Brilliant Overnight Stay or short break for Southend On Sea. You know you want to.
We recently had to visit family in Essex, and not wanting to do the trip in a day we decided to find a place to lay our heads for the night.
Naturally, through past experience, we only really considered one option – Premier Inn.
We’ve reviewed for them a few times in the past (the notable Father/Son road trip to Old Trafford entering Family Legend, with all of us declaring it “Good Coke!” at every meal out), and never once have we been disappointed.
The thing with Premier Inn is that they have perfected themselves – they know exactly what you need for that short stopover travel break. The beds are unfailingly comfortable, the locations are totally convenient – and yet noise interference is always minimal, even if your ‘view’ is of a busy dual carriageway.
There is always somewhere to eat, the rooms have everything you need in them – and above all the price is such that you don’t wince at it.
We actually chose the Southend Airport location – there is a Premier Inn really close to the seafront, but as we were driving we opted for the one nearest to the access road in to town (it’s actually right on the main A127). If we were stopping for longer, I’d definitely choose the one with the sea view!
It’s a great location; easy to get to, and within shouting distance of both train stations (within 2 miles of Southend Victoria train station and also 2 miles from Southend Airport. For shops and local amenities Southend town centre is only 3 miles away). We did actually comment it would be handy to combine future relative-visits with a trip up to London, the train to the city from Southend being MUCH cheaper than that from Dorset!
Southend itself isn’t without its own attractions, of course – even for those who grew up there. No visit is complete without a saunter along the Pier, and what used to be just the ‘Golden Mile’ of slot machines when I was young has turned into a really nice seafront, with the great Adventure Island Amusement Park, and the Sea Life Centre too.
And of course if you’ve booked to see a show at the Cliffs Pavilion it’s a handy stop instead of a late drive home.
Clearly Southend is awash with places to eat, but if you are travel-exhausted and just looking for a handy bite, the attached TableTable is great. We had a great meal, and after a hideous drive we wanted nothing more than good hot food within walking distance!
And of course, to top all of that off, Premier Inn’s are REALLY family friendly. If you book a family room then under 16 not only stay for free, but they can eat breakfast for free too when one adult orders a Premier breakfast. Brilliant.
Right now there’s some brilliant spring rates; book your early bird £29 room before everyone else gets the same idea. Available all over the UK (excluding Central London), it would make a bargainous short break to smash that post-Christmas Blues.
