Linton Lodge Hotel, BW Signature Collection

The location is great, within walking distance of a lot of places, and the price was good: £160 for two nights in a double room. Somehow we ended up in a room with two double beds, but nobody mentioned an upgrade, we just found the extra bed when we went in. There were serious problems with the room. Black mould was in the shower, and there were odd dirty marks around the room, including lots of food stains on and under the coffee table. The tap water smelled of chlorine, the plumbing seemed old and poor, and the Wi-Fi kept cutting out. There’s hardly any cell service either, so I wouldn’t stay here if you need to work. I’d seen bad Wi-Fi reviews and the hotel’s replies saying they’d look into it or fix it, but it seems they don’t care. Sleep was really difficult on both nights because of loud, strange noises we couldn’t identify. They were almost like humming, but didn’t sound quite mechanical or human. The pitch kept waking us up, about six times the first night and four the second. When we told the receptionist, he said, “I don’t know anything about that.” It was a strange response, and he offered no solution or effort to investigate. The room doors are very thin, with big gaps underneath, so we could hear everything in the hallway. The reading lights are harsh, and there are no outlets by the bed. I’m also not sure whether the hotel has lifts. We had to take our suitcases up the stairs, which was fine for us but could be an issue for someone with a physical disability.

We spent £280 for a New Year’s holiday stay at Linton Lodge BW Hotel, but the experience left us feeling we hadn’t got our money’s worth. I can’t recommend it based on our visit. The parking arrangement was particularly frustrating. We paid £20 for two nights, arriving at 3 pm and paying for two full days. At checkout, at 11 am, we asked to keep the car there until 2:30 or 3 pm so our children could spend a little longer in Oxford city centre. The receptionist refused, saying parking wasn’t allowed after checkout. That felt unfair given we’d paid for two full days. Our room wasn’t clean enough: there were spider webs by the windows and the carpets looked messy. The radiators didn’t work in the cold weather. A portable radiator was provided, but it made noise all night and disrupted our sleep. Breakfast was a disappointment too. The food was tasteless and didn’t start the day well, and acceptable service didn’t make up for that. With the number of rooms available on New Year’s night, improvements are clearly needed. I hope the hotel takes this feedback into account for future guests.

It’s a five-minute walk to the bus stop, then four stops to Oxford. Location gets five stars. The rooms were fairly clean and the beds exceptionally comfortable. The bathroom was a little small, but the place was good value for the price. Parking costs extra, with spaces available at both the front and back of the hotel.

Some of the staff were genuinely fantastic and lovely, though a few were rude right from the start. The evening food was good, about what you’d get at a decent pub, but breakfast was mostly flavourless. The hotel itself was in pretty dire shape. Carpets were stained and rumpled, bathroom fittings were very low quality, chunks of caulking were missing, some window locks were broken, and the reading lights didn’t work. I don’t understand how it received an Eco/Green award with so much single-use plastic: toothbrushes, tiny toothpaste tubes, and the cheapest plastic-wrapped water cups. They also take towels regardless of where guests leave them. Even the fake plants and flowers looked neglected, with clumps of “dead” leaves in the pots and coffee stains on the petals. Best Western really needs to put some money into the place.