View from the Room: Midland Hotel, Bradford

Bradford’s Midland Hotel is a beautiful old building in the centre of the city with a stunning lounge, sweeping stairways covered in plush printed carpet.

Although our room would be designed differently if this were a modern build, it was kitted out with many of the essentials that newer hotels leave out; there was an actual wardrobe - one with doors, bedside tables - on both sides, mugs and two of the most elusive elements of modern hotels, hooks and drawers.

The room also had a small table and chair, a desk/dressing table where the TV sat, an additional power socket, ideal for plugging in hair devices in front of the mirror and a stool. There’s an additional longer mirror on the wall.

It had good lighting but no USBs, plus a kettle, mugs, biscuits and a supply of instant tea and coffee. There’s also an actual phone, which we very much needed to call down for a heater.

The duvet on the double bed was quite thin and we only had two pillows. We could have done with more of both.

Bathroom

This windowed room is huge and has a good-sized bathtub with a handheld shower over, sink and vanity unit, towel rail, plus a radiator.

• Amenities include two plastic cups and mini toiletries (shampoo, body lotion, shower gel, and a shower cap), as well as tissues and sanitary bags.

• There’s a request not to put wipes in the loo; a covered bin is provided for this purpose.

• The bathroom is equipped with two bath towels, two hand towels, and a bath mat. A good-sized bathtub is placed awkwardly with vacant space at one end.

The bathroom needs a complete overhaul as there is so much space that could be used as a dressing area, leaving the bedroom a little clearer, although everything worked.

The downside of our stay, which affected our overall rating, was the lack of control over the heating. Although the radiators were controllable, the heating was centrally managed and switched off at 9 PM, right when we needed it to be on. As a result, our room was freezing when we returned after dinner on our first night. Fortunately, the hotel made up for it by providing a portable heater. They took about half an hour to bring it to our room, but once we turned it on, the room warmed up almost instantly, allowing us to lower the temperature after just five minutes.

The heater clearly consumed a lot of energy, so the next day, we decided to leave the radiator heating on a little while we went out, which kept the room warmer for our return, and we only needed the portable heater for a few minutes.

It seems that allowing guests to control the heating according to their needs would be more economical, and housekeeping could adjust it if a guest is wasting energy.

Hopefully, this is on the list of improvements.

We loved going down the beautiful staircase from our second-floor room, although there is a lift.

We opted for breakfast on one of the mornings, which needed to be booked the night before. It was very affordable at under £10, but turned out to be a lacklustre hot and cold buffet. Seeing as it was my birthday, I did appreciate the Coco Pops, though!

As for service, the only time we were kept waiting was when we waited several minutes for staff to turn up at the bar when we decided on a nightcap for my birthday. Other than that, the staff were always friendly and courteous.

October 2025