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Which is best? Warner's Bembridge Coast Hotel or Norton Grange?
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Warner Leisure has two Isle of Wight hotels/coastal villages, both of which are in posher parts of the Island. They are popular with couples as they are only for adults, whereas the Isle of Wight's busier holiday parks usually appeal more to families looking for somewhere to keep the children entertained.
Bembridge Coast Hotel is on the Isle of Wight's east coast whilst Norton Grange Coastal Village is near Yarmouth in the West Wight. Here's our comparison of the two Warner's hotels on the Isle of Wight, looking at location, facilities and accommodation, reviews and price. |
Bembridge Coast Hotel is on the Isle of Wight's east coast...
...whilst Norton Grange Coastal Village is on the west coast
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1. Location of Bembridge Coast Hotel and Norton Grange
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Bembridge is a pleasant little town with the UK's oldest working phone box, a massive great lifeboat station which resembles a pier and an above average proportion of people wearing tweed. The water at Bembridge beach is shallower than a Kardashian conversation making it ideal for rockpooling, but not any good for proper sea swimming (hence the lifeboat station being stuck out in the middle of the sea).
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Bembridge Lifeboat Station
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The beach is generally sandy and is occasionally used by a local horse riding school which is perfect for anyone who has ever wanted to canter on the sands whilst flicking their hair and imagining they are moving in slow motion. It's also frequently used by dog walkers.
Nearby, there are a heap of lovely beaches (Ed: is heap the correct term for a group of beaches?) including Priory Bay, St. Helens and Whitecliff Bay.
Bembridge Coast Hotel is fairly convenient for the Isle of Wight ferries. It's a 15-20 minute drive from the foot passenger ferry or hovercraft at Ryde, or a 20 minute drive from the Wightlink ferry which travels between Fishbourne and Portsmouth.
Warner's Norton Grange Hotel is in Yarmouth, which is a tiny town and is lovely for a quick mooch around but not exactly brimming with things to do. Don't get me wrong, I love Yarmouth and would happily live there but it is (according to some sources) one of the smallest towns in the UK, so don't plan a whole day shopping. There's a short pier you can walk along, several nice places to eat, a few independent shops and a pleasant walk along the sea wall.
Yarmouth does have a car ferry port which links up with Lymington in the New Forest, and Norton Grange Coastal Village is only a 5 minute drive away.
It's worth realising that you usually pay less for the ferry if you book it with your accommodation.
Nearby, there are a heap of lovely beaches (Ed: is heap the correct term for a group of beaches?) including Priory Bay, St. Helens and Whitecliff Bay.
Bembridge Coast Hotel is fairly convenient for the Isle of Wight ferries. It's a 15-20 minute drive from the foot passenger ferry or hovercraft at Ryde, or a 20 minute drive from the Wightlink ferry which travels between Fishbourne and Portsmouth.
Warner's Norton Grange Hotel is in Yarmouth, which is a tiny town and is lovely for a quick mooch around but not exactly brimming with things to do. Don't get me wrong, I love Yarmouth and would happily live there but it is (according to some sources) one of the smallest towns in the UK, so don't plan a whole day shopping. There's a short pier you can walk along, several nice places to eat, a few independent shops and a pleasant walk along the sea wall.
Yarmouth does have a car ferry port which links up with Lymington in the New Forest, and Norton Grange Coastal Village is only a 5 minute drive away.
It's worth realising that you usually pay less for the ferry if you book it with your accommodation.
2. Facilities and accommodation at Bembridge Coast Hotel and Norton Grange
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Both Isle of Wight Warner's Hotels are well equipped with things to do and are really designed so that you could manage a short break without actually leaving the site, if you really wanted to.
Norton Grange in Yarmouth is described as a Coastal Village whilst Bembridge Coast is described as a Hotel. The difference (as you might gather from the names) is that the accommodation at Norton Grange is chalets in blocks with 8 or 12 other rooms whilst Bembridge Coast has hotel rooms. Norton Grange has just under 200 rooms, whilst Bembridge Coast Hotel has just under 300 rooms. |
Yarmouth Pier, near to Norton Grange Coastal Village
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At Bembridge Coast Hotel the facilities are part of the main block of accommodation whereas as Norton Grange there is a very short walk to the main building.
So which has better facilities?
So which has better facilities?
- Norton Grange and Bembridge Coast Hotel both have sea views for peering at yachts and falling asleep in a comfortable chair.
- Both have indoor swimming pools if you don't fancy the 'refreshing' sensation of a dip in the sea
- Both have gyms or leisure clubs if you want to try and look at ease on a treadmill (I just look like I'm on the brink of collapse). Norton Grange has a dance studio, which may appeal if you're a Lycra kind of person.
- Both have an entertainment lounge if you don't fancy venturing out at night, as well as coffee shops and bars.
- In terms of sports and games, Bembridge Coast Hotel offers indoor and outdoor bowls, snooker, darts, archery, crossbow, pistol and rifle shooting, french boules and pitch and putt. Norton Grange has an outdoor bowling green, croquet, pitch and putt, archery, air-rifle shooting, snooker, table tennis and darts.
- Both offer excursions which look similar (Osborne House, Cowes, shopping trips etc).
3. Reviews of Bembridge Coast Hotel and Norton Grange
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Bembridge Coast Hotel scores consistently well on TripAdvisor with an average score of 4/5 from more than 1700 reviews or 4.4/5 on Google Reviews. Staff take the time to respond to praise and criticism which is always a good sign.
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Yarmouth's Norton Grange is near to Freshwater Bay
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Norton Grange Coastal Village scores an average of 4/5 on TripAdvisor from 1100+ reviews or 4.2/5 on Google Reviews which is marginally lower than Bembridge Coast Hotel. Again, staff respond to praise and criticism which is good to see.
4. Price comparison of Bembridge Coast Hotel and norton Grange
For our price comparison, we looked at the cheapest accommodation available for a couple staying for a week in low season (we looked at early February 2021) and high season (August 2021).
Low season: 7 nights at Norton Grange Coastal Village (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) for two people cost from £516 in early February whilst at Bembridge Coast Hotel (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) it was £676.
High season: 7 nights at Norton Grange Coastal Village (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) for two people cost from £816 in August whilst at Bembridge Coast Hotel (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) it was £1136
We searched in September 2020 and looked for the cheapest price available.
Low season: 7 nights at Norton Grange Coastal Village (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) for two people cost from £516 in early February whilst at Bembridge Coast Hotel (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) it was £676.
High season: 7 nights at Norton Grange Coastal Village (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) for two people cost from £816 in August whilst at Bembridge Coast Hotel (standard chalet, B&B and evening meals) it was £1136
We searched in September 2020 and looked for the cheapest price available.
Conclusion
- Bembridge Coast Hotel and Yarmouth's Norton Grange are both in quiet coastal locations with ferry ports within easy reach. Norton Grange is nearer if you are travelling without a car, but Bembridge Coast Hotel is nearer to busy resorts like Shanklin and Ryde which is useful for day trips.
- Bembridge Coast offers hotel facilities, whereas Norton Grange offers chalets. There isn't much difference in facilities, but I would say Bembridge Coast Hotel is slightly better equipped with a few more sports and activities on offer.
- Overall, Bembridge Coast Hotel gets better reviews than Norton Grange although there's not a lot in it.
- In our price comparison, Norton Grange was cheaper than Bembridge Coast Hotel by roughly £150 - £300 over a week for two people.
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