“NOT IMPRESSED”

Nice location but the hotel is in need of Refurbishment ,floor are squeaky i could hear every step on the floor at night so didn`t sleep much ,Charges apply to everything even things that are in hotels of lesser standard complimentary , poor service ,poor food, unhelpful staff ,spa treatments substandard for the double price of other - better places . I wanted to have relaxing "me time" - travelled 350 miles to this place, but this stay was DISAPPOINTING .......

“Relaxing Stay”

Staff were friendly and helpful, rooms were comfortable and clean. Loved the power shower and the jacuzzi in our room although I know they are not in every room. We were visiting Durham and it was lovely to return to the hotel and have a relaxing swim and a tasty meal in the restaurant.

“EXCELLENT FOR A RELAXING BREAK. WE WILL RETURN”

WE SPENT FOUR RELAXING DAYS AT THIS HOTEL AND DID NOT VENTURE OUT INTO THE SURROUNDING AREA, PREFERRING TO CHILL OUT. THE SPA THOUGH A LITTLE TIRED, WAS WELL EQUIPPED AND TREATMENT REASONABLE PRICED. THE FOOD WAS VERY GOOD AND VERY WELL PRESENTED AS WELL AS BEING COMPETITIVELY PRICED. THE MENU WAS LIMITED AND AS IT WAS NOT CHANGED DURING THE TIME WE WERE THERE AND THAT MAY HAVE BEEN A PROBLEM FOR A LONGER VISIT. THE STAFF WERE VERY PLEASANT AND EAGER TO PLEASE. OVERALL A VERY GOOD EXPERIENCE

“Not the standard it used to be...”

Fabulous location. Fabulous looking building, but has seen better days, and is in need of updating. No other options within walking distance for food - hotel bar food and restaurant food of a 'good' standard - but not cheap. Drinks certainly not cheap - £4.25 for pint of San Miguel! Staff very attentive. Would return just for location and building, but does need some serious money being spent on the rooms.

“Hotel a bit tired”

hotel needs refurbishment

“Mixed feelings”

The downer was the restaurant. Awful! Bread rolls were stale and cold – probably bought in and not fresh. At least put them in the plate warming cabinet to soften them up. I ordered the Salade Niçoise partly because there was fresh tuna listed as a daily special so I expected fresh tuna in the salad. No such luck – poor quality tinned tuna! The potatoes were undercooked and the dressing was a very sweet balsamic that makes me worried I might now be diabetic. Having ordered, the waiter came back to ask, “Did I mean the Nicy-arrsy salad”. Waiting staff is very amateurish. They need a good Maitre d’ to control the 'team'. A main course of lamb shank was undercooked by about 1 hour. It was a struggle to cut the meat. The sauce was flavourless other than a very strong black pepper taste. After that I needed a good desert. I ordered the apple crumble tart with ice cream. I think the tart was colder than the ice cream. Why? The wine list is short and uninspiring. I had a glass of indifferent Merlot. The second glass ordered never arrived. On reflection, for that I am grateful. VERY expensive broadband: GBP 15 minimum. The was biled via credit card by Swisscom but it then also appeared on my hotel bill at checkout TWICE - and I only stayed one night.

“Needs major refurbishment!!!”

I was attending a wedding at the venue so it made sense to stay there. We booked via Expedia as it was cheaper than the hotel 'wedding' rate. On arrival all was fine and we were checked in quickly. You can tell the hotel would have been really nice about 15 years ago but it is very, very dated and scruffy. There's wallpaper coming off the walls everywhere and everything is very tatty. Our room obviously hadn't been deep cleaned in a while and I dropped the (really bad and powerless) shower head when I was in the shower and the water hit behind the taps and lots of loose black grime came away. The skirting boards were filthy and I sat on the floor only to discover my black trousers were covered in lots of hair...not nice. We had only been in the room 2 minutes! Also, the drinks are really expensive for a hotel of this standard. I wouldn't mind paying over the odds for a vodka and tonic in a gorgeous hotel but not this place. The wine selection was rubbish and they charged a fortune for the cheapest bottle. It was more like a 2/3 star...I would rather stay in a clean Premier Inn. However, the grounds are lovely...but that's it!

“Memu What menu?”

We arrived for dinner at 8:15 pm and stood about for a couple of minutes before we were spotted and greeted. Once at our table some alterations to the menu were explained. The sauce with the gammon would now be 'brown gravy', the lamb shoulder and lamb's liver was only liver, the chicken was not available and the fish course had changed species. We ordered from resticted menu and the starter (soup) arrived in reasonable time. This upset ladies at the next table as they had been waiting some time for their starters. At this point we realised that several other tables were very unhappy about the service. Waiting staff were embarrassed and the Maitre D could only try to chase up the kitchen. By the time our mains arrived discontent was rife but eventually all were served albeit in a strange sequence. By pudding the vanilla ice cream metamorphosed into vanilla and toffee. The quality and presentation of what was served was not worth the quoted price per head and not what we expected from a 4 star establishment. No explanations were given, even when we checked out, but clearly there was something very wrong with the management of the kitchen. We ate out the following night. Rooms walls and skirtings were scuffed and needed minor repairs.

“Not impressed”

We paid for modern room (as per expedia website which was more expensive) and were given contemporary room 404. The bathroom shower curtain smelled. After making complaint they provided us with room 608 what we paid for initially. Then we ordered room service for dinner. They served half the meal and no cutlery. But when we phone back for rest of the meal and cutlery it took then about 30 to 40min. We had to eat cold meal. Good selection of breakfast. Parking was free. Nice view when entered the hotel.