The Barnsdale, Rutland

Regulars to this hotel (even before refurb) and would just ask management to start looking at detail. The courtyard is a disgrace. **** it, get rid of half dead plants and the hideous cheap sun umbrellas. This area - regardless of season - should be the heart of your hotel. Make it special. I recommend Rutland Garden Classics. Get rid of the hideous green bins. Our bathroom was tired (25) mdf panelling rotting, walls need repainting. Looked at the new pool. It is very very small. How will this work with adults and small children? Food as ever fantastic and your staff are lovely.

This used to be a real pleasure to visit, the food was excellent and the hotel always looked smart. The hotel for all its rebranding is tired and shabby, there are many items in the rooms that look like they have put in to save storage elsewhere. There are numerous small items that need fixing, replacing, or cleaning which would have improved the rooms quite easily. The breakfast was poor, we were glad we had gone out to eat the previous evening. I think my biggest annoyance is that it has turned into a wedding venue, which would have been fine if we had been informed. The loud music went on until midnight. I imagine that a lot of wedding guests stay, but there are many more rooms that are filled by other paying guests. The claims of the website do not meet the actual experience of the guests.

We went for an impromptu Father’s Day lunch and despite almost being turned away by reception on arrival, we moved on to the bar area and the staff there couldn’t have been more friendly. Cody in particular was very chatty and took her time to make us feel welcome. We enjoyed the lunch, which was of very good quality and moved on to look at a couple of rooms, for an upcoming trip. We were also shown around the new spa area and it was impressive. The one thing that was missing will be opening on July 10th, including a heated outdoor pool.

Very pleasant stay. Dinner service was a little slow. The room needed attention to water spillage from the shower, the hair conditioner was like rancid milk and the bed valance was frayed and dangerous. I did report these matters. Beware how you book ours was room only but the in-room info states that breakfast is included but that's only if you book direct.

Friendly, professional reception staff, Lovely old building with cosy bar and light, bright restaurant. Food was very good as was the service. Beautiful gardens with outdoor tables. Bedroom was cosy and comfortable. We were sorry to leave and hopefully we will go back for another stay

The good bits... Really nice hotel with great outdoor space Great staff & enjoyable food nice ambience & a great stopover for travellers EW & NS due to its central location, good value But.....The wine was for the most part very overpriced & not a huge choice for those in the sub £45 a bottle bracket eg 250 ml glass of New Zealand Sauv Blanc [no particular brand] £19,double what it should be. I appreciate that everybody needs to make a profit to survive but wine drinkers know the price & inflated margins get noticed,charge more for the rooms & less for wine would make more sense.

The Hotel is lovely. Very comfortable and beautifully appointed rooms. Staff exceptionally friendly. Only comment about room is it would be nice to have a mini fridge. However the restaurant does not match up to the rest of the hotel. If you have any allergies think twice. Sunday night staff had no idea whatsoever about Gluten issues. No alternative pasta/bread/crackers available. (fortunately had taken our own) Menu not marked with allergy advice - inexcusable these days.

The buildings, decor and gardens are very attractive and well maintained. Many of the staff were trying very hard to maximise the guest experience, however their efforts were hampered by there not being enough well trained staff. Examples of this :We stayed in a courtyard room and struggled to sleep because of noise from guests socialising in the outside in this courtyard up to 3.30am. I believe the only employee in action overnight was a night porter, evidently it was not his brief to deal with a rowdy crowd. Apparently wedding guests, from the hotels wedding venue. In the morning I needed to leave the hotel before breakfast, which is served from 8am. I have brought a cooler bag of breakfast provisions and was told by reception to ask the restaurant staff to put this in the fridge overnight and then night porter would retrieve it for me in the morning. The first waiter took the task with a degree of uncertainty. So I double checked with another more senior member of staff, who went to ensure this was done. At 5am the next morning the night porter could not find the cooler bag. The following day we returned because my husband had left his phone charger in the room. On first inspection by a member of staff he was told the charger was not in the room. My husband asked if he could look and there it was! The service in the restaurant is slow. My husband really enjoyed his fish and chips dinner, I had the pea and mint risotto which had flavour but the consistency of soup. The room was nicely decorated. Water, kettle and very nice teas in the room. A few decorative chips of paint and plaster in the bathroom. No tissues/ cotton wool pads or shower hats, but shampoo, body lotion and conditioner provided. Nice large, soft towels and crop bed linen, but cheap synthetic duvet and pillows. The venue and location has so much potential, but management need to get to grips with the service provision.

Second stay at this friendly and comfortable hotel. Very convenient location for us.. . Shall definitrly return and look forward to seeing how it develops its facilities in the coming months.