The Most Romantic Hotels to Book in Manchester, England

Somewhere in Manchester there’s a romantic hotel just waiting for you and your amour | © Michael Barrow / Alamy Stock Photo

Suzanne King

19 November 2020

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Mood lighting, roll-top tubs and chilled bottles of champagne are on the menu in these Cupid-approved places to stay.

Think Manchester and most people’s minds turn to sport, music and gritty industrial heritage. But, lovebirds, it’s just as well suited to romantic breaks, with a whole host of hotels that know how to roll out the red carpet for cooing couples. From rose petals and roll-top baths to secret gardens and sumptuous surroundings, somewhere in the city there’s an amorous hotel with your name on it. You just have to find the perfect match…

Didsbury House Hotel

Large living room area at Didsbury House with light grey walls, a gallery wall, large windows and floral sofas

Courtesy of Didsbury House / Expedia

The bright lights of central Manchester are just a 15-minute drive away, but once ensconced in this handsome Victorian villa in the well-heeled suburb of Didsbury you might feel tempted to stay in and cocoon, rather than go out exploring. The 27 bedrooms set the scene for a night of romance, with serenely chic decor, tactile fabrics and mellow lighting. All but the smallest come with freestanding roll-top baths, perfect for bathing à deux.

Stock Exchange Hotel

Courtesy of Stock Exchange Hotel / Expedia

Manchester’s former Stock Exchange is now one of its ritziest hotels, following a sensitive conversion that’s retained the building’s Edwardian grandeur and added contemporary perks like a Tom Kerridge restaurant in the old trading hall. Share small plates of refined British comfort food and enjoy people-watching in the bar, then retire to one of 40 bedrooms, all glamorous, cosseting affairs, with luxurious fabrics and finishes, thick fluffy robes and fragrant Dr Harris potions, stocked in the swish marble bathrooms.

The Edwardian Manchester

Large indoor pool at the Edwardian with beige walls and a jacuzzi

Courtesy of the Edwardian / Expedia

If you love hotels with heritage, the Edwardian is hard to beat, its fascinating back story featuring everyone from Dickens to Dylan, suffragettes to Sex Pistols. These days, though, it’s all about five-star luxury. Rooms come with desirable goodies like Nespresso machines, REN toiletries and fine Egyptian linens; foodie options include a classy afternoon tea and Japanese-Mexican fusion food; and for full-on pampering there’s a basement spa, complete with ESPA treatments and a heated indoor pool.

Dakota Manchester

Courtesy of Dakota Manchester / Expedia

If it’s sexy sophistication you’re after, the Dakota delivers in spades, with its sultry lighting and sharp design. Even standard rooms feel like luxurious, indulgent places to hide away. But if money’s no object, the Grand Deluxe Suite is the one to go for. This eighth-floor penthouse comes complete with acres of space, a wraparound balcony and a large sunken bath for two, plus a host to whip up your favourite cocktails on arrival and generally cater to your every whim.

Eleven Didsbury Park

Courtesy of Sophie Richardson and Eleven Didsbury Park

Sharing the same leafy street as its sibling, Didsbury House Hotel, this suburban Victorian property has 20 elegant bedrooms and a residents-only lounge and bar that helps create a private, exclusive feel. There’s a pretty, peaceful garden, where you can play croquet on the lawn and canoodle in the hammock, and if you book the Luxe Terrace Junior Suite you’ll get not one, but two roll-top baths: one indoors, and the other outside, on your private terrace.

The Cow Hollow Hotel

A bed and dark shutters in a hotel room at Cow Hollow Hotel in Manchester; one wall has dark exposed brick

Courtesy of Cow Hollow Hotel / Expedia

Another former industrial building repurposed for the 21st century, this lovely little indie hotel has all the ingredients for a romantic break, from its intimate scale (just 16 rooms) and great location (amid the galleries, bars and boutiques of the Northern Quarter) to the thoughtful design in the rooms. Rooms may be on the small side, but they’re filled with little spoil-yourself luxuries, including Hypnos beds, goose-down duvets and bronze rainfall showers.

Hotel Gotham

Courtesy of Hotel Gotham / Expedia

“We don’t discourage a little bit of decadence,” whispers the Gotham, and the owners clearly had couples in mind when they created the hotel’s 60 luxurious bedrooms, specifically designed to be a full-on sensory experience. Beds are topped with fine Egyptian cotton linens, thick faux-fur throws and peacock-patterned bolsters; there are velvet armchairs and quilted leather bedheads; and you’ll find waffle robes in the bathrooms and “intimacy kits” in the minibars.

Kimpton Clocktower Hotel

A double bed, grey armchairs and a partly tiled wall in a hotel room at Kimpton Clocktower

Courtesy of Kimpton Clocktower / Expedia

Behind the terracotta-tiled facade, this hotel is a riot of original Victorian features, all columns, arches and listed ceramics, with a beautiful glass dome above the lobby and a handsome bar-restaurant/conservatory area that’s buzzing all day long. The high-ceilinged bedrooms combine retro elements (vintage-trunk-style ottomans, wood-panelled walls), industrial influences (brass lamps and white-tiled bathrooms) and jewel-bright flashes of colour. For that final romantic flourish, order in a chilled bottle of champagne and a scattering of rose petals.

For more options, discover our guide to the best hotels, the top boutique properties and luxurious places to stay in Manchester, now bookable on Culture Trip.

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