The Devonshire Arms Hotel & Spa
Bolton Abbey, England
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About the Hotel
Surrounded by the breathtaking Yorkshire Dales in the north of England, The Devonshire Arms Hotel & Spa has been in the family of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire since 1733. Situated on the familyâ€(TM)s Bolton Abbey Estate in the village of Skipton, it is a destination that honors the dignity of the past. Bedrooms are individually furnished with antiques and artwork, while the celebrated Burlington Restaurant boasts tables dressed in silver and fine china, and an enviable cellar of fine and rare wines.
Location
The Devonshire Arms Hotel & Spa
Bolton Abbe
Bolton Abbey, England
BD236AJ
Nearest Airport: LBA
Features and Amenities
- In-Room Amenities
- Bathrobes
Reviews for The Devonshire Arms Hotel & Spa
The fine dining was not in any way fine
Stayed at the Devonshire at Bolton Abbey for a 2 night stay for New Year - rooms were good, breakfast and service throughout was excellent but the fine dining was not so fine. When paying well over £1000 per person you have a right to expect far better. How can a Chef mess up so badly. Just a very few examples - the Beef Wellington looked the part but was exceedingly bland, any available vegetables were not blanched, they were completely rock hard , the poached pear dessert had just a few thin slivers of pear served on a soggy base of blue cheese infused cake like substance ( not good at all ) - the list could go on and on. Quantities and choice of ingredients in just about every dish were all awry and the wine pairing on the final night was the worst I can ever remember. Does this hotel have a chef or simply a trainee cook and it definitely does not have a Sommelier? It's such a shame as I like the venue, the staff are excellent but we will not be returning until they get a better chef.
Y0rkie46 - Leeds
Outstanding afternoon tea
Came for the afternoon tea which was outstanding, beautifully presented and everything was delicious. Excellent attentive service and great prosecco.
Voyage67942716764 - Rego Park, New York
A treat at Christmas
My family and me spent 3 days over Christmas at the hotel which is a personal favourite of mine. All 10 of us enjoyed greatly the hotel, the festive atmosphere created by the staff. The service, the food and drink and the friendliness of all of the staff were all exceptional. Proper Yorkshire. I can see from the comments of others who visited earlier in the year that some of the changes made to the catering and the staffing have not been well received. A pity since the hotel has been reliably very good over many years. Clearly that was not our experience which was universally excellent.
Richard B - Juan-les-Pins, France
The fight for our fish and chips.
We came and we sat down for a nice meal but that was not the case for one of us. We sat down ordered drinks and waited for at least 10 minutes then we ordered our meals the party member who did not enjoy their meal ordered fish and chips we where then left waiting 25 minutes for our food and when it came out it was a kids fish and chips and was cold. The chips were stale and it wasn't even proper fish and chips it was just 3 fish goujons. The person who got this meal was absolutely appalled then when the waiter came over they said that they would give us a refund which they did but was still extremely overpriced and overall a terrible experience.
Blake S
Completely lost its way. Luxury no longer.
It makes me incredibly sad to have to write this review as The Devonshire Arms was the venue of our wedding and many a happy time over the years but after a number of recent visits which have been totally unacceptable on many levels I feel compelled to write a pubic review in the hope that the owners (Duke and Duchess of Devonshire) will take a look into the current (mis)management of the hotel. As stated we have been visiting The Dev for a number of years and historically the service, staff, food, decor and general luxuriousness of the hotel have been excellent. It is now little more than an overpriced B&B which tries to do food. During our last stay (Dec 2024) it was unfortunately blighted by problems - the first being that we had booked a champagne afternoon tea in the Cocktail Lounge for 1.30pm to start our overnight stay. We had requested the lounge due to having our dogs with us. We arrived a little earlier and ordered drinks. 1.30pm came and went and there was no sign of the afternoon tea. We enquired with the gentleman in the lounge and he stated that no one had told him we were there. Now 1.45pm and others who had arrived way after us (and without a booking) were being served their sandwiches and cheese platters while we still sat and waited. It wasn’t until 2.30pm that it arrived. The same gentleman explained that the afternoon tea had been sent to a table in the conservatory not one but twice before it made its way to us. By this point the sandwiches and wraps were stale, however we were now very hungry after a walk to the Strid and back so begrudgingly ate it for fear another would take just as long. When booking the afternoon tea over the phone the lovely chap on reception (I think his name was Ryan) explained that as part of our Sunday getaway package we had a cream tea included, however we had been bought the champagne afternoon tea by a family member for Christmas so he agreed to a glass of fizz for us each in lieu of the included cream tea, given our previous custom. However on check out both the champagne which should have been included in the afternoon tea and also the complimentary Proseccos had been added to our bill. Room 22 is in need of some very urgent upgrades - • The fridge does not work which we discovered upon trying to make a cup of tea this morning when the milk had gone off and congealed. • The radiator or pipes in the room need to be serviced as when the heating kicked in overnight there was a very loud and rather irritating whirring noise which affected our sleep. • There are a few fixings in the bathroom which need to be screwed back onto the wall - the worst of these was the soap tray at the end of the bath as toiletries can’t be placed on it without it slipping and them all falling off. The last two times we have been the breakfast has been of terrible standard. During our pre-Christmas stay I was given the wrong breakfast completely as apparently the chef wasn’t aware that the breakfast menu had changed and that the goats cheese no longer came with Parma ham but the new granola and cranberry. When it did arrive it was very average. My husband ordered the smoked salmon bagel - when the bagel arrived it was stale, hard and inedible, it also arrived without the scrambled egg he had asked to accompany it. When he raised this, instead of taking it all away and remaking it he was sent a plate of scrambled eggs some time later but no new bagel, obviously his eggs were now going cold so he started to eat the smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, however the fresh bagel took so long to arrive he had finished both by the time it did. On looking around it was noted that many of the breakfasts were being left and comments re quality were being raised. This weekend we thought we would give it another chance, we attended the much publicised ''Christmas Markets'' - please do not advertise this as a Christmas Market unless you have the organisational skills to actually pull it off as 8 stalls (one of which was empty) does not constitute a Christmas Market. However, this does sadly reflect the absolute shambles this hotel now is and how poorly it is managed. We tried and failed to get a coffee - we sat down in the dog lounge and waited 15 minutes for a member of staff to do their usual walk rounds so we could order, no one arrived. I went into the cocktail lounge to wait at the bar so I could order - no one arrived. Did also note lots of messy tables and people checking watches etc. We then walked through to The Brasserie - which was empty but did have two members of staff! Asked for a coffee to be told to go back through the other way - explained the situation to just receive a blank look and a shrug. It seems nothing has improved since our last stay - perhaps worse. This is is supposed to be a luxury hotel - it is an absolute shambles and a shadow of its former self. Such a shame that it has got this bad. The staff from 5-10 years ago would be embarrassed of what it has become.
Hannah M - Chorley, United Kingdom
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