Travel & Tourism

Ancoats toilet block turned into luxury Santorini-inspired apartment

This place is beautiful!

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 23rd June 2023

A former toilet block in on of Ancoats’ many mill buildings has been transformed into an ultra-luxury apartment inspired by Santorini.

With architectural arches, wooden furniture and soft whites everywhere, it will transport you straight to the Aegean sea.

The beautiful luxury serviced accommodation comes from The Jacksonheim Boutique, which is also behind several other destination-inspired apartments around the city.

There are flats themed around neighbourhoods like Williamsburg, Brooklyn and Manhattan in New York, as well as Scandi, Japanese and Chicago-influenced homes.

This latest property, known as Santorini Boutique, has taken shape in an old factory mill’s toilet block.

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It’s now a two-bedroom apartment that reflects the aesthetics of the Greek island.

Inside, there’s a purpose-built mezzanine level forming a sleeping nook, bespoke furniture, and stunning curved ceilings much like those found in Santorini itself.

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The Santorini Boutique apartment in Ancoats, Manchester.
The Santorini Boutique apartment in Ancoats, Manchester. Credit: Jacksonheim Boutique
The Santorini Boutique apartment in Ancoats, Manchester.
The Santorini Boutique apartment in Ancoats, Manchester.
The Santorini Boutique apartment in Ancoats, Manchester.

Jacksonheim Boutique says they want the home to be ‘a Mediterranean escape’ in the midst of Manchester’s gritty charm.

Amenities included when you rent the property include high-speed WiFi, Smart TV with Netflix and Prime, a full kitchen, and luxury toiletries.

Jacksonheim Boutique say: “At the heart of our design philosophy is drawing inspiration from our team’s travels and experiences.

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“After a colleague’s journey to Greece, we couldn’t resist incorporating elements that evoke the enchanting allure of the Mediterranean. Inspired by the sun-kissed landscapes of Santorini, we infused this urban oasis with a touch of Greek elegance, creating a harmonious fusion of cultures within these walls.”

The Santorini Boutique apartment in Ancoats is priced from around £166 per night and sleeps six guests.

You can find out more at www.jacksonheim.co.uk/apartments/santorini-boutique/.

Featured image: Jacksonheim Boutique

Travel & Tourism

Manchester named one of Europe’s ‘best’ cities alongside 17 other British places

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Manchester has been named one of the ‘best’ cities in Europe for 2025, according to a new ranking.

You may remember that our city – and wider Greater Manchester borough – has often featured on various round-up lists over the years, with it ranking on everything from being named one of the best places in the UK to buy your first home, and the best place to raise a family, right through to being one of the most creative cities.

But it arguably doesn’t get much better than a title like this.

For a long time now, the city has been cementing itself as a tourist hotspot, with new hotels popping up left, right, and centre, and integrated transport systems being introduced to make it easier to get around.

And it looks like all that has paid off, as Manchester has now been named one of the best cities in the whole of Europe for 2025, thanks to a new ranking by Resonance Co.

Manchester skyline
Manchester has been named one of Europe’s ‘best’ cities / Credit: Josh Taylor | Chris Curry (via Unsplash)

This year, the global placemaking company’s research encompassed 128 cities across Europe with metropolitan area populations of 500,000 or more, and evaluated each of them based on 30 performance indicators and perception metrics derived from surveys of more than 7,500 respondents across 10 European countries.

Once each of these performance indictors had been evaluated, every city was given its own ‘Place Power Score’ to determine its ranking.

A city’s ‘Place Power Score’ examines three core dimensions – liveability, which takes into account things like housing affordability, healthcare access, green space, air quality, and cycling infrastructure; loveability, which encompasses culture, nightlife, culinary scenes, and more; and prosperity, which includes business environment, talent density, GDP per capita, airport connectivity, and more.

While Manchester may have missed out on both the top 10 and top 20, considering it’s a top 100 list, our city has claimed the respectable 36th spot, beating out mega cities such as Venice, Nice, Athens, and loads more.

In fact, 18 British cities are included in the top 100.

Our city has ranked alongside 17 other British places / Credit: Mangopear Creative

Explaining why Manchester has been ranked, Resonance Co said in its city description: “You’ll be hearing a lot more about Manchester this decade, as the historic engine of English industry shifts into high gear across both culture and development.

“While the UNESCO City of Literature continues to shape global music – with 2024’s opening of the 23,500-seat Co-op Live arena, and a festival lineup that includes Beyond the Music and Worldwide Music Expo – Greater Manchester is also writing a new chapter in urban reinvention.

“A newly centralised ‘single pipeline for growth’ coordinates £1 billion of planned annual investment across six targeted Growth Locations, aiming to deliver tens of thousands of homes and jobs at a pace unmatched in the UK since the 2012 London Olympics. Among the boldest is the Western Gateway, anchored by the regeneration of Old Trafford around Manchester United’s stadium, projected to generate over 90,000 jobs.

“The Central Growth Cluster includes innovation districts like Crescent Salford and Victoria North. These ambitions build on an £80-billion economy that’s grown 50% since 2000 and now leads the nation in FDI outside London.

“Add a mature devolved governance model and transformative transit investments – like bringing commuter rail into the Bee Network – and the city’s Top 10-ranked airport and 15th-most Instagram Hashtags start making sense.”

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Which city took the title of the best city in Europe though? Well unfortunately, we have to give it to the southerners on this one, as London took the top spot.

But at least it’s an impressive win for the UK, if nothing else.

Featured Image – Mylo Kaye (via Unsplash)

Travel & Tourism

The beautiful Lake District bluebells display that’s being ‘loved to death’

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Rannerdale Knotts in the Lake District has one of the UK's prettiest bluebell displays

People are beginning to flock back to the Lake District for one of the season’s most beautiful spectacles – the arrival of the bluebells.

These pretty flowers are beginning to blanket parts of the national park in blue and purple blooms.

They’re incredibly rare flowers with around than half of the world’s bluebells found here in the UK, and can take around five to seven years to develop from seed to flower.

Which is why it’s actually against the law to intentionally pick, uproot or destroy bluebells.

The National Trust has also again stressed that people should resist the urge to step into the fields of bluebells – once they’re trampled, they can take years to recover.

One particular hotspot to see these incredible flowers is Rannerdale Knotts in the Lake District, where thousands of these wildflowers pop up between late April and mid-May.

While most bluebells flower in woodland areas, this particular patch covers open fellside – they bloom a bit later than other areas in the UK and mid-May is the perfect time to see them in full bloom.

Rannerdale Knotts is a short distance from the village of Buttermere, and the bluebell field can be accessed by a gentle walk from Buttermere National Trust car park.

However, these flowers are at risk of being ‘loved to death’, the National Trust has warned.

@adventure_with_jamie

Lost in a sea of bluebells at Rannerdale Knott — where the Lake District turns into a fairytale. Nature’s magic in full bloom! 💜 💜 💜 #wild #like #bluebells #likeforlikes #rannerdalebluebells #adventure #foryour #instagram #likeforlike #lakedistrictnationalpark #followforfollowback #purple #naturephotography #bluebell #photooftheday #fyp #bluebellseason #likesforlikes #thisismyadventure #followforfollow #bluebellphotography #picoftheday #lakedistrictcumbria #wildflowers #rannerdaleknott #likesforlike #seaofbluebells #lakedistrict #beautiful #travelphotography

♬ Northern Attitude – Noah Kahan & Hozier

They say: “Rannerdale’s bluebells are renowned as a natural wonder, beloved of visitors and photographers; however, they are being ‘loved to death’.

“Once the plants are damaged by trampling they can’t photosynthesise enough energy and it can take them years to recover. Over the last 5 years, nearly 25% of the bluebells have been lost.

“To save the bluebells, and access to them, the National Trust are asking visitors to fight the urge to get in amongst the flowers and just simply stick to the path. Only by protecting them today can we ensure everyone has a chance to enjoy this special spring display in the future.”

Several locals have echoed this on social media, with one person saying: “As a local we love to share our landscape with visitors but please remember to maintain its natural beauty. So many people trample on them to get the perfect insta shot.”

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Featured image: Unsplash, Jonny Gios

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