Helmshore

This was the worst hotel I’ve stayed in. The photos make it look nice, but I’d cancel if you still can. Other reviews on booking.com can’t all be wrong 🤷. They advertised a full English breakfast, but it wasn’t true: there were eggs and cereal. They replied to my review by saying they’d won awards and take pride in cleanliness. Maybe the award was for growing mould. They must have looked at my photos without their glasses on.

I stayed here every year for 10 years for the Rebellion festival, so it’s a real shame how quickly the place has gone downhill since the previous owners retired. It’s absolutely filthy and disgusting now. We asked for towels five times and still got none, so eventually had to buy our own. Parking at the rear used to be free, but we paid for it and now a parking company is chasing us for a fine. The “hotel” isn’t answering calls or emails. Avoid it.

There was a horrible musty smell as soon as you entered the front door. The photo is false, it doesn’t look like that at all, and beware that parking costs £10 a night, which isn’t advertised. There was no staff around unless you phoned a mobile number. I asked for fresh towels and am still waiting. Sheets and towels were clean, but the room itself wasn’t very clean. The heating was on full blast, so I had to leave the window open to try to sleep. Breakfast was continental, not a proper cooked breakfast, so I always ate out. The TV didn’t work, so the place has false advertising.

The location is excellent, only a few minutes’ walk from the prom and pier, and the bed was good enough for one night. Everything else was horrible. When we arrived at 14:15, nobody was there. We had to phone for someone to check us in. He was very rude and gave us the wrong room number three times. The rooms were filthy. My window facing the entrance wouldn’t close, the door was broken, and the key wouldn’t open the hotel’s front door. There was only one small hand towel, and the bathroom hadn’t been cleaned, with hair on the shower wall and a filthy floor. The website advertises a bar, but it’s closed because they lost the licence. The dining room is blocked with clutter and furniture, even though it’s also a fire exit, so I don’t know how that’s legal. The advertised parking isn’t real either. I’m stunned the place is still allowed to operate, and can only assume it hasn’t been inspected recently.