Pampered in Oxfordshire

' ); } } //]]> />The room appeared spacious. It was large enough to fit in a sofa for two, a coffee table, a television on a TV stand, a study table, a queen size bed with two smallish bedside tables. A built-in wardrobe was situated right next to the door, containing a mini safe, an iron and an ironing board, a trouser press, hangers, blankets and additional pillows.

Its a good thing we did not use the ironing board, it would have been a bit cramped otherwise. There was a hospitality tray containing a kettle, a couple of mugs and a supply of tea, coffee, chocolate and cookies! Is there anything missing in the room? Let's see ... hmmm wait a minute! There is no minibar! Where is the minibar!?!

I started flipping through the directory on the study desk and was duly informed that the library bar is available to residents 24 hours. Interesting, fancy a drink in the library bar at 3 am in the morning? Do I see myself walking barefooted in my pyjamas all the way downstairs to the bar to ask for a bottle of water?

We have a good size window overlooking a field next to the hotel. We are either far enough from the road or the window has double grazing because it was peaceful and quiet.

The room has central air conditioning in addition to a wall mounted gas heater. While we were there, we turned on the heater on most mornings.

The bathroom was large and clean. There were four towels, in addition to two face towels, enough for the two of us. Fancy some heated towels? The bathroom is equipped with heated railings, where I could pre-heat my towels while showering and dry myself with warmed towels.

Hint to husband : I want one of those!

My major complaint about the room is that it caters for the guy more than for the female. Why? First, the width of the towels. Large enough to wrap around the waist of a man (well, average sized bloke) but not large enough to cover the body of a female from the chest down. I needed two towels, and I am only 5 foot 1. One towel to cover the top half and another for the bottom. Second, where is the hairdryer in the bathroom? Its not there but it is in the drawer of the study desk. Figure that.

The television had the 5 free channels and a couple of radio channels. We were really interested in BBC 1 and ITV.

Facilities
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In this area, we were both well satisfied. The Four Pillars hotel has an attached Willows Leisure Centre. It consists of a heated indoor swimming pool, a whirlpool spa, a sauna and a steam room. Every evening, we made our way to the swimming pool for a couple of laps before soaking ourselves in the spa. Towels (very large ones) were provided after signing the register to use the pool.

I found that a swim in the evening induces a dreamless but deep sleep which I haven't had for quite some time. The opening hours of the leisure centre is extremely generous too, from 7 am til 10 pm where the last entry is at 9 pm.

There is a beauty centre as well where I could have had a massage, manicure and pedicure. It was stated explicitly that the same treatments were available for men too. Hmmm ...

We found our way to the Games room which had a few games machines, a pool tables and a card tables with several board games. Interesting. I guess this takes care of the children while their parents are indulging in the leisure centre?!?

A gymnasium overlooks the swimming pool. It had several machines for walking, running, cycling and weight lifting. I think they had a trainer somewhere but not when we were there.

Along the way to the leisure centre we found the drawing room. Yes you heard right. It is a relatively large room with several sets of very comfy sofas set in each corner of the room so that each group of residents could have their own corner for some quiet conversations and drinks. There is a phone in the room to order drinks from the library bar downstairs. I would have been happier if there were a bookshelf filled with novels but the sets of newspapers on a side table were okay.

Lamps lit up the room, providing soft soothing lights. I could imagine curling up on the sofa, reading a novel with a drink. What am I saying, we did just that. The windows opened and looked out of the courtyard towards the river. During our stay, the drawing room was seldom used in the evening and quite deserted. I can recommend using this room, and avoid the crowded library bar, especially if you need a quiet drink.

The library bar is usually crowded, especially in the evenings. We avoided it most of the time. But its opened til midnight for those interested, except if you are a resident, than its 24 hours.

On the third floor, there was a small business room consisting of two computers. It doubled as the internet room too. The cost was 1 pound for 15 minutes to surf. Of course, I did not make use of that facility.

Breakfast
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The crust of it all, breakfast! On weekends, breakfast was served between 8 and 10 am while on weekdays, it starts and ends half an hour earlier, in the Deacons Restaurant on the first floor. Was it good? Bet your bottom dollar it was!

It was buffet style, with toast served with either coffee and tea. They served both continental and full English, with the addition of cold ham and cheese. There were also cups of yogurt, fruits and buns. Kippers could be requested for an additional fee. I guess this had to be cooked specially for each guest.

For three mornings, we feasted on eggs, sausages, ham, bacon, tomatoes, fried potatoes, fried bread, mushrooms. Yummy! My husband enjoyed himself daily with black pudding which I could not tolerate. There were the usual cereals which I did not even bother. But I tasted their croissants. They were not brilliant as in hot and fresh but okay. I tried all the different juices, my preference being the apple juice and not the orange nor the grapefruit. The coffee tasted awful, I say stay with the tea and have lots of juices.

Two hours is just about right for breakfast. The dining room gets very busy on weekends while its very quiet on weekdays. We usually breakfast early before taking a walk along the River Thames.

Room service
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We did not try the room service, preferring to dine out in the city. But the menu was essentially the same as that for the restaurant, without having to make a booking and to dress up as smart casual. The prices were reasonable. A main was in the 8 quid range. I saw a chicken sandwich for 6.50 quid, served with salad.

House keeping seems to start around breakfast time. We stayed in on Sunday, wanting to watch the Grand Prix and I guess we frustrated the house keeping staff but eventually they did make up our room after the race. We did manage to get more cookies from the staff (while, I do need something to munch on for the race!).

Verdict
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All in all, we had a very relaxing long weekend stay at the Oxford Spires. The room was comfortable, the swimming pool and whirlpool spa were fantastic. To top it all, breakfast was in abundance and very well done. I never felt hungry and in need of a snack while I was staying there, except when we were watching the F1 Grand Prix. Check-out was as efficient as the check-in, but less cool and more friendly. Maybe it was the staff of the morning who are friendly while the afternoon ones are just cold.

Its major advantage is its closeness to the city and the river. We walked to the city via the river walk on a daily basis. We avoided smelling the carbon monoxide from the traffic along Abingdon Road and the river walk is very pleasant, especially in the mornings. The sharp, crisp air with the mist hanging over the water and the occasional swan swimming nearby makes the walk a peaceful and relaxing one. I went home refreshed and contented.

P.S. The original price of a night stay was around 69 pounds per person per night twin share. We paid 227 pounds for 3 nights for 2 people, booked with Laterooms.com. Very good value.