Where to stay in Newcastle?

[bottersnikes]

After posting on another thread for suggestions of where to go for some child-free days in July, dh and I have agreed on Newcastle; neither of us has been, it sounds gorgeous and interesting and it'll be cheaper to get to than going abroad!
This means we have a bit of budget for a nice hotel/apartment - where would you recommend? We'd like to as be as close to the centre as possible and we prefer small/boutiquey places rather than large chains. As this is a treat holiday, we're happy to pay for a bit of luxury!

Does it have to be in the centre? The metro system goes all over the area and there are some lovely by the sea places.

Really you could stay anywhere on the metro system and still get your fill of Newcastle.

If you like boutique hotels I recommend the malmaison on the quayside.

Lots of options really
Malmaison on the quayside is nice & well located.
Luxury a bit further out but still easy to get into the centre - jesmond dene hotel is gorgeous
I know the guys that designed this place -
www.roomzzz.com/newcastle-city/ which is very central & supposed to be nice.

Oh and small but nice
www.thetownhousehotel.co.uk it's just off Gosforth High Street so not central to the city but easy to get into city on Metro or even walking.

The roomzzz look gorgeous, and exceptional value - thank you for the tip! We might even be able to stretch to one of the suites, which would feel very special.
I see there's no parking available, but hopefully there are some NCP places nearby-ish.

There is on street parking near there but I don't know the restrictions as I only use them in the evening (free after 6pm) for nights out or various multi-stories - don't park at the station it's a rip off but there are various other options.
www.newcastle.gov.uk/parking-roads-and-transport/parking/car-parks-and-on-street-parking
Or
www.ncp.co.uk/parking-solutions/cities/newcastle
Hope you have a lovely time

That's great, thank you wonkylegs!