The Swan Hotel

The owners and staff made Burns night a lovely evening, thank you. It was great value, with a complimentary drink when we arrived and a piper bringing in the haggis. The haggis, neeps and tatties were huge, piping hot and tasty. We met some lovely people as well.

Breakfast was a mess, and the room had serious maintenance issues. I was there for work, thankfully without paying, but wouldn't consider returning. In Room 1, a cracked window was held together with brown parcel tape and a piece of cardboard. The bathroom had cracked, mouldy tiles painted over, rough plaster patches and a poor DIY paint job in awful lilac on water-bowed wooden panels. There was no TV, the desk and furniture were cheap, and the wardrobe leaned precariously and wasn't fixed to the wall. The single bed was at least comfortable. The pub's WiFi didn't reach the room, and mobile reception was very poor, so I couldn't work on my laptop or stream anything on my phone or tablet. I started staying late at work, eating out and returning as late as possible to avoid the room. Nobody serviced it. A brown banana I'd found there was still present on my departure day, even though I put it in the bin on the first night. The tea and milk ran out, but were replenished when I asked. I requested a cooked breakfast on the first morning, but got no choice. The bacon was stone cold, both sausages were pink, slimy and lukewarm inside with burnt stripes outside, and the fried egg was runny and looked as if it had been dropped on the plate. The tomato and two mushrooms were cold, so I ended up eating beans on toast. The young man serving me was polite and nice, but seemed completely clueless. He brought hot milk with my tea, and I had serious doubts about his food hygiene and cooking training. I skipped breakfast for the next two mornings. On the second morning I had to use my phone torch to find my way out and down the pitch-black stairs, with nobody around. And they had the cheek to ask for a £50 damage deposit up front. I can't see how they'd know!

They even called ahead to check we were coming, then let us in after midnight, which was really cool. We were staying at the Swan after a show in Oxford, about a 15 or 20 minute drive away. The room was decent enough, with a single bed and a twin bed. The twin wasn't very big, so Sami slept on the floor. There was always hot water, great lighting in the bathroom, towels, conditioner and soap, plus a walk-in closet. Coffee was provided too, though the instant coffee bag was so strong that I'd use half of it. We went down around 11:30, a very late checkout time, and chatted with the head guy. I'm sorry, I forgot his name. Dosten! He's a sweet guy. He told us about the monastery nearby and the old stories about someone who invented the Church of England and started murdering people. Legends even say he stayed at this very old place. There were nuns somewhere nearby, I can't remember exactly, and Room 5 is said to be haunted. Sounds interesting if you're in an adventurous mood. There's also a venue here that hosts events and welcomes artists, so it might be worth contacting them if you want an unusual place for a show. We may come back to play one. There was parking, the van didn't get stolen, and there's a pool table, a pub downstairs with nice beers and a restaurant. That's it, we're off to Bristol to play a show at the Gryphon today. See you!

The pub was nice, and both the staff and locals were really friendly. Our room was lovely, with a comfortable bed and a clean bathroom. It stayed warm, but it was easy to adjust the temperature. The location worked well for us, with an easy bus ride straight into Oxford. We absolutely loved our stay and would happily come back.