the times Saturday May 28 202254 Travel
corners of the building, with lots of
natural light too.
The kitchen serves light bites, and you
can eat in the restaurant, bar or lobby.
Everything arrives in individual bowls,
so the experience is more having a bite
to eat than dinner. Small plates such
as halibut ceviche and truffled mac and
cheese were unfussy, while meat dishes
included a pleasingly pink free-range
and locally sourced Barnsley lamb chop.What’s nearby?
The city centre is easily walkable,
and the Alan is right in its heart,“makers’ table” in the lobby will
be used for workshops including
watercolouring, macrame, creative
writing and DJing.
Upstairs, there are four categories of
rooms, from standard to suites. All are
kooky, with bare plaster walls, exposed
overhead ducting painted in celadon
green (the same colour as the corridors
outside), magnificent emperor beds and
cool pink sinks in the bathrooms. The
seven Alan suites are quirkier still; the
double shower and gilded basin-island
are in the open-plan bedroom with you.
Most of the suites are in the curvedWhat’s the story?
Take one handsome six-storey grade
II listed warehouse in the city centre,
convert the upper ground floor into
a huge lobby, restaurant, bar and
co-working space, then add 137 hotel
rooms. Voilà, the Alan Manchester has
landed — an independently owned hub
catering to visitors and locals alike.
What do we like?
The Alan — so named because it
sounds like an unpretentious mate —
is welcoming, modern and stylish. The
open-plan upper ground floor has the
feel of an indoor piazza. They’ve done
away with a reception desk, using the
space for DJ decks with Bose speakers,
so look for a roving receptionist with
an iPad when checking in. It’s intended
to be a creative place — a large
The Times
hotel guide
The Alan
Manchester
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A Midi room at the AlanA communal areadirectly facing the Manchester Art
Gallery, with its room of Lowrys (free
entry). Also free is a two-hour guided
walk with Gareth Smith of Si
Manchester, providing a great
introduction to the birthplace of the
industrial revolution (simanchester.com).
This month marks the 40th anniversary
of the opening of the Hacienda
nightclub; stroll along the towpath
of the Rochdale Canal, where the
story of this infamous venue is etched
in the steel walls of the flats that now
stand on the site.
Laura IvillLaura Ivill was a guest
of the Alan, which has
room-only doubles from
£99; small plates from
£6 (thealanhotel.com)