We booked Matt & Steph's "Modern, Stylish City Centre Flat" for a break in Manchester before Xmas to go round the markets and explore some museums and galleries. Communication during booking was great, with a quick response, which turned out to be generally the case for any questions to our good hosts. On booking they sent through a guide including some comprehensive information and recommendation about Manchester attractions, bars and restaurants. On our arrival, the guide included steps to find the flat and clear pictures of how to obtain the key. (For me, the directions are useful as long as you're aware to go right out of the main entrance at Manchester Piccadilly station, keeping the shops to your right-hand-side. Comparatively, Google Maps is confusing because it thinks you're on the road beneath the station and gives you an inaccurate route!) Also a bonus was their offer to store our bags from 2PM (I think) onwards if the flat was not ready, but as it turns out, their cleaner had prioritised us to let us settle straight away.
The flat is indeed modern and generally stylish. It's just a short walk from Manchester Piccadilly. Off the hallway, the kitchen adjoins the living-room and offers Sky and a Smart TV. There are separate rooms for the bedroom and bathroom. From here, we dumped our bags and went off to explore. We found that Piccadilly Gardens is about a 10 minute walk away, serving some nice mulled wine at this time of year :D. The New Town is also easily accessible, with the Craft And Design Centre seemingly a good stop for arts-and-crafts presents. A Morrisons convenience store nearby the flat served for getting some dinner to cook in our home for the week.
Cooking facilities turned out to be generally good. The kitchen is reasonably well equipped. Pizza on the first night - not knowing what utensils we had available - worked fine, though we baked this on a sheet of baking paper because there was no baking foil. To remove any hot tray from the oven we were forced to use thin tea-towels, so we treated the flat to a pair of oven gloves to keep. Cooking some vegetables in a pan the next night worked fine, though we boiled them instead of steaming them. There was also a dishwasher for washing up, though with the small quantities involved we chose not to use it.
Overnight the flat was generally quiet with the occasional noise of a car going by. For me, the noise was enough to distract me slightly if trying to sleep, but not loud enough to wake me once asleep. The bed itself is a medium sized double with a very cosy mattress. The pillows were slightly too thick for me so I switched them for a cushion in my pillow-slip, but they suited my partner well. Each to their own ...
Highlights for me of our stay as tourists were seeing the Lowry at Salford Quays, which has a fine collection of the artists works ... visiting Manchester Art Gallery's in-house collection (far better than The Whitworth) … and being introduced to the outside of the "nuclear bunker" on the free tour of Manchester. When leaving on the Friday, we stored our bags in the left luggage at Piccadilly station before an evening train home. An excellent trip - despite the Manchester rain - made all the better by Matt and Steph's flat -- Thank You!