WE all remember Super Saturday at the London Olympics, when Jessica Ennis-Hill, Mo Farah and Greg Rutherford all won gold for Team GB within a sensational 45 minutes.
So my family jumped at the chance to visit Stratford — the site for the 2012 Games and home to world class sport arenas, restaurants, hotels and Europe’s biggest shopping centre.
9
And sorry Jess and Mo, but we had our own Super Saturday . . . and, er, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.
Getting to Stratford was easy. It’s just a seven-minute train trip from St Pancras after me, my wife Joanne and kids George, 11, and Sadie, eight, arrived on the train from Glasgow.
Our base was the Hyatt Regency London Stratford, the perfect location to explore the area.
It’s two hotels in one and after a warm welcome from the friendly staff, we got the lift to the upper floors of the Hyatt House.
Our room was amazing, really much more like an apartment, with a fitted kitchen, work space and separate main bedroom.
The living room had a sofa bed and plenty of space for the four of us to recover from our action-packed days out in the capital.
Best of all was the spectacular view, only beaten from the 12th-floor gym which looks onto the Olympic Stadium.
After our long journey down, a comfy sleep was in order and that’s exactly what we got. Bliss.
Next morning we headed down for our all-inclusive brekkie — and it truly was a breakfast of champions.
Sadie and George were keen to explore the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. We’d arranged to pick up hire bikes and helmets at the Lee Valley VeloPark and tour the indoor arena where Sir Chris Hoy raced to two golds.
9
9
9
Outside there are cool tracks more suited to amateurs like us. The one-mile enclosed road circuit was outstanding and we swept around the laps for about an hour.
Among the six permanent Olympic venues open to the public is the Olympic Stadium — now used by West Ham United.
But the closest to the Hyatt Regency is the London Aquatics Centre. The stunning swimming facility boasts the diving boards where Tom Daley leapt to bronze in 2012.
Luckily the 10m (33ft) platform wasn’t on the agenda for us as we had an AquaSplash session booked.
George and Sadie jumped into the pool where swim legend Michael Phelps took gold and Glasgow’s Michael Jamieson who won silver.
The 45-minute session had two parallel inflatables — roughly 125ft long — that we climbed, slid and clambered along before finishing on a slide.
Hyatt Regency guests get a discount for the Aquatics Centre and Velodrome which can be booked by the concierge.
Later, as we headed back to the hotel we saw how much this part of London has to offer.
Apart from West Ham games, ABBA Voyage is nearby. There are canal walks, swan pedalos, tree-lined boulevards, cafés, bars and the world’s longest tunnel slide at the ArcelorMittal Orbit tower which reopens after a refurb this summer.
The nearby Westfield mall has shops, a cinema, bowling alley and casino.
And the transport links into central London are great. Stratford Tube station, Stratford International train line and the Docklands Light Railway are all within a short walk.
In our few days we also squeezed in big-ticket attractions like the London Eye, a Thames cruise, Tower of London and Science and Natural History Museums.
9
9
9
9
Joanne and Sadie headed into theatreland to see Matilda while me and George enjoyed a tour of Spurs’ epic new stadium.
Then we headed back to the hotel for the best dinner of our trip at The Elondi – East London Dining.
Read more on the Scottish Sun
It’s glam and elegant, yet relaxing and the meals and wine were sensational. The children’s menu was excellent too, always a good sign of a top family-friendly venue.
As we reached our holiday’s finishing line, we agreed we’d return to Stratford and the Hyatt Regency, because, just like Jess and Mo, we’d struck gold at this champ of a hotel.