It’s been a long road to Brighton, with a few detours on the way.
Brighton was not our first choice of venue; you may have seen earlier announcements saying the event was going to be near Birmingham. Sadly, despite having had a provisional booking with them for some time, we were somehow double booked on one of the days and they didn’t have adjacent dates available, so we had to find a new venue at very short notice.
For some reason, there seems to be a limited number of hotels in the UK that can accommodate a medium sized convention. This is a problem for Eastercon, becoming a problem for Fantasycon and is also for World Fantasy Convention. Don’t get me wrong, we haven’t looked at every venue in the UK and the search for the perfect venue is ongoing every time we plan a new convention.
We have put together some thoughts for those who are thinking about running a convention in the UK and those who are curious about why we ended up where we did.
The key requirements we look at are:
- Space and Function rooms – to physically fit the activities of the convention; panel rooms, reading rooms, art show, banquet, autograph signing etc. The WFC space requirements are set out on their website, it includes a large event space to incorporate the autograph signing, space for an artshow and dealers room. Fantasycon is a little smaller and does not have an art show. Eastercon needs more function rooms to including gaming and other activities as well as an art show and dealers room.
- Accessibility – As a minimum wheelchair users need to be able to get into all of the rooms. We undertake a site visit and identify issues before signing a contract with a new venue.
- Cost – While we are not aiming to make a profit, we don’t want to make a loss or have to put the price of tickets/membership so high that it is un-affordable.
We have a number of other requirements that generally have knock on effect on the three issues above.
- Location in relation to other facilities – If affordable accommodation and food is not close to the venue, then people are limited to the hotel’s offering. This disproportionately affects disabled people as they may be unable to walk the required distance, are more likely to want to return to their hotel room during the day, are more likely to need to access affordable food and drink and are statistically more likely to be on a lower income, so the cost of taxis could be an issue. Taxis and private hire vehicles in the UK are not all accessible to wheelchair users.
- The physical setting of the venue – if it is in a remote rural location then walking to and from the venue can be difficult. There are not always pavements on the roads, a very sloped site can also be difficult.
- How spread out the venue is – this has an greater impact on those with limited mobility, fatigue and manual wheelchair users.
- Access to parking – if the parking is a long way from the hotel it can cause an issue for disabled people.
- Access to public transport – people who don’t have a car or who are coming from abroad are likely to be using public transport. If this journey has a lot of changes (i.e. between different trains or busses) then it can be more difficult for people with disabilities. Services outside of major cities in the UK are often not accessible in a wheelchair. Services in major cities are very variable as to their accessibility.
- Fresh air and the ability not to be in crowded and stuffy rooms has become a greater concern since the onset of the Covid pandemic. This particularly affects people with a lower immune response.
N.B. we are not looking at conference centres as they come with a host of issues. in particular they tend to be expensive and not having accommodation on site is not ideal from an accessibility point of view.
We are avoiding Glasgow and Edinburgh for the next few years as Worldcon is taking place in Glasgow (in a conference centre) in 2024 and international guests are unlikely to want to return there so soon. This would have a knock on effect on the finances of the convention.
How the venue is used, will vary depending on the organising team and what accommodations they are able to put in place. If the hotel is big enough you may be able to avoid using inaccessible rooms in a venue. Many of these conventions have ended up returning to specific venues or agreeing never to return! Things however do change over time, the management team or ownership of the hotel may have changed and there may have been physical renovations since the last convention. However understanding what didn’t work (or went well) previously can be really helpful when organising an event.
So, lets look at some of the hotels that have had conventions held in them recently:
Birmingham Hilton Metropole – This was our preferred location for WFC 2025 and has hosted Eastercons, but it is not perfect when it comes to accessibility. The venue is large and spread out. Most of the function rooms are accessible, the mezzanine rooms are not. One of the main corridors has a set of stairs halfway down it and these are steps into the bar area meaning people in wheelchairs have to take a longer route to get to certain places – this may be fine for powered wheelchairs and scooters, but is less helpful for manual wheelchairs and those with limited mobility who struggle with stairs. Restaurants are about 0.5 miles away at Resort World, these are often busy and so require pre-booking. It is worth noting, that despite its name, this venue is not in central Birmingham. It is a short train ride into the city centre. It has a large above ground car park with designated blue badge spaces. It has good public transport links and is adjacent to an airport.
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/bhxmetw-hilton-birmingham-metropole/
https://www.accessable.co.uk/hilton/access-guides/hilton-birmingham-metropole-conference-facilities
Double Tree by Hilton Brighton Metropole – The costs are higher than the previous venue. The front entrance is accessible by ramp for manual wheelchairs and smaller mobility scooters (for our American visitors, the ramp actually exceeds ADA requirements, but I know that is a relatively low bar). Larger mobility scooters need to come in via a side entrance. People coming from the car park will also come in via a side entrance. The (lower) ground floor function rooms, bar and breakfast room have step free access from the lobby. Other levels are accessible via a lift. There are some rooms that are not accessible to wheelchair users at all, that would require use of a goods lift or going outside of the hotel and coming in a different way (we are not going to use these). The accessible function rooms are spread across 3 floors, but once on that floor are close to each other. The car park has height restrictions. It has good public transport links to London Airports.
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/bshmedi-doubletree-brighton-metropole/
Novotel Hammersmith – This venue has hosted conventions in the past and hosts a one day gaming event every year. It has a variety of function rooms and lift to every floor. Based on the quotes we received for a 4 day convention it was significantly outside of our budget – it is worth noting that the convention that used to run in this hotel stopped because they were making significant losses financially. It has good public transport links to London Airports. The car park has height limits. It is inside the London Emission zone which limits the type of vehicle you can drive there in. An older van would cost £100 per day for driving in this zone.
https://www.guestreservations.com/novotel-london-west/booking
Raddison Heathrow – This venue has hosted Eastercon and Fantasycon. There are a lot of functions rooms, but none of them would be large enough to accommodate the autographing session, banquet and dealers room for WFC. Eastercon has had to put most of the dealers into small rooms down a long corridor. The venue is quite spread out and a little maze like. The venue tends to be on the more expensive side – The organiser for Fantasycon 2022 cancelled the event 3 months before it was due to take place as a result of expected financial losses if it went ahead. There is car parking adjacent to the hotel. There is one pub close by, other restaurants are further away and quite spread out from each other. This venue has good links to Heathrow airport. It is inside the London Emission zone which limits the type of vehicle you can drive there in. An older van would cost £100 per day for driving in this zone.
https://www.radissonhotels.com/en-us/hotels/radisson-conference-london-heathrow
Harrogate Hilton – (Caveat, I personally have not visited the venue.) The website says it does not have “Van accessible parking” which suggests there is a height limit on parking. It is less than a mile from the station. It is not near an international airport. It is in a town centre so has access to shops and restaurants. Prices quoted for a different event put this significantly outside of our budget. I am told that to get a wheelchair accessible route between different sections of the hotel you would have to go round outside of the hotel, which would be impacted by the weather.
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/lbahadi-doubletree-harrogate-majestic-hotel-and-spa/
Manchester Hilton – (Caveat, I have not been there recently.) This venue has hosted Eastercon in the past. It was only just big enough for that event and would not be big enough for a WFC. Some of the smaller rooms would not be usable once it is set up to accommodate the turning circle of a mobility scooter. It is in Manchester town centre and has good transport links and access to shops and restaurants. There is a plan to bring in a low emissions zone in Manchester, but this is currently on hold.
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/mandghi-hilton-manchester-deansgate/
https://www.accessable.co.uk/hilton/access-guides/hilton-manchester-deansgate
Birmingham Leonardo Royal – This venue has hosted Fantasycon. It has good accessibility, all the function rooms are on the same floor and 4 large lifts go to all levels. However it is is too small to host either Eastercon or WFC. It is in the centre of Birmingham, so has good access to shops and restaurants. It is difficult to navigate to in a car due to the one way streets. The train station is less than a mile away and has good public transport links. It is inside the Birmingham Emission zone. An older van would cost £16 per day for driving in this zone.
https://www.leonardo-hotels.com/birmingham/leonardo-royal-hotel-birmingham
https://www.accessable.co.uk/birmingham-city-council/access-guides/leonardo-royal-hotel N.B. The hotel reception is now step free.
Chester Queen – (Caveat, I have not visited this hotel recently.) This venue has hosted Fantasycon. The front entrance is stepped, so all wheelchair access is via an alternate entrance, this is the same entrance that would be used by those arriving in the car park. The Car park is a reasonable size and close to the hotel. It is opposite the station so has good public transport links. The ground floor function rooms have step free access, The first floor rooms are accessed by a single lift and stairs. This venue would be too small to host Eastercon or WFC. It is not particularly close to an international airport.
https://www.thequeenatchesterhotel.co.uk/
Palace Hotel Buxton – (Caveat, I personally have not visited this hotel.) This venue hosts Novacon a smaller SFF convention. The front door has steps leading up to it and the pavement of the road into the town is also stepped. The venue is adjacent to a train station. It is not close to an international airport. The venue is too small for Eastercon or WFC.
https://www.britanniahotels.com/hotels/palace-hotel-buxton
Scarborough Grand and Royal Hotels – This has been used for a Fantasycon and was the intended venue for Stokercon/Chillercon. However, Chillercon ended up just using the Royal Hotel as the ceiling had collapsed on one of the function rooms in the Grand. A split venue is not idea for accessibility, the shortest route between the venue uses stairs as the location is sloped. A longer step free route is available. A number of the function rooms in the Royal hotel are only accessed via stairs. There were issues with water leakage into one of the grand hotels function rooms at Fantasycon meaning that one of the larger rooms could not be used (I don’t know if this is the same room whose ceiling collapsed). There are restaurants and shops nearby as it is in the town.
https://www.britanniahotels.com/hotels/the-grand-hotel-scarborough
https://www.britanniahotels.com/hotels/the-royal-hotel-scarborough
Bristol Double Tree by Hilton – (Caveat, I have been to this venue once.) This is the venue for Bristolcon, a one day SFF convention. This venue is too small for an Eastercon or WFC. Fantasycon would not run here unless combined with Bristolcon as the dates are too close. It is close to a main train station and has on site parking. The venue is inside Bristol’s clean air zone, an older van would cost £9 per day to drive in the zone.
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/brsrwdi-doubletree-bristol-city-centre
There are then some hotels that we looked at on paper, but did not get as far as a site visit, these are included for completeness:
Manchester Midland – The venue is too small to hold a WFC. We looked at the possibility of combining it with an adjacent venue, but this is likely to be expensive and a split site is not ideal for accessibility. There is a plan to bring in a low emissions zone in Manchester, but this is currently on hold.
https://www.themidlandhotel.co.uk/
Manchester Mercure – There is not sufficient space to hold a WFC. We did look at combining it with an adjacent venue, but the costs were too high and a split venue is not ideal. There is a plan to bring in a low emissions zone in Manchester, but this is currently on hold.
https://www.mercuremanchester.co.uk/
Stratford on Avon Crown Plaza – This venue is too small to host an Eastercon or WFC.
https://www.ihg.com/crowneplaza/hotels/gb/en/stratford-upon-avon/sfdua/hoteldetail
Solihull Voco St Johns – This venue is too small to host an Eastercon or WFC.
https://www.stjohnssolihull.co.uk/
Nottingham Delta by Marriott – This is right on the outskirts of Nottingham, so it is close to an airport, but not close to anything else. It is also too small to host a WFC or Eastercon.
https://www.marriott.com/en-gb/hotels/emade-delta-hotels-nottingham-belfry/overview/
Sheffield Park Hilton – This venue is too small to host an Eastercon or WFC. it is also on the outskirts of Sheffield so not many restaurants nearby. The bedroom capacity would not be sufficient and there are not other hotels nearby.
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/szdcrdi-doubletree-sheffield-park/
Newcastle Gateshead Hilton – This venue is too small to host a WFC.
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/nclhihi-hilton-newcastle-gateshead/
If you would like to add any UK hotels to our list or update the information here, do get in touch Enquiries@WorldFantasy2025.co.uk
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