Hotel du Vin | 27th July 2018

Location: Parabola Rd, Cheltenham GL50 3AH
Date of visit: 27^th July 2018

Parking

There is one accessible parking bay located outside the front of the building, the car park is quite small and turning space for the vehicle is tight. The accessible bay is directly opposite the main entrance.

There is also a rear car park with one accessible parking bay, this leads to the garden and to the Bistro. There is a small step leading into the Bistro, a manual wheelchair would be able to use this entrance however, it would not be suitable for an electric wheelchair. Management have advised they will look to purchase a temporary ramp for the step which will make it fully accessible. (this can be accessed from the front of the building and via lift)

Accessibility

The main entrance is up a small flight of steps, there is a platform lift for a wheelchair. This was very easy to use for a wheelchair user by themselves. Once you exit the lift the entrance is directly to your right. The reception point is a low desk, accessible for a wheelchair user. The reception desk is open 24 hours a day with two reception staff, so a member of staff can assist somebody to their room if required. There are phones to call reception in the rooms too if you require assistance.

When checking into the room, there is a questionnaire you can complete is you require assistance in the case of emergency, this gives you the opportunity to detail your exact requirements, so staff know how to assist you best. There are evac chairs on the first floor.

There is dimmed lighting throughout the whole hotel and bistro.

Rooms

There are 3 accessible bedrooms with large bathrooms/wet rooms, these rooms are accessible via the lift. All other guest rooms are up some steps so inaccessible if you have a walker or wheelchair. The rooms are very spacious, and the beds are lowered for easy transfer. There is a bathtub in the bedroom but no hoist. The bathroom was very big and easy for a wheelchair to move around in. There is one handrail for the shower but no seat, there is a stool available at reception for use in the shower. This may not be suitable for all disabled guests. The toilet has two fixed handrails, the hand rail is a little high. There is no emergency cord in the room.

Bar and Bistro

The bar is located to the left of the reception on the ground floor, the bar is quite high but there is table service. There is quiet music in the background and there are plenty of quieter corners. The Bistro is down a level, this is accessible via the lift. There are plenty of accessible tables in the bar and bistro. The menus are light but the writing is small, they don’t offer a larger print menu for people with visual impairments, they do have online menus for screen readers – https://www.hotelduvin.com/locations/cheltenham/bistro/

Lift

The lift can take you from the ground floor to the underground level which is the Bistro and the first level which is the accessible rooms. The lift is quite small, may not be suitable for a particularly large wheelchair, when entering the lift there is room for somebody to assist directly to the left, it is advisable for them to entre the lift first. The doors close quite quickly so best for somebody to hold the door.

Toilets

There is an accessible toilet on the ground floor, it is big enough for a wheelchair to turn around in and the facilities within the toilet are at a low level. There is an emergency cord to the left of the toilet if sat on toilet.

Customer Service

Luke the general manager and Remi the reception manager both showed us around the hotel, they were very polite and helpful. They took on all of our recommendations for improvements and were keen to as accessible as possible.

Accessibility Rating

(four out of five stars)

Visit Hallmarks hotel for bookings: https://www.hallmarkhotels.co.uk/hotels/hallmark-hotel-gloucester/