Ivy Mount Guest House

The staff were lovely, but the rest of the stay was disappointing. We arrived late on Friday with our two children after travelling from Scotland for the Bricktastic event. One of the kids’ beds wasn’t made. We found the second bed but there was no bedding, so my husband had to ask reception. They said the bedding should have been in a bag for us to make the bed ourselves, then brought it up. We were exhausted and had a car-sick toddler who needed sleep, yet we still had to make his bed. At £150 a night plus breakfast, I expected the children’s beds to be ready when we arrived at 8:30 pm. Breakfast was poor too, with very watery scrambled eggs, uncooked beans and barely cooked sausages. We’ll use another hotel for the event next year.

The location is great and the staff were very helpful. Several of us were struggling with the self-service check-in machine, and a lovely staff member was on hand straight away to help. There’s a full bar and dining area, where a couple of cheerful chaps served us drinks late one evening during the week.

The premium room had better decor and layout, but I was surprised it was on the second floor, since I’d normally expect that sort of room to be on the top floor for noise. It was freezing and the heating barely worked. The shower was poor, and the bathroom fan was noisy, with no way to switch it off like you used to be able to. Staff apologised and gave me a heater. Between the noise and heating, I wouldn’t stay again.

The bed was comfortable and the room was clean, but the service left a lot to be desired. At checkout I wanted to speak to someone, while most guests were simply dropping off their key cards. I waited more than 10 minutes as the receptionist dealt with another customer, repeatedly rolling her eyes, while three staff members laughed together in the back room. There was just one socket by the bed, the desk sockets didn't work, and the only other one was by the front door. No phone was provided to call reception, which would have helped when it sounded like a domestic disturbance was happening. I thought hard about posting this because I don't like negative reviews, but the staff didn't seem interested in customers.