The Europa Hotel, Belfast.

Central location, family friendly, value for money, superb attention to every detail and exceptionally friendly staff? Yes, that’s the Europa Hotel in Belfast!

My three kids and I were looking for somewhere to stay near the cities most popular attractions. I was looking for somewhere ‘lush’ yet family friendly, the kids were looking for somewhere fun and exciting – we looked no further when we discovered the Europa Hotel.

On booking there was a ‘hint’ of an ‘eggcellent’ surprise as our visit was over the Easter period so we were really looking forward to this.

To begin, lets discuss parking – oh my goodness, I hate driving through Belfast while looking for somewhere to park. I took care of this problem by simply using the Valet Parking service. We drove right up to the front door and a kind gentleman came and helped us inside with our bags and headed off with the car keys to a secure parking area. I was told they only needed 15mins notice before I needed the car back so this was very handy and completely took the stress out of finding somewhere close by to park.

The foyer was beautifully decorated for the Easter season. The  pièce de résistance  had to be the exquisite floral arrangement complete with rabbits and little Easter eggs.

Check-in was uncomplicated and very quick. We were told the necessary ‘need-to-knows’ and asked how many room keys I would like. This was an excellent touch by the man at the desk as my eldest daughter said it made her feel important – she is only 12yrs and loved the responsibility of having a room key! The workings of the new updated lifts were briefly explained and then we were off exploring. We zoomed up to level 6 in super fast time and found our rather luxurious room – an executive family room. This was perfect for a family of 4 – or one adult and three children (like us).

I have to say a huge ‘thank-you’ to the management for our Easter surprise – the kids were delighted with their Easter egg packages and I really appreciated the mini dessert platter!

The room was fab, decorated to perfection with everything we could possibly need at hand.

The beds were ‘super soft’ – the children’s words exactly!,  and the bathroom big enough so they could all pile in together for some necessary ‘teeth brushing’ after the delicious chocolate eggs!

As with all the Hastings Hotels, the legendary Hastings Duck took pride of place next to the bath!

After we were settled and unpacked we headed down to the Causerie restaurant for our meal. The childrens’ selection was impressive with many of the dishes sounding like something I would have cooked at home and not the usual sausages, burger and chips.

For me, the only option was the sirloin steak, after some pate and Irish soda bread of course!

Throughout the stay we came across lots of little reminders that the Europa took the concept of locally sourcing food very seriously.

The beef served at the Europa is all Irish beef and I thoroughly enjoyed my Hannan’s 10oz Salt Aged Sirloin Steak, accompanied by grilled Tomato, Onion Rings & Peppercorn Sauce.

Doesn’t this look delicious?

Dessert was every bit as pleasant as our main meal with a great selection to suit both adults and children.

Throughout the night we didn’t hear a sound. I was so thankful as I am quite a light sleeper and am easily kept awake.

Breakfast was served up to 10am as we stayed on Friday night, this is extended until 11am at the weekends. Once again, the evidence of local produce was at every table from the porridge, the breads, the bacon etc. The kids loved reading exactly where the food came from in the booklet below.

The eggs were, of course, free range and this was evident from the bright yellow yolks. the booklet had a photo of the farmer who supplies these eggs, Clements farm, county Down, along with photos and information about the origin of all the food served at the Europa.

We sampled the fruits and cheeses, then gave up trying to be healthy and tucked into our favorite, an English fry. This was delicious, with the best quality ingredients perfectly cooked and presented. Thick sliced bacon with mouth-watering mushroons were washed down with barista style coffee. We were able to relax while enjoying breakfast in this ambient unhurried environment.

Our family thoroughly enjoyed our night away in the big city of Belfast and this was made complete and that little bit ‘extra special’ with our stay at the Europa Hotel. I couldn’t recommend it enough for families. Its the perfect combination of luxury and practicality with its exquisite decor, friendly staff and fab food.

To book a fab night away for your family simply visit the link here.