Soulton Hall

If you're into history, this place is fabulous, with so many fascinating details.

The historic house and gardens are wonderful. We saw a captivating performance of the Middle English masterpiece The poetic vision of St Erkenwald, beautifully done. Thank you.

We paid £320 for two nights in the lodge next door, after the idyllic setting and lovely video on the website persuaded us to book. We had our five-month-old and two-year-old with us. The house was dated, smelled damp and was very dirty. Honestly, it seemed fit only for the local livestock. We'd booked dinner for the first night, but were told it wouldn't be served because the other guests weren't eating that evening. I'd also called ahead to check whether there was a microwave for sterilising bottles and was told there was one. There wasn't. We had trouble finding the owner when we arrived. Once we did, we were already very disappointed with the place. When we raised our concerns because we couldn't leave our children in those conditions, the staff were very defensive and wouldn't accept that the hotel had been seriously misrepresented. We weren't willing to pay the full amount, so we received a partial refund and didn't stay. Instead, we went to the beautiful Hall down the Road, which was absolutely lovely. Please don't be taken in by the website and its nice photos. The place is unfortunately close to being dilapidated. Please see the pictures.

We had a great day out at the first of what I hope will be many outdoor theatre shows. We saw William Shakespeare's "Two Gentlemen of Verona" and had lots of laughs. The audience seemed happy, and the actors had work. It's a great idea and deserves to succeed. Well done!