The Silk Rooms at Freemasons Inn

Right in the centre of Knutsford, so the location is hard to beat. The owners are very responsive and send you all the check-in details, and access is super easy. The rooms are beautifully decorated and really cosy, great for a romantic getaway.

The centre of Knutsford was handy for local restaurants, but this wasn’t the relaxing pre-wedding stay we’d hoped for. Our wedding was on Sunday, and I wouldn’t recommend staying here on a Saturday night. We’d wanted a quiet evening before the wedding, but music from the bar was very loud until after midnight, even though the outside terrace looked quite empty. Ear plugs didn’t help. Once the music stopped, we could hear chairs scraping as the pub below was tidied up, followed by loud, drunk people in the street. Larkspur Lodge, our wedding venue, recommended Silk Rooms for the night before and the night of the wedding. The rooms had nice decor and furnishings, and flowers were left as a congratulations gift, which was a nice touch. But they were addressed to ‘the Bride and Groom’, which felt insensitive as we’re a same-sex couple. A few practical details fell short of the room price and the website’s ‘luxury’ description: there was no mini fridge, just two tea bags and two milk sachets, a coffee machine without pods, and only one toilet roll. I also wouldn’t recommend using the rooms to get ready for a wedding. They did the job, but even the larger suites had low ceilings and felt cramped with a bride, three bridesmaids, and hair and make-up artists.

The room was gorgeous, but it needed a bit of maintenance: the lights flickered and the sink plug was broken. The main problem was the location. Music from the bar below was so loud we couldn’t hear our own music in the evening. After the bar closed at midnight, we could hear clearing and cleaning until around 1am. The car park opposite also seemed to be a popular place to hang out after the pub, with people shouting and carrying on until about 3am.

We arrived and were unpacking in a beautiful room within seconds, thanks to the seamless key-code check-in. The rooms are in a quieter side street, right in the centre of Knutsford Town, with ample parking. Inside, there’s everything needed for a comfortable stay: a large, luxurious bathroom with a separate walk-in shower and tub, a big comfortable bed, coffee maker, tea and biscuits, individual smart heat control, essential toiletries and a large smart TV. It’s room only, but we found plenty of breakfast cafes within a three-minute walk. There were so many good ones that we were spoilt for choice, plus dozens of restaurants nearby. Beautifully decorated rooms and a perfect hidden gem. We’ll definitely stay again.