Southampton Hotel

It would be useful to know what you’re looking for, particularly. Are you staying in/near Southampton for a period of time and looking for a base as part of a longer vacation? It’s not a usual vacation spot (it’s quite a big ugly city but there’s lots of good stuff and nice countryside nearby) or are you going on a cruise and looking for a one-night base beforehand? (The usual reason people are in Southampton).

It makes a big difference to recommendations.

I note you’ve also previously asked about hotels in both Salisbury and Portsmouth so does mean you’re looking to base yourself somewhere in this region for a sightseeing break?

Sorry I was so vague. My husband and I are getting off a cruise ship in Southampton and picking up a car there to drive towards Exeter. We want one day of down time in Southampton before heading west. Thanks!

I should have said one day of down time near Southampton - we don’t have to stay in Southampton.

Got you.

So if you’re looking for a relaxing treat-type hotel, in Southampton itself there’s the Harbour Hotel & Spa.

A little bit out of town towards Exeter will take you EITHER to the New Forest or to Salisbury, depending on which route you decide to take towards Exeter. My personal preference is usually the A31, which would take you past the New Forest, where you’ll find some nice country house-type hotels - such as the Crown Manor at Lyndhurst or Burley Manor. I’m not sure if that’s the sort of thing you’re after.

Or you could head up to Salisbury for the night - see your other thread for hotel recs.

Or you could take a look at the pretty small town of Romsey, which has an old abbey and is convenient for whichever route you take, but I don’t know much about hotels there.

Southampton itself has a few historic bits and a busy modern shopping centre/restaurants but is quite charmless.

Hope this is helpful.

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Southampton that was right outside the gate to where our cruise ship docked.
It was nice and we could walk from the hotel to the cruise ship (no taxi).

This is really helpful. Thanks so much!

I would skip Southampton, it's a bit of a dive, and head to the New Forest. You could stay at Limewood Hotel, a hotel and restaurant part owned by Michelin starred and celebrity chef Angela Hartnett, www.limewoodhotel.co.uk or there's The Pig in Brockenhurst, www.thepighotel.com/brockenhurst. Both restaurants serve exceptional food (my preference leans towards The Pig) and the rooms are highly rated.

They're not the cheapest option but the locations are superb and the quality is very high.

Thank you all for your recommendations. The New Forest sounds like a wonderful destination. We will be looking to book something there.

I just returned from Southampton and the New Forest. We stayed at the Forest Park Country Hotel in Brockenhurst. It was very comfortable, had two good restaurants, a lovely garden and a car park. Horses were right across the street and there were walking trails if you want to do a little hiking. I think it is about 30 minutes from Southampton and the drive was not bad. I used to live in the New Forest almost 40 years ago so my trip was to visit some of my old haunts. You can visit Lymington, Lynhurst or Beulieu if you want to take in some villages. We also stayed one night at the Chewton Glen which was a splurge.