Boutique Hotel Warwick House

We had a terrible check in. The owner had mixed up the dates, apologized, then we spent two hours trying to reach him. He’d also forgotten our booking, so we had to find our own sheets and towels. Despite the unmade beds and overflowing dustbins, no discount was offered. We’d booked Warwick house during a cycle trip hoping for a special boutique hotel, but the place felt abandoned and very run down. Half the house seemed to be a commune or youth hostel, with cupboards and fridges overflowing with old food and old crockery lying around. The room itself was nice. Until a new owner commits to bringing the hotel up to the standard we paid for, I’d recommend avoiding it. A strange, unpleasant experience all round, like Faulty Towers without the humour.

We visited in July 2017 on a New Zealand holiday because my wife likes period accommodation. The large north facing room upstairs had some lovely furniture and fittings, along with other things that seemed to be there just to fill space. Three rooms, including ours, were reached by an uncovered outdoor stairway, awkward for older people and difficult with large bags. The TV wasn’t HD and had few channels, heating came from a small portable unit, and the bed mattress was past its best and didn’t reach the edge of the frame. There was quite a bit of dust under the bed, although the usual areas were OK. Breakfast was fixed but OK, and the dining room didn’t seem to have been dusted during our three days. The helpful lady seemed to be leaving the place to a group of backpackers touring NZ. The grounds and house need work and care, and it didn’t feel like the renovations had been followed by ongoing attention.

The house and gardens look beautiful from outside, but the interior could use some care. We had a room below the main house where the mothball smell was a bit overwhelming. The bathtub looked lovely in the photos but felt completely out of place in the room. The receptionist was somewhat awkward and left us feeling as though we’d come to the wrong place. It’s clearly a very old property and must be difficult to maintain.

Our first night was double booked, so we had to find somewhere else to stay. The setup wasn’t great otherwise either. Plates, cutlery, tea and coffee were in the toilet and bathroom area. Electrical equipment was plugged into two multi boxes, including a toaster, jug, microwave and heater on one of them, and the safety switch tripped and had to be reset. There were radiators in the bathroom and bedroom, but the valves were turned off. We were told they came on at 7pm and went off at 7pm, which didn’t make sense with the valves off. Not a good experience.