Gervis Court Hotel

The location is handy, only a few minutes on foot from the seafront and town, and the pictures of famous monuments on the walls brighten the place up. I’d only suggest staying here if you’re on a tight budget. We arrived at 2pm and had to wait because Alan, who I’m guessing is the owner, wasn’t there. He got back at 3:30. Our family had two rooms on different floors. The downstairs carpet was marked, a chest of drawers wouldn’t open, and the bathroom was so small that only one person could fit. The upstairs room was a bit better, with more space and a decent-sized bathroom, but my son tried the shower several times and got only cold water. The bed springs poked into me whenever I turned over, and I left with the same back problems I’d arrived with. Our TV didn’t work, either before or after 9. Breakfast was all right at best, with tiny portions. The egg was swimming in grease and the tomato was inedible.

The breakfast was nice, though the portion was a little small. The welcome was friendly and the host attentive, but the room had ripped curtains, a full bin that hadn’t been emptied and takeaway wrappers, a dirty toilet, carpet stains and a broken bathroom door. I’m fine with a budget place, but I still expect it to be clean.

Alan’s photography was good, and his artwork on the walls looked nice. I’d swap some of the old butterfly pictures for more of it, and the place could use a spring clean. The shower leaked and was dirty, with dust elsewhere. The woman on the phone was very nice and said checking in between 2200-2300 would be fine. But when I called at 2200, the man, Alan?!, seemed to think his colleague had given me the wrong information and told me to hurry, saying other people were travelling from all over and he couldn’t extend check-in. Luckily we made it in time. For a hotel, rather than a B and B, I think some hospitality training may be needed.

Found it on a comparison site and thought it was very good value. The owner is a photographer, and there are beautiful canvases around the rooms. Everyone was friendly. They supplied a travel cot and even cleaned our room while we were out during the day, which I hadn’t expected.