The Channel View hotel in Shanklin is an absolute gem; my wife, daughter and myself arrived after the long trip from Norfolk to be made welcome by the staff who during the stay where friendly, polite and helpful in all they did,

The room we stayed in was a premier plus which had a glorious sea view, it was spacious, exceptionally clean and quiet, the bed were a little creaky but that only added to the charm,

The bathroom was clean, light and airy with ample supply of fresh towels and a shower that was hot and strong,

The hotel stands at the top of a hill (probably 80% of all Isle of Wight hotels do) which gave wonderful views and the opportunity to walk of the excellent food consumed in the dinning room, speaking of which the food was first class, it was good wholesome food presented in a top restaurant way, the menu was well balanced and the dinning room was beautifully decorated and attended by efficient and speedy staff (no food ever went cold)

The heated indoor swimming pool was very clean and well maintained and provided an alternative to the beach,

The hotel provided entertainment every night except Thursdays and Sundays in a lovely ballroom complete with glass globe hanging from the ceiling, it had a large well sprung dance floor and at one end was a well stocked bar, the entertainment usually consisted of a singer who played their own music, and although aimed at the more mature guest who loved to foxtrot or quickstep the cosiness and intimacy of the performance made you feel special,

The hotel has an official two star AA rating but it was more like a four star, I have stayed in lots of hotels over the years both for work and on holidays and I can recommend the Channel View as one of the very best I have stayed in, no way is this hotel a two star it is far too good for that, I would defiantly stay in the Channel View again and would not hesitate to recommend it to