Essendine Vacations from $1,397

We stayed one night to break our journey to Northumberland. The staff we met were pleasant and the breakfast buffet more than adequate.

Unfortunately, one of the worst rooms we've stayed in As soon as we walked into the room there was a strong smell of damp, so bad it was hard to breathe. We soon found out why: the bathroom was carpeted, and water from the shower was running straight out onto the carpet. Cleanliness was poor throughout. The room was dusty, and the fan blades had visible clumps of dust on them. The sink was so dirty that we wiped it down with a towel ourselves, and the towel came away filthy. The "king-size" bed was actually two beds pushed together, with no mattress topper to cover the join, so you could feel the gap all night. The food was also very expensive for what it was. There was no proper area for the buffet; it was laid out on the drinks counter. The desserts were tiny and overpriced, which we found hard to believe. To be fair to the manager, he was sympathetic when we raised our concerns. He offered us one of their best rooms on a future visit, but after this experience we won't be returning, so we chose the refund option he also offered. However, we paid £174 and in the end received only £70 back, which wasn't what we'd been led to expect. The hotel is advertised as 4-star, but based on our stay it fell well short of that standard. We couldn't wait to leave. I'd advise other travellers to read recent reviews carefully and to check their room before settling in.

Great staff, very friendly always happy to help.