'World's deepest hotel' opens in UK with guests sleeping in an underground mine
A new hotel lets you sleep at the bottom of a Victorian mine in what is the deepest underground bed on the planet.
If the idea of hunkering under your covers as well as millions of tonnes of rock and earth in the dark, then you're in luck.
Deep Sleep in Snowdonia, North Wales broke records when it opened earlier this year by building rooms a staggering 1,375 vertical feet (419m) below the mountains of Snowdonia.
According to the people behind the conversion of the former slate mine, that makes it "the deepest underground sleep on the planet... by far."
The Deep Sleep hotel comprises of four private twin-bed cabins and a romantic grotto with a double bed, which can be hired out one day a week, on a Saturday Night through to Sunday Morning.
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From the guests' perspective their adventure begins at 5pm on Saturday evening when they meet their guide near Blaenau Ffestiniog before heading off on a 45-minute walk up into the mountains.
The trip down into the mine takes about an hour (Go Below)At the end of a steep but often quite beautiful hill is a small cottage where everyone kits up in helmets, light harnesses and welly boots, ready to plunge into the dark of the largest and deepest abandoned slate mine in the world.
The route down through the old workings is steep and challenging, with ancient miner stairways, decaying bridges and scrambles to negotiate.
Throughout the hour-long journey an instructor will provide plenty of historical information about the environment, which will take guests more than 400m underground.
A large steel door marks the end of the trip and the entrance to the Deep Sleep room.
Inside are several small cabins which are kitted out with single beds, a bedside table and a small lamp, as well as a scenic picture of the interior of a mine on the wall.
Guests wander into the bowels of the mine (Go Below)Some of the cabins are actually built into the rock of the mine itself, so it's difficult to forget how big a heap of earth is piled above you even when tucked up in bed.
Guests are treated to an expedition-style meal to enjoy at a large covered picnic table before they are directed to bed "for a very deep sleep".
The instructor and a member of technical staff will remain in their own cabins in the Deep Sleep chamber for the night, meaning night trippers won't be left alone in the mine at any point.
One of the cosy cabins (Go Below)At 8am, once the sun has risen and lit up the world far above, a revitalising cup of tea or coffee warms everyone's cockles before they head to the surface and back home.
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Operations manager Mike Morris said: "Guests who have stayed there absolutely loved it. They like its uniqueness, the evening camaraderie and the sense of being away from civilisation.
"However the main observation has been the ability to get an amazing night’s sleep! Guests have said they had a better night’s sleep than they ever manage at home – the best night’s sleep in their lives."
Building the campsite was not straightforward. An abandoned tunnel was walled up to create the grotto, a short distance from the main camp. Getting the beds and timber shed sections down was more challenging.
The cabins are open to guests overnight from Saturday to Sunday (Go Below)"We had to abseil them down," said Mike. "We rigged up cargo lines and lowered them down shafts, which was easier than trying to manhandle them all down."
The man behind the big idea was Miles Moulding, managing director of Go Below. The company was established 13 years ago.
"He always likes to offer something that’s never been done before," said Mike.
"Our target market is those who are a little bit more adventurous and who want to try something different from hotels and glamping. There’s nothing like this anywhere else in the UK."
Per night prices: Cabins (for two people) - £350; Grotto (for two people) - £550.
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