Macdonald Old England Hotel & Spa

We had an excellent visit and were impressed by how hard the staff worked. The beds were very comfortable, and our cosy, spacious room had wonderful views across the Lake. It’s a great spot for tourists, with a pool and sauna, and the afternoon tea was very good. Breakfasts were good too, and dinner was excellent, especially the service in the dining room and lounge. Some public rooms felt chilly in winter, and things seemed stretched at times over the holiday weekend. Parking isn’t cheap. The tea bag selection, towels and coffee could also be better.

The hot water went cold several times, and the breakfast wasn’t very warm. It sat in self-service containers without anything to keep it hot. We also waited more than 10 minutes at the restaurant desk on Valentine’s Day, despite staff moving around. We’d booked a table but nobody acknowledged us, and after hearing other guests complain about service, we cancelled and ate elsewhere. I reported the broken safe twice during our three-day stay, but nothing was done. I left my contact details for management to explain the problems and nobody got in touch. It’s a lovely old hotel in a great location, within easy walking distance of plenty of pubs and restaurants. The room was clean and the bathroom fairly tidy and modern. Still, customer service and management need to improve. Disappointing for what we paid.

The hotel was lovely, the food was good and the rooms were nice. We enjoyed the lake views from the relaxing lounge, and the staff were lovely and very helpful. My husband and I also had a very nice complimentary afternoon tea from the manager. We’d had to leave at midnight on our previous visit because I was very ill, so this was a thoughtful gesture. We had a lovely stay and look forward to coming back.

Emily made our stay memorable. She was so pleasant and well presented in the restaurant, both at dinner and breakfast the following morning, and took time to chat. She’s an asset to the team, and I hope she gets the chance to move on to bigger and better things. We booked through Wowcher and felt it was very good value. The room was a good size, very clean and had a lovely lake view, though the bed was unusually soft and small and the tea and coffee facilities were below par. The spa was smaller than we expected. I thought it could use a jacuzzi and perhaps bar service. Thanks, Emily.