Travelling with a small child, apartment-style accommodation is so much easier. Shelling out for interconnecting rooms at a hotel can be prohibitively expensive. If sharing a hotel room, having to be silent after he goes to bed at 7.30 isn’t much fun!
Just an hour and a half away from home, on Norfolk’s north coast, Cromer Country Club, part of the Diamond Resorts Group, has the answer. We booked a two-bed private apartment for a night away by the sea – and here’s what we thought.
The Welcome
Cromer Country Club’s driveway takes you up a fairly steep, winding road to the main building. Here, you’ll find a couple of parking bays to be used while you check in, along with an 7kW EV charging point.
The reception area itself is pretty small, and also acts as the entrance to the swimming pool. The cheery bouquet of flowers on the counter matched the sunny disposition of the two ladies behind the desk, who were incredibly helpful and also great with the six-year-old, getting him involved and asking him questions.
We were given two key cards and a map of the extensive site, with a clear explanation of the location of our two-bed apartment and the area where we needed to park. Even with these, it was still a little challenging to find…but that’s probably more down to us than them!
The Style
The phrase “country club” conjures up images of somewhere grand and luxurious. In reality, Cromer Country Club is more about comfort and practicality. The main reception, with its view of the swimming pool, feels more like a leisure centre, while the apartments themselves are fairly basic but tasteful.
One area that’s clearly had more focus on its design is the games room, as you’ll see below…
The Facilities
Of course, you’ll want to head into Cromer itself (see here for ideas of things to see and do), but there’s plenty at the hotel to keep the whole family entertained.
The two biggest hits here were the swimming pool – complete with sauna and steam room – and the games room. This features table tennis, arcade machines, a soft play area, games consoles and even a climbing wall along one wall.
You’ll also find a fitness centre on-site, as well as lots of little touches designed to delight guests. There are quiz nights. There’s a lending library. You can borrow beach toys and help yourselves to herbs, fruit and vegetables from the resort’s garden. By the main door through to reception you’ll also find quiz sheets and crosswords if you’re looking for a challenge, as well as posters about the local lifeboat launch times and other Cromer activities.
The Rooms
Our home for the night was apartment 83: a two-bed apartment with terrace. Each apartment includes free Wi-Fi access, a fully-equipped kitchen, toiletries, towels and laundry services for those staying four nights or more.
The downstairs featured a spacious lounge and dining area, a galley kitchen (which was very well stocked with everything we needed) and a bathroom, as well as a surprisingly large terrace with great views.
The sofa bed was pretty uncomfortable as a sofa, but as we weren’t staying for long it wasn’t a major issue.
Upstairs, the beds were far more comfortable in both the double room and the twin room, and there was a huge amount of storage space in each. You’ll see from the photos that this place is more about function over style, which suited us just fine. All we needed was somewhere clean to sleep comfortably and shower – and with a separate room for the small child. For the price we paid, we were really impressed with the accommodation.
The Food
We didn’t actually eat at Cromer Country Club during our stay. After all, we had our own kitchen and plenty of restaurants (like No1 Cromer) to explore.
There is the Amber Bar & Restaurant on-site, offering a menu of pub grub classics and seasonal specials, as well as Sunday roasts. However, it’s only open from 5pm to 10pm Monday to Saturday, and from 12.30pm to 9pm on Sundays.
You can order bakery items from reception for breakfast (place your order by 8pm the night before), and there are various snacks and soft drinks available at the reception desk too.
The Price
While a 4pm check-in time and a 10am check-out time gave us little time to use the facilities, we were able to still use the pool after checking out, which was a relief. In early March, our two-bed apartment set us back only around £175 for the night (through Hotels.com), but you can sign up via the Cromer Country Club website for deals and offers to be sent to your inbox. Depending on the time of year and the size of the apartment you choose, prices can start from just £50 per night.