Family time made easy: our weekend at Village Hotel Swindon

Sometimes the best family get-togethers are the ones where nobody has to host.

With us travelling from Dorset, my brother, sister-in-law and niece coming from Chippenham, and my parents living in Shrivenham near Swindon, finding somewhere convenient for everyone to meet isn't always straightforward.

Village Hotel Swindon, just off the M4, turned out to be a brilliantly easy solution.

We were there for only a little over 24 hours, but when we left, we all agreed it felt as though we'd had a proper long weekend away.

There was no cooking, no washing up, no tidying the house before everyone arrived and no jobs staring at us while we tried to spend time together. Instead, pretty much everything we needed was under one roof, leaving us to actually enjoy being together as a family.

Starting the weekend with Bottomless Brunch

We kicked things off on Saturday afternoon with Village Hotel Swindon's Bottomless Brunch.

Village runs its Bottomless Brunch events monthly, and this isn't one of those occasions where "bottomless" means compromising on the food. One of the things that impressed us most was that you can order from the regular menu, so there are plenty of proper dishes to choose from rather than the beige sharing platters you sometimes associate with bottomless brunches.

I went for the salmon bowl, while my brother chose the duck noodles, and the food was genuinely excellent. The drinks were proper branded drinks too, with great service throughout.

The atmosphere was brilliant. There was a DJ playing a fantastic mix of music, complete with lights and a disco ball, so it felt like an occasion without being overly formal.

It was a very good start to the weekend.

Straight from brunch to the pool

One of the biggest advantages of staying at Village is that it feels more like a leisure destination than simply somewhere to sleep.

After brunch, we headed to the pool, with use of the leisure facilities included in our stay.

The pool itself is beautiful: a really good size, lovely temperature and with swim aids and woggles available. There is also a sauna and steam room for adults.

One of my favourite moments of the weekend was simply watching the cousins swimming and playing together. It was exactly why we'd arranged the weekend in the first place.

For anyone who wants a more energetic stay, there's also a fantastic gym and a programme of fitness classes, so you could very easily make the leisure facilities a big part of your visit.

The excitement of a hotel sleepover

Then came something that adults can easily underestimate: how exciting children find staying in a hotel together.
Our newly refurbished bedrooms were huge, giving the children plenty of space to play and spend time together before we headed out for dinner.

The rooms felt fresh and comfortable, with lovely bathrooms and exceptionally comfortable beds. After dinner at The Runner, only around a five-minute drive away, we headed back to Village and the children immediately congregated in the rooms again for more playing before bed.

It wasn't anything elaborate, but those were some of the loveliest moments of the weekend.

Breakfast together - with nobody cooking it

The following morning, everyone reconvened in our rooms before heading downstairs for breakfast.

There's a fantastic selection: eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, baked beans, tomatoes and hash browns alongside toast, croissants, cereals, yoghurt, fruit, juices and hot drinks.

We managed to grab a lovely big round table, which made breakfast feel really sociable. Again, that's one of the things we enjoyed most about the stay: we were together for all those little moments that you don't necessarily get when you simply meet somewhere for lunch.

And best of all, nobody had to cook it or clear it away afterwards.

A breath of fresh air at Lydiard Park

Despite having so much available at the hotel, we did venture out on Sunday morning.

Lydiard Park is only around five minutes away, so after breakfast we headed over to give the children a run around, get some fresh air and collect conkers while attempting to work up an appetite for Sunday lunch.

If you're staying longer, there's plenty more to do without travelling far. The Link Centre is right nearby, with ice skating and other activities, along with bowling and more family entertainment in the surrounding area.

You could easily stay for a couple of nights and keep the children entertained without spending half your break driving from place to place.

Sunday lunch with the grandparents

My brother, sister-in-law and niece needed to head home after our trip to Lydiard Park, but the family weekend wasn't quite finished.

My mum and dad joined us at Village for Sunday lunch, which meant we could squeeze in another family get-together before heading back to Dorset.

We all went for the chicken "Get Stuffed" Yorkshire pudding bowl, and it was exactly the sort of Sunday lunch we wanted: succulent chicken, broccoli, carrots, roast potatoes and pigs in blankets - which went down particularly well with the children - all served inside a giant Yorkshire pudding.

I asked for a little extra gravy and, rather than simply bringing one jug, the team arrived with an individual gravy boat for each of us. A small touch, but a really nice one.

After the enormous breakfast, none of us could manage pudding, so we finished the weekend with cappuccinos and drinks for the children from the onsite Starbucks before starting the journey home.

There's also a large, comfortable lounge area beside Starbucks where we could sit, relax and play games. It's another reason the hotel feels like somewhere you can actually spend time rather than somewhere you're expected to leave during the day and simply return to sleep.

An easy family weekend that felt much longer than 24 hours

Village operates self-service check-in, which makes arriving quick and straightforward, but there were plenty of friendly team members around whenever we needed help throughout our stay.

And "easy" is probably the word that sums up the whole weekend.

My brother and his family live in Chippenham, we're in Dorset and my parents are near Swindon, so Village Hotel Swindon gave us a really convenient meeting point, particularly with its location just off the M4.

But what made the biggest difference was that nobody was hosting.

Nobody spent the weekend cooking. Nobody was loading the dishwasher. Nobody was worrying about whether the house was tidy or disappearing to do washing or household jobs.

We just got to be together.

In a little over 24 hours we'd had a bottomless brunch, swum together, had a hotel sleepover, enjoyed breakfast around a big table, collected conkers at Lydiard Park, eaten Sunday lunch with the grandparents and relaxed over coffee.

It genuinely felt like we'd been away for a long weekend.

For families who live in different parts of the region and want somewhere easy to meet, or simply anyone who wants a family break where everything is taken care of, Village Hotel Swindon offers really good value and a surprising amount to do without having to plan every minute.

Sometimes making memories together doesn't require travelling hundreds of miles or organising an elaborate holiday. Sometimes you just need somewhere that lets everyone turn up, switch off and enjoy being a family.

Quick information for your visit

• Location: Shaw Ridge Leisure Park, Whitehill Way, Swindon, SN5 7DW, with easy access from the M4.
• Parking: There’s a large on-site car park, with free parking for guests 
• Food and drink: The hotel has a Pub & Grill for meals and drinks, plus an on-site Starbucks for coffee and a place to sit together.
• Leisure facilities: There’s an indoor pool with designated family swim times, a gym, fitness classes, a sauna, steam room and whirlpool.
• Rooms and check-in: Family rooms are available. Check-in is from 3pm and check-out is by 11am.
• Nearby: Lydiard Park is a short drive away, while Swindon Designer Outlet is around 2.4 miles from the hotel.

About the author

Liz Hutchings is Managing Director of Total Guide to and Total Marketing. Based in Dorset, she loves discovering places that bring family and friends together across the South West. For this review, she brought three generations of her family together to experience a weekend at Village Hotel Swindon.