Bournemouth's stunning beach

Bournemouth beach has been voted the UK’s number one beach by Tripadvisor reviewers. Bournemouth is the only UK beach to be one of the top ten beach destinations in Europe.

Bournemouth will be embracing all that is British this year and welcomes you to join us in celebrating the festivities all year round, away from the busy cities.

In this special Olympic year, why not relax and unwind on some of the finest stretches of golden sandy beaches in the UK. Bournemouth holds several Blue Flag and Quality Coast awards for our high standards of cleanliness, facilities and water quality.

We aren’t just known for our stunning beaches; Bournemouth also boasts beautiful, award-winning parks and gardens. The town holds 11 Green Flag Awards in recognition of having one of the finest Parks and Gardens operations in the UK. The gardens are split into three areas of Victorian beauty – starting with the Lower Gardens, adjacent to the sea and leading to the Central Gardens in the town centre and then the Upper Gardens.

The Lower Gardens, where the Whitehall Hotel is situated, play host to many events and attractions during the summer months including concerts at the Pine Walk Bandstand, the Aviary and the Pinewalk Art Exhibition.

Bournemouth is a popular resort for groups and has been voted the Best UK Resort by Group Leisure magazine readers for three consecutive years.

Whether you’re interested in attractions, live entertainment, chic boutiques, high street shopping, gourmet dining, history, heritage, culture or watersports – Bournemouth has it all!

We look forward to welcoming you to Bournemouth and celebrating a very British year with us!

You can book online at Whitehall Direct.

Bring your Valentine to the Whitehall Hotel in Bournemouth for the night of Saturday 11th February 2012. Enjoy a double room with a chilled bottle of champagne then on Sunday morning there’s a full English breakfast. The price is £99 for two people for bed & breakfast with a bottle of champagne.  There’s free parking at the hotel and it’s a great location for a romantic walk along the beach or perhaps you would like to go to the Pavilion Theatre to see West End star Lee Mead performing his ‘Love Tour’.  Book online here.

• Sunday 22 January 2012 to Friday 27 January 2012
• Sunday 4 March 2012 to Friday 9 March 2012
• Thursday 5 April 2012 to Tuesday 10 April 2012 (Easter)
• Sunday 17 June 2012 to Friday 22 June 2012
• Sunday 23 September 2012 to Friday 28 September 2012
• Sunday 28 October 2012 to Friday 2 November 2012

Contact Bridge Overseas to make a booking. See our Facebook page for more photos of the November 2011 bridge holiday.

Bridge at the Whitehall Hotel

Father Christmas relaxing on Bournemouth beach

Turkey & Tinsel holidays are well underway at The Whitehall Hotel. We are welcoming over 800 festive guests in a 6 week period. The Christmas Tree and the decorations look fabulous, the elves have wrapped the presents and made the mince pies and the carol singers are well rehearsed and in tune. We do not have many spaces left. So call us if you want to join in the fun. Ho Ho Ho!

There are still bedrooms available for the weekend of Friday 2 December to Monday 5 December 2011. The special price for this weekend is £126 pp.

• Christmas Package: 4 nights from Friday 23 December 2011 to Tuesday 27 December 2011 £389 per person.
• New Year Package: 3 nights from Friday 30 December 2011 to Monday 2 January 2012 £269 per person.

Pat & Tina Dancer's Wedding at The Whitehall Hotel

On 27 August 2011 The Whitehall Hotel hosted the wedding of Pat and Tina Dancer. The ceremony took place on the hotel terrace and afterwards the couple with their forty guests enjoyed a drinks reception followed by the wedding breakfast. Everyone was collected by an old London bus and taken to an evening party.

To see more photos of the the happy couple (and our hotel as a wedding venue) see http://on.fb.me/pNnxpl

The UK’s biggest free aviation festival takes place on Bournemouth seafront. There is a non-stop programme of events during the day and each evening. For the latest information on the programme, the aircraft and the evening events see Air Festival Update.

The Whitehall Hotel is offering a special Air Festival weekend break from Friday 19 August 2011 to Monday 22 August 2011.

You will enjoy:

• 3 nights Bed & Breakfast at the Whitehall Hotel. You will be staying overnight on Friday, Saturday and Sunday
• Free parking at the hotel. Check out our fantastic location – we’re at the heart of all the action
• A complimentary souvenir programme ready for you when you arrive
• A full day of air displays on Friday, Saturday and Sunday
• Evening events on Friday and Saturday – hot air balloons, fireworks and dusk air displays.

It all takes place just outside our hotel – air displays at the seafront and evening events in the lower gardens. We offer the perfect location.

The price for our special weekend is £153 per person for the 3 nights B&B package. So for a couple in a double or a twin bedded room the price will be £102 per night so £306 for the 3 nights. For a family of 2 adults & up to 2 children the price is £130 per night so £390 for the family for 3 nights. With all the entertainment completely free this weekend is tremendous value for money.

We will sell out – so book early to avoid disappointment.

Book online or call us on 01202 554682

Chris Evans - Head Gardener for Bournemouth Council. Winner of Bournemouth's Chelsea Gold Medal in 2006

The Whitehall Hotel has hosted another themed holiday this week. Cardiff’s Christchurch Garden Club enjoyed a splendid Garden Appreciation Holiday.

Situated in Bournemouth’s award winning Lower Gardens, the Whitehall is the perfect place to stay for a garden appreciation holiday. The itinerary included:

- A tour of Compton Acres in Poole the south’s finest privately owned historic gardens famous for the Italianate gardens. It has a unique series of stunning gardens and a spectacular views over Poole Harbour.

- A visit to Kingston Lacy the National Trust property in Wimborne Minster.  As well as being a fantastic 17th Century house containing lavish interiors and a fine art collection there are 43 acres of formal gardens and 250 acres of landscaped park and woodlands.

-  A presentation by Chris Evans the head gardener at Bournemouth Council. Chris gave a fascinating talk describing how he lead Bournemouth’s team to success at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2006.  He talked about the design, the plants and the horticultural and logistical challenges that his team overcame to achieve a Gold and the RHS Presidents award at Chelsea.  He illustrated the talk with his photographs and he even brought the gold medal. A splendid evening enjoyed by all.

- On the way back to Cardiff the group spent the day at Bowood House in Calne, Wiltshire.  The family home of  Lord Lansdowne with grounds designed by ‘Capability’ Brown, Bowood offers a soothing retreat from the modern world. It has an extensive arboretum and pinetum, rhododendron walks and offers guided tours for groups including the private walled gardens, formal borders and the great lake and cascade.

There are so many other elements that could have been included in this itinerary – so the garden club from Cardiff are coming back again in 2012. Our suggestions include:

- a guided ‘behind the scenes’ tour at Bournemouth Council’s Kings Park Plant Nursery

- a visit to Exbury Gardens to see the world-famous Rothschild collection of rhododendrons, azalias, camelias, rare trees and shrubs in the heart of the New Forest National Park.

- a trip to Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens near Weymouth. Established in 1765 as the kitchen garden of the nearby castle it now has a magnificent 20 acre garden filled with rare and exotic plants from all over the world.