The DeSouza Associates team recently visited the rebranded Crowne Plaza Felbridge, East Grinstead (formerly the privately owned Felbridge Hotel). The hotel is approximately 10 miles from Gatwick Airport, within easy access of the M25 and M23.
The Crowne Plaza Felbridge has 116 bedrooms and 8 meeting rooms and the refurbishment has just finished. We’ll definitely have to go back and see the hotel again in all its shining glory! From the moment you walk in, it certainly feels much more like a corporate hotel now. It is light and fresh.
There is building work in progress in the meeting rooms and for approximately half of the bedrooms but the positive thing for us is that we have seen the new bedrooms and corridors compared to the old. The bedrooms are stylish and cosy with iron, ironing board, slippers, gowns and laptop safes in each room category.
The exact room breakdown is still to be confirmed however there will be a mix of standard, Deluxe, Club rooms and Suites. There is also a Club Lounge which serves Continental breakfast, soft drinks throughout the day and evening drinks and canapes.
The Grand Ballroom is the largest function room at the hotel (and one of the largest ballrooms in the south of England) and holds up to 500 theatre style or 300 for a seated dinner.
This room has its own entrance from the car park, a pre-function area with cloakroom and divides into two using the acoustic sliding walls. This also leaves additional space for refreshments at the back.
The second largest meeting space is the Willow Suite which is located in a separate building. This room has a conservatory leading onto the courtyard and gardens. It can accommodate up to 60 guests for dinner or 100 delegates theatre style. Within this building there are a further six meeting spaces ranging from 10 boardroom to 40 theatre. These rooms are great for a corporate event looking for a private space with breakout areas.
I think a surprise for us all was the lovely garden/courtyard area of the hotel – lovely in the warmer months.
The Bay Tree Restaurant, due to be renamed in the near future, has a private dining room with glass doors looking out into the main restaurant area. Ideal for private dinner or breakfast meetings.
The food was good and we sampled the following starters; spiced poached pear, goats cheese, walnuts & balsamic powder and the hog terrine with apricot & ginger chutney, toasted sourdough followed by these main courses: soy marinated salmon served with sweet & sour stir fry vegetables and parmentier potatoes, cider & mustard marinated bacon chop and the sea bass fillet served with crushed new potatoes, sauce verge. We tried some lovely canapés beforehand so were so full that we did not have the space to sample the desserts!
The hotel has a nice open bar area, Qube Bar serving a range of food, speciality coffees and teas and a variety of cocktails, wines and beers. It is a comfortable space in which to do business or simply to relax. Major sporting events can be enjoyed on the large screen plasma TV.
Chakra Spa, incorporates five fully equipped treatment rooms using Elemis and Orly products, indoor heated swimming pool, sauna, steam room, jacuzzi, gym and tennis courts.
If you’re looking for a good conference hotel within the Gatwick area but not actually at the airport, you may wish to consider the Crowne Plaza Felbridge. Contact DeSouza Associates today and we’ll work on your booking and enquire with this hotel and others in the area.
