Last month we headed down to Manchester for a two-night stay at Premier Inn Manchester Bury. The reason for our trip was to see the Foo Fighters at Etihad Stadium. Despite the hotel not being super close to the stadium we found staying at this hotel worked out great for us. Let me share my thoughts and experience from my stay in a wheelchair accessible room at Premier Inn Manchester Bury.
Booking an Accessible Room at Premier Inn Manchester Bury
Booking an accessible room at Premier Inn is easy to do online. You can easily select an accessible room from a drop-down menu. From past experiences of staying at Premier Inn where I was allocated an accessible room with a bathtub, I decided to call the Premier Inn Manchester Bury and request a roll-in shower.
I spoke to a woman who confirmed she had allocated me to an accessible room with a roll-in shower and that she would put a note on my booking not to move me into another room. Excellent, so I thought!
Location & Parking at Premier Inn Manchester Bury
Premier Inn Manchester Bury is located in the centre of Bury and only a short walk to the Metrolink and bus interchange. The town centre is also a short walk with bars, restaurants and shops.
If you are looking for things to do then you may want to check out Bury Museum and Art Gallery, East Lancashire Steam Railway and Bury Market. Central Manchester is just a 20-minute drive from the hotel, which is one of the main reasons we chose to stay here.
Not to mention the price compared to the crazily high-priced Manchester city centre hotels.
After a four-and-a-half-hour drive, we finally made it to Manchester. The sat nav took us straight to our hotel. We had read on the hotel’s website that there wasn’t a hotel car park, only a multi-storey car park located next to the hotel.
We entered the car park, parked up and headed for the lift. The lift took us to the street level and we were able to exit the car park via a ramp.
There was then a gradually sloped pathway leading down to the Premier Inn. This was manageable in my powered wheelchair, but it may be too far if you have difficulty walking distances.
Entrance & Reception
The hotel exterior has a quirky vibe and is certainly not hard to miss with its eye-catching colours and differently shaped windows. The entrance had automatic doors so it was easy to enter the hotel.
Once inside there are two ‘Quick+Easy Check-in’ computers so we went ahead and began checking in ourselves.
A lovely woman then approached us and welcomed us to the hotel and asked if we needed any help. She then asked if I had requested a room with a shower or a bath. I explained the situation that someone I spoke to on the phone assured me I was allocated a room with a roll-in shower.
The lovely woman checked my booking on the computer and as predicted, I was booked into a room with a bath. Thankfully she was able to quickly sort it and book us into the correct room with a roll-in shower. Clearly, my phone call was pointless.
Wheelchair Accessible Room #124
Premier Inn Manchester Bury has six accessible rooms in total; three with roll-in showers and three with bathtubs. Our room was 124 on the first floor, which we accessed via the lift. The lift was the standard size I have found in most Premier Inn hotels I have stayed in – they fit my wheelchair, one person and a case, which was suitable for us.
The shape of the room was a little different though. I think this was due to the room being located at the end of the corridor. With Premier Inn, especially if you have stayed in one before then you know what to expect in terms of standards and facilities.
First up is the bed and what a comfortable bed it was. I didn’t even need to use my trusty self-inflating travel mat. The low position of the bed would suit people who transfer to and from their wheelchairs.
There were bedside tables and lamps on each side of the bed and an emergency pull cord on one side. Unfortunately, there were no power sockets so charging your power wheelchair and mobile next to you in bed would not be possible.
This could also be a problem if you require medical equipment during the night plugged in beside the bed.
Our accessible room was quite spacious and even had a sofa bed. This would be perfect if you travelled with children and needed to all be in the same room. It would also be good for a carer or friend, depending on your situation.
The work desk was directly across from the bed and was wheelchair accessible. The desk chair wasn’t on wheels, but we moved it out of the way to allow me easy access to the desk whenever I needed it.
There was a lip underneath the desk, but my knees managed to just get under without banging them. There were four power sockets in the desk area, although one was being used for the desk lamp. This is where I charged my wheelchair, mobile and laptop.
There was also a shelving and wardrobe unit with extra pillows, coat hangers, a flatscreen TV, tea/coffee facilities and a hairdryer.
Wheelchair Accessible Bathroom
I’m always concerned about the size and accessibility of hotel room bathrooms. Thankfully, this one at Premier Inn Manchester Bury was very spacious, providing lots of space for moving around in my wheelchair. Portable hoists would not have any problem manoeuvring around in this bathroom either.
The roll-in shower was great with a wall-mounted fold-down seat, grab bars and shower controls with easy reach. Floor-length shower curtains to catch any water from escaping over the floor.
Next to the shower was the toilet, which also had grab bars in place as well as an emergency pull cord. There was space on one side of the toilet if you require side-on wheelchair transfers, but the emergency cord may make this a little tricky as it is positioned right there.
Bathroom sinks are a bit of a bugbear of mine. I find it incredibly frustrating when the sink is too small that I’m unable to roll fully underneath and that was the case with this sink.
The sink was boxed in so I couldn’t get under it, leaving me unable to independently brush my teeth, wash my hands etc.
Restaurant at Premier Inn Manchester Bury
There is an on-site Thyme restaurant/bar as well as a Costa coffee shop. The restaurant looked lovely, but we opted for vegan pizzas delivered from Pizza Express. Breakfast wasn’t included in your booking but you can choose from a Full Premier Inn Breakfast or Continental Breakfast.
Video Tour of our stay at Premier Inn Manchester Bury
Final Thoughts on Premier Inn Manchester Bury
Our stay at Premier Inn Manchester Bury was comfortable and enjoyable. The location was perfect and was easy for us to drive into the centre of Manchester. The staff were fantastic and incredibly friendly which makes such a big difference. The bed was extremely comfortable and both the room and bathroom were spacious. My only negatives were the bathroom sink being too small for me and I felt the bathroom was looking a little old and tired. However, I would definitely stay at Premier Inn Manchester Bury again.
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Feature image courtesy of Premier Inn Manchester Bury
5 Responses
I have always found Premier Inn to be excellent – indeed whilst on our recent trip to Edinburgh, we stayed in the Premier Inn York Place which was perfect – and a plus was the wonderful view over the Forth of Firth from the window.
I think the hotel you stayed in might be due for refurbishment – most people would require a power socket by the bed these days (phones) and our hotel in Edinburgh did have one (and a movable side table, which I prefer, as sometimes the fixed ones just get in the way)
Like you, I’d always want a wheel in shower – and call to arrange this when booking with Premier Inn.
I’m always impressed with how friendly and helpful the staff are – usually staff seem to work within various locations around the hotel (reception, restaurant) which means you get to know them – and they you.
If I had to criticise the rooms in a PI at all, it would be that they place so many grab rails around the shower, they get in my way of reaching things – but I am not a full time wheelchair user and therefore don’t rely on the rails. They are there for a reason!
I find the beds really comfortable and always sleep better in a Premier Inn than in my own bed – maybe it’s time to investigate a new mattress!
That’s handy to know you found the Premier Inn York Place hotel to be good. I’ll keep that in mind! Yes, I definitely think the one I stayed in is due an upgrade…I hope so as it’s a great hotel, but just needs a little love 🙂 Glad you find the beds comfortable too. There is an option on the Premier Inn website to buy the bed so might be worth looking into if you find you sleep better in a Premier Inn bed compared to your own bed 🙂
In our experience Premier Inns are great! The accessible rooms are great, some really close to reception. Staff are helpful and the beds are super comfy!
Hi Julie. That’s great to hear you’ve enjoyed staying at Premier Inn hotels. The beds really are super comfy, aren’t they? 🙂
I stayed at the Premier Inn Bury last week,in an accessible room with a low bath.The staff throughout my stay were wonderful from the outset,checking me in while I remained seated and taking my luggage to my room.The restaurant was closed during the day which was going to be a problem as I can’t walk any distance but a lovely lady rustled up the most delicious curry one day,a pizza the next.I didn’t use the bath the first night but on my second night,I awoke in pain around 4am and decided a hot soak might help.No problem getting in with the handy grab bars but then the problems arose.No matter how I tried,my legs wouldn’t support me getting out.I must have tried a dozen times until I was battered and bruised from falling back.Unfortunately the bathroom alarm cord is beside the toilet,about 6ft from the bath so miles out of reach for me.At 3am,I didn’t want to wake anyone by shouting so I spent a miserable three hours getting colder.I didn’t want to refill the bath as I kept dozing off/passing out and was afraid I might slip under water.Around 7pm,with sounds around,I started to shout-VERY LOUDLY- for help.It took about 15 minutes for a resident walking past to hear me and alert a young male member of staff.I pulled the shower curtain around me to spare his blushes and he fetched two female staff members.They passed me towels to cover myself but I had no idea how they were going to get me out as had to put my full nine stone weight on them and both ladies were quite petite.Amazingly,it took them thirty seconds to hoist me out and take me back to my bed.They were like a well rehearsed team and I’m so grateful to them.I was of course mortified but they were delightful and I can’t thank them enough.So my stay,though eventful,was made amazing by all the staff and the facilities,including super comfortable bed,were second to none.The following aren’t complaints rather remarks about the hotel facilities.I will stay there again next month but next time in a wet room rather than lowered bath accessible room.Not having an alarm cord within reach of the bath caused a lot of problems for me but I don’t know how easily this can be rectified-perhaps during the next revamp.The other sticking point,as mentioned by someone else above,is the lack of bedside sockets.I have a medical pump which has to be recharged every three hours.At home I have a system in every room but I also have battery back up.No bedside socket meant I had to use the batteries which entailed waking up every three hours to change over to a new set of batteries rather than just plugging it in beside the bed overnight.Fortunately I had just done this before my bathtime drama! Anyway,I had a wonderful stay,bathtime aside,and i would recommend the hotel to anyone-it’s the staff who make it.