch of sushi and stir-fry noodles so much that we had burgers there later in the evening before heading out to explore the port.

Unfortunately we found the local area uninspiring and this particular stretch of the port is a bit lairy and dated with endless strip bars, cheap boozers and unappealing restaurants. However, walking 20 minutes or so to the hip Santa Catalina neighbourhood will restore your faith in this part of Palma.

Our first experience with Innside Hotels was just wonderful and we would definitely seek them out when visiting other cities. In fact, we’re already considering a return to one of the Palma hotels… can you guess which one?

Planning a trip to Mallorca? Check out my guide on Where to Visit, Eat and Shop in Palma de Mallorca and Soller.

All photos by Chérie City

The Glasshouse, Edinburgh’s leading boutique hotel invited a small group of bloggers to come stay for the night and explore the city. bmi, British Midland International kindly flew us out from London Heathrow to Edinburgh International and gave us access to the super-exclusive London Room and the Business Lounge on the way back. But more about the wonderful, stress-free flights later…

The Glasshouse Edinburgh is one of the Scottish capital’s most desirable five star hotels and has an enviable location, at the foot of Carlton Hill, just five minutes from Princes Street and Waverley Train Station.

Location

Subtly tucked behind the beautiful facade of the former Lady Glenorch Church, The Glasshouse is anything but traditional with wall-to-wall windows, sleek interiors and a chic private roof terrace that stretches two acres and has views of the rugged Edinburgh hills.

The Suite

We were each assigned a Suite on the third floor, which were all named after a type of whiskey. There are 18 suites at The Glasshouse and they are all on the same floors as the roof terrace and the snug. One of the two Deluxe Suites even has its own private jacuzzi and sauna.

My suite was huge and designed in neutral shades with touches of dark wood and floor to wall-to-wall windows. The wooden screen and sections off the living quarters and best of all, the TV actually swivels around, so you can watch in bed or lounging on the huge leather sofa.

The Glasshouse really make you feel at home with everything could possibly need to relax – a CD player, music library, stack of magazines and free WIFI.

The bathroom was quite spectacular with two separate wash areas and powerful underfloor heating. The main part of the bathroom featured a separate bath and walk-in shower and was stocked with a selection of generously-sized bathroom products by Highland Aromatics. The second room acts as a dressing room with a double sink, huge wardrobe and a large mirror.

Another nice touch was a mirror station with a high chair made for styling hair or applying make-up.

But the real highlight of the stay was the huge balcony overlooking Edinburgh City. It was furnished with Philippe Starck furniture – perfect for summer sunbathing or sampling whiskey in the evening.

A stay at The Glasshouse is certainly a boozy one, with a complimentary decanter of fine whiskey in the room, a mini-bar and a well-stocked honesty bar in the snug.

A Welcome Treat

When we arrived back at the hotel after our afternoon boutique tour with Frances of Destination Edinburgh, the Glasshouse had treated us to a chilled bottle of Prosecco, a large bottle of mineral water and a delightful plate of chocolate truffles, biscotti, Scottish tablet and grapes.

Turndown

The bed was also turned down with slippers placed at one side. The king-size bed covered in monogrammed Egyptian cotton was out of this world, literally like floating on a cloud and I only wish I’d spent longer under the duvet.

Breakfast

The bed was so incredibly comfy that I accidentally slept in and awoke to a decadent room service breakfast – absolute bliss!

The Eggs Benedict (made with Parma ham) and pastries were delicious and everything was neatly presented with small pots of jam and a little silver dome of butter.

Surprisingly, The Glasshouse doesn’t have a restaurant, but there is a good room service menu and meals can be taken in the snug or on the roof terrace. There are plenty of excellent restaurants to try in Edinburgh, or you can be really decadent and dine on your balcony, without ever having to leave the room.

Before leaving, we were treated to a wonderful lunch of home-made Artichoke Soup with Roast Pork and Waldorf Salad sandwiches in the snug.

Every year, The Glasshouse has won awards, including ‘Best hotel to get naked in’ by Opodo, and has been voted one of the Top 50 Hottest Hotels in the World by Conde Nast Traveller.

The Glasshouse certainly lives up to its reputation as an ultra-seductive hotel and as exciting as Edinburgh is, you really just won’t want to leave.

Rooms and Suites at The Glasshouse are priced from £165 to £245 (inclusive of VAT and a Continental breakfast).

Leading airline bmi, British Midland International flies from London Heathrow to Edinburgh seven times daily. Economy fares are available from £51 one way (£87 return), including all taxes and charges.

Chérie City was a guest of The Glasshouse and BMI.

All photos by Chérie City.

A Tale of Two Innside Hotels in Mallorca

Innside Palma Center

The Swimming Pool

Breakfast

Innside Palma Bosque

The Room

Lunch at Syndeo Restaurant

A Stay At The Glasshouse Edinburgh

Location

The Suite

A Welcome Treat

Turndown

Breakfast