On Cloud 9 with Loft11
18th May 2022
New accommodation on the block, Loft11 is a self-catering apartment found above Henderson and Glass in the centre of Douglas. Now, don’t let that straight to the point, basic yet factual sentence deter you, Loft11 is anything but. We were lucky enough to get the grand tour so we can give you the full low-down before you decide where your next Isle of Man stay/vaycay is.
Let’s begin with the front door. Tucked away down a side street, if you weren’t looking for it, you wouldn’t necessarily notice the entrance, because private opulence is the name of the game when it comes to Loft11. Not only that, keyless entry is the snazzy technology at play here, with not a boring, old-fashioned key in sight, just a tip tap tap on the number entry pad and we were in.
The first thing to note, is that Loft 11 cares about the quality of the apartment, and so it’s a shoes off household, and let us tell you that it’s more than worth it. The carpet in the stairwell alone is luxurious, not to mention the one in the bedrooms. We popped our shoes into the designated boxes and headed on up.
Now, this apartment has a lot of stairs, and they are relatively steep, so this flat is more suited to those without small children or other people who may have difficulty with numerous stairs. However, once you hit the top, my word is it worth the climb (OK so it’s just two flights of stairs but the apartment is so good we have to add some drama, ok?).
Here you emerge into a bright and sunny, lavishly decorated apartment. Making our way along the hall, past bedrooms and a bathroom to the right, we went straight for the main living/entertaining space. Here we were greeted with a fully fitted kitchen, a dining table big enough for six, a tropical patterned sofa, a coffee table in the shape of the letters “WTF”, a distressed, brown leather punching bag, a bicycle suspended from the ceiling, a TV, double doors on to a Juliet balcony AND A WHOLE BAR. IN ONE ROOM.
The kitchen, decorated with dark cabinets and a light marble effect counter top, has a Nespresso coffee machine with a selection of pods, a kettle, a cafetiere, an oven and a hob. Of course, LoveIOM has you covered when it comes to eating out, but if you fancied a home cooked meal, it would be a doddle, nay a pleasure, in this kitchen.
In the centre of the kitchen is a spiral staircase (we did say there are a lot of stairs and we were not joking), which leads you to a mezzanine snug/chill out room. With a rowing machine set behind a giant sofa bed and two leather rocking chairs, in front of another massive TV, this room brings the best of both worlds. You’ll need to be flexible though, there isn’t any standing room; however we’d be relaxing in a rocking chair, debriefing the day with a homemade cocktail crafted by our own fair hands in the living room bar before we hit the town, if it was us.
Now, it would be remiss of us to skip over the bedrooms, both of which are delightfully decorated, with tasteful, unbelievably comfortable furnishings. The larger of the two is Elvis themed, has a massive wall-covering bookshelf, so large it has a “straight out of an American university film/Hogwarts style” ladder on wheels. This alone, would be the clincher for me. With USB plugs by the bed, you don’t need to worry about bringing adaptors to keep your devices charged.
The smaller bedroom has a sign on the wall saying “tourists”. Now, don’t be put off, this is not an apartment reserved solely for off-islanders. This is a decadent slice of heaven for locals and visitors alike, offering all the glamour of a big city apartment, just a minute walk from Douglas beach.
This apartment is in fact filled with the most amazing wall art, and if you’re anything like us, you’ll want to be putting it in your suitcase (no need for that when you can just come back for another visit!). From the Marilyn Monroe piece with the very apt “everything is so fabulous here” to the “don’t get too comfortable, the place is popular” sign in the kitchen, these pieces truly bring to life the old saying “where art mimics life”.
Finally, is the bathroom. If you’re a veteran reader of LoveIOM blogs, you’ll know that we are a fan of fancy tiles (see VIBE and GoodStuff), and Loft11 adds another snazzy tile to our ever growing list. White tiles up the walls, and black and white tiles on the floor, we felt like we were in a 5 star boutique hotel, a modern spa, our dream home. We didn’t get to try the shower but the large square rain head in the double space looks like somewhere we could spend a lot of time (but we’re environmentally conscious so we shall be reasonable!). Also allow us a moment to let you know, the selfie lighting in the bathroom was 11/10. When you’re all dressed up ready to get drinks from Henderson and Glass downstairs or to get dinner from Jaks up the road, your mirror selfie game is going to be ON POINT.
Now, whilst we see ourselves living our best lives with a weekend away in the New York style loft, this is actually a great base for a business trip. With the long dining room table suitable for working from the apartment, being centrally located for the majority of offices in the Island, particularly the financial district of Athol Street, this could be perfect for your next Manx work trip. Free WiFi, close to a carpark and long stay parking if you drove or hired a car, and in close proximity to a taxi rank and public transport if not, you couldn’t do much better for location than here.
If you were to visit for the more usual style of Manx holiday (to see the sights, take in the culture, do some adventurous sporting activities) this is still the perfect spot. Centrally located for reaching all the tourist hot spots, in walking distance of endless pubs, bars and restaurants, and with plenty of space to relax after a day of hard core sightseeing, we couldn’t recommend here more.
You can pay for your stay at Loft11 with a LoveIOM Gift Card, so if you know someone who deserves a stay in a boujee, New York style loft, to live out their New Girl lifestyle or their Friends vibes for a weekend, gift them a LoveIOM Gift Card to spend here! And if they have any spare they could use the rest at a different location too!
That’s the great thing about the LoveIOM Gift Card, it doesn’t restrict you to one place, giving the receiver flexibility in their spending. Not only that, there are no transaction fees for merchants so every penny you spend at Loft11 will go to them, and maybe next time you visit, they’ll have installed another piece of furniture-come-artwork for you to enjoy.