Macdonald Berystede Hotel

Very nice hotel with big bathroom

We stayed at the Berystede in the last week of May. I loved our huge bathroom. We did have to hike a ways to our room because it was in a newer addition to the very old original hotel, but worth it. I don’t know what the original rooms are like, but suspect original rooms don’t have same size bathrooms. Very soft sheets, good mattress and very quiet, although the towels were not so soft. I did take advantage of the spa onsite and would recommend it for friendly good service. The front desk staff were very nice too. We tried the breakfast once but were not that excited for the price 20 Pounds. It was alright food though. I also had one room service meal - excellent fish but aweful chips (undone and soggy). We had very good beer on tap at the bar and good snacks too. We stayed in Ascot because we had relatives there, but it was convenient if you wanted to do Windsor Castle and LegoLand - also easy for daytrips to London/Stonehenge/Bath/Stratford on Avon/Avebury. Also went to Dover which was farthest at about 2 1/2 hours. We rented a car for the non-London trips and took the convenient train into London. It takes about an an hour to go right to downtown main station near the London Eye. Much better than doing the traffic while trying to remember to stay on the UK side of the road then find non-existent parking. I would recommed this hotel for its spa, guiet and good bed and American size bathroom and very nice staff.

Traveler's tip on dining

I decided on this hotel because reviews for the food were good, but can’t say. We were always out on field trips. I had a cheap eats guide to London that was a definate lifesaver. No excuse to spend a lot or get bad food in London if your know where to go. One native recommended we don’t order fish and chips in a pub! We did not ever get around to it in London, but the roadside inns around the countryside were great for fish and chips especially at Dover.