Shaw Hill Golf and Spa Hotel

The Chicken Caesar salad at Shaw's bar was fantastic, and there’s a great selection of enjoyable dishes. I recently had spa treatments at Shaw Hill, and the therapists are the best, especially Pauline, who did my treatment. I’m looking forward to having more treatments soon.

We had a great stay in room 19 and were glad we ignored the negative reviews. The staff were fantastic, and breakfast was great, freshly cooked to order rather than a buffet. The room was very clean, the shower worked perfectly, and the water pressure was fine. Yes, it’s an older building, but that gives it character. Maybe you just can’t please everyone, and some people are hard to please these days!

The facilities are really four-star, and the aqua aerobics classes are fantastic, full of energy and ending with Billie Jean. The jacuzzi, steam room, sauna, and pool are all good. The reception staff were friendly, and some staff bend over backwards for you. Still, we didn’t renew our memberships because of the swimming lessons and the lack of management and supervision around them. We’d paid £200 each for three months, then £150 each twice more, so £500 each for nine months. At first we were told a wet-side-only membership wasn’t available, even though we said we weren’t interested in the gym or classes. After joining, we spoke to members paying the reduced £150 monthly rate for wet-side access only. We raised it with management, who let us buy that option next time. The children’s lessons take up a lot of members’ time. On Wednesdays they’re meant to be there from 4-7 pm, but set up nearly an hour early and use the changing rooms for about an hour afterwards. On Saturdays it’s 8 am-noon, really about 1 pm by the time they leave, and there are lessons on Friday mornings too. That’s five hours lost to members on Wednesdays, as well as those other sessions. With the pool right beside the jacuzzi, steam room, and sauna, it’s hard to relax while lessons are going on. The men’s changing room has no cubicles, and the women’s has only one, which makes things harder for adults with children and feels uneasy in general. After lessons, the changing rooms need a proper clean. Litter and plasters are common, and there are puddles on the floor of who knows what. Management communication was another problem. In October we got an email saying the spa and pool would close for five days while reception and the changing rooms were refurbished. We emailed several times to ask whether those days could be added to our memberships and only got an automatic out-of-office reply, saying the manager was away for another 11 days and would reply on her return. She didn’t. Then during a lesson in September, an instructor threw a toy that damaged the ceiling. Shaw said the pool would have to close for a few more days while they put up scaffolding to make repairs. Since no one had answered about the October closure, another closure during our membership worried us. That’s what led us not to renew. It’s a shame, as the facilities are good, but the lessons run three days a week. If you join, you’ll soon learn when to avoid the place.

The staff were fabulous, the food was excellent, and the restaurant and downstairs were in pretty good condition. Shaw Hill is in a great location, and the golf course looked lovely, though I didn’t get out to play. It’s a shame the building and bedrooms need so much investment, because the staff and setting are great. Maybe then the place would be brilliant. We won’t forget this visit: great food and a flooded room. Our room, room 1, was a good size with fabulous views over the course and beyond, but very dated. The suspended ceiling looked like old polystyrene tiles from 40 years ago. The original windows didn’t close all the way and let in a fair bit of breeze. The curtains’ closing pulley system didn’t work either. The bathroom was also a good size, with a four-piece suite and better decor, but there was no hot water and almost no pressure. They rebooted the system while we had 'free cocktails', and the hot water came back. Filling the corner bath still took a while because of the weak pressure. Then a big thunderstorm came through and the ceiling leaked and collapsed into the room. Within minutes the carpet was totally flooded, as was the room below, where a bride and groom were staying. They found us another bedroom, presumably an emergency room. It was small, with a small bed, but at least the hot water and pressure were great.