Stoke Place

A wonderful view,very clean room with fresh linen,clean bathroom and wonderful staff.It was a great joy for me to be there

My wife booked Stoke Place as a surprise for my birthday. We’ve stayed here a few times over the last decade — including our wedding night in 2013 and an anniversary in 2015 — and it has always held a special place in my heart. Sadly, this visit fell far short of expectations. On arrival, reception was unmanned for around 10 minutes, and when a staff member appeared, the welcome felt confused and impersonal. The room itself was well below the standard of a 4-star hotel. Dust was clearly visible on ceiling vents, and furniture had been poorly repainted with sticky surfaces. Overall, the décor felt tired and in desperate need of renovation and deep cleaning. I didn’t raise these issues during the stay as they aren’t quick fixes — the venue needs significant investment to restore its former charm. Service throughout the hotel felt distant, lacking the warmth and attention to detail I remember. The saving grace was breakfast: the team there were friendly, professional, and exactly what you’d hope for from a hotel of this calibre.

Fawlty Towers eat your heart out! We arrived to a room that hadn’t been cleaned. There was rubbish in the bin, a damp towel hanging on the shower and a dirty one over the bath. There was no hot water at 8pm when I tried to shower and when I contacted reception they advised this was because other people were running the hot water and to “give it ten mins”. By 9.30 still no hot water but we did get a visit from the reception team (two of them) to check I wasn’t lying although why I would feel the need to do this I’ve no idea. They turned the taps on, agreed there was no hot water and left with a promise of a discount and a new room in the morning. Morning has broken….and so was the hot water. We went to reception before setting out to work to be told by the lady that there weren’t any rooms as they were fully booked. I advised the whole conversation of the previous night but this hadn’t been passed on apparently. She advised they would find out what was happening and call me…spoiler alert, they didn’t. Returned from work at 3pm to be told hurrah! The problem is fixed….well kind of…maintenance man told me he had tested it earlier (whilst everyone at the hotel was out for the day) and it was fine and working. I asked if it would work later so I could have a shower and was advised this depends on whether any of the other guests are running a bath…I kid you not. Needless to say it would have been easier to get arrested and have a shower at her majesty’s pleasure than get clean in this place. On that note the hotel did appear to have a few activities going on in the car park. It was the most curious thing but two men in a car pulled in every 20 mins or so playing loud music and left after ten mins only to return soon after. I suspect their activities may rhyme with “rug stealing”. The final countdown… Needless to say we left Fawlty Towers..erm I mean Stoke Place with a full refund. This wasn’t offered until I threatened to recall the payment on my credit card (which costs them money). To do this though I had to promise to be out by 4pm “so we can still sell the room to another customer”. I’m sure they will enjoy the same experience we did. The only upside was the breakfast where the staff were all attentive and the food was fine. Please don’t visit here. What may have once been a nice place is just screwing over new people in the same old ways day after day. If you have no other choice (maybe all the holes by the side of the road are full and you can’t bed down there) pay by credit card to support your inevitable complaint.

Upon check in I was a little apprehensive about the hotel. Slightly dated, receptionist quite informal.. I went to the bar and my first impressions weren’t great.. however! The service from the staff was excellent. The food was absolutely spot on for what o actually wanted and the Malbec was more than drinkable.. my room whilst a bit dated in the house was more than comfortable and clean.. I will definitely come back again. Thank you

Only 2 flat pillows,only 2 tetley tea bags no little luxury touches for the money we paid For a country hotel wasn’t value for money!