Cool Place of the Day: the Midland Hotel, Lancashire

Every day, a new place to discover or explore from coolplaces.co.uk

The Midland Hotel, Lancashire

A landmark of Art Deco design, the Midland Hotel is beautifully positioned on Morecambe promenade, with superb views across the Bay to the Lake District fells, and this weekend, when it hosts its first ever Seafood Festival, is perhaps the ideal time to visit. Built in the 1930s when Morecambe was in its seaside heyday, it cut a sad figure until relatively recently, when its clean angles and cool sweeping lines were in a very poor state of disrepair. But it was sympathetically and rather wonderfully restored five years ago by the excellent local hotel group, English Lakes, and many of its original Art Deco features rescued, including a collection of marvellous friezes and sculptures by Eric Gill. These sit alongside bold modern additions which suit the building perfectly, among them the excellent revamped restaurant and terrace with stirring views over the Bay and Pier, and the very colourful, ultra-contemporary Rotunda cocktail bar.

As for the bedrooms, they are starkly modern too, but with plenty of nods to their 1930s heritage, and the views again are superb, not least from the six magnificently cool roof-top suites. All things considered – the amazing public spaces, the stirring views, the fabulous restaurant, even the slightly bizarre location – there's isn't anywhere else like it, not in the North-west, maybe not anywhere.

Cool Places is a website from the creators of Rough Guides and Cool Camping, suggesting the best places to stay, eat, drink and shop in Britain (coolplaces.co.uk).