Review – AD.
Over half term, we headed to Derby to stay at a Saco Apartment. Saco Apartments have 80,000 stylish serviced apartments in over 260 destinations worldwide. In the UK there are various locations including London, Jersey, Glasgow, Nottingham and Manchester. We’d never stayed in them before, but when we did a little investigation on the website, we really liked the idea of staying somewhere that would combine a hotel with staying at home and all of the comforts that this provides.
Saco Apartment – Derby
We were in the top corner apartment, you can see in the above image where the roof becomes a triangle. It was just on the edge of the city, within easy walking distance (less than 5 minutes) to a host of restaurants and a further 5 minutes to shops. We got there by car, and it was pretty easy to find, felt secure with its own gated car parking with a keypad entry system.
The apartment we had was two bedrooms on two levels. One bedroomed Saco apartments are available too. Our bedrooms were on the ground floor. So the living area benefitted from huge balconies on the top floor. All of the linens and towels were provided, and our first impression was that it was clean and tidy, modern and very large and airy.
Saco Apartment – Looking from the hallway to the bedroom
I love it when you arrive somewhere and you are all exploring everything. There were three balconies, one in the main bedroom and two in the living space. Also, there was an ensuite shower and toilet as well as the main bathroom. The hallway that led onto the bedroom and stairs was very large.
Main Bedroom – A and I
Balcony
Other apartments around the country may be different but we were able to get into the Saco Apartment at 4pm, we could leave before 10am in the morning. It had been a really warm day when we arrived so we enjoyed sitting on the balcony taking in the breeze and the sound of water, as this is known as the Mill House, and there was a small running stream alongside.
The Living Space
This included a kitchen with all of the things necessary to make a meal if you needed to. A cooker, fridge, dishwasher and plenty of storage. We were left with a small carton of milk and a few tea and coffee supplies with some cereal too.
Kitchen
I would say that the kitchen could do with a little upkeep, as though, it was very clean and tidy, it seemed a little tired in places. Small things like the top rack of the dishwasher was broke and some of the doors didn’t seem to want to close. Overall though it was very usable, and we enjoyed using it for our breakfasts each day. all of the dinnerware and cutlery was provided too.
More casual dining at the breakfast bar as well as the dining area.
There is free wifi available and a TV with a few channels to choose from if you were thinking of staying in and relaxing. We were out and about mostly o didn’t really use these much. We did test them out for the review, and both worked great. You can upgrade the wifi, we could see the price to do this, but to be honest, the standard wifi was good enough to use social media and even stream a movie. The living room felt comfortable and relaxing for a family of four.
I was so impressed by how large the apartment was. We didn’t feel cramped at all. If the sofa had been a sofa bed, I’d have said this apartment was big enough to sleep 6 easily. When I looked at the pricing, which does vary greatly depending on the time of year etc I would say its great value for money.
Why choose Derby?
As Derby is in the Midlands it does make a great location to visit so many places in the UK. Close by I would recommend :
Derby Cathedral The Cathedral Quarter has many restaurants, boutique shops and cafes.
Derby Museum and Art Gallery houses a fine collection of art from paintings and sculptures to Natural History and Archaeology.,
As well as many of the National Trust properties within a short drive away:
Calke Abbey A wonderfully eccentric property and family who collected a vast amount of treasures.
Sudbury Hall and National Childhood Museum The museum takes you back in time and tells the story of children’s’ points of views of a time gone by.
Eyam Village – Known as the plague village as the inhabitants of the village were so brave. Closing the borders and isolating themselves to stop the plague from spreading.
Intu Shopping Center – Derby. It has so many shops all under one roof. Many restaurants and a food court, abowling alley, cinema and a theatre.
The second bedroom had two single beds, though I think you can request a double too. Good quality bedding and very comfortable beds in all of the rooms.
We didn’t need heating as it was spring/summer by there were storage heaters too.
As well as the breakfast items that were left, there was also a selection of L’Occitane products to use. It’s a small thing but having soap to use to wash your hands was so welcome, as we usually bring our own. They were great quality, and I brand I personally love.
So overall we were very impressed with the location, how secure the Saco apartment felt and the overall feel of our stay there. It was the perfect place to use as a base on our adventure. We went shopping, had some lovely meals out and visited Eyam village. I think we could have easily spent a little more time there, but equally, it would be perfect if you were just looking at a base before moving on somewhere else.
Huge thanks to Saco who hosted our stay there over half term.
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