Buchanan Arms Hotel &Leisure Sure Hotel Collection

The staff made our family Christmas trip special. We were a group of 11 children and 15 adults visiting Santa at the nearby Woodlands experience, and everyone from the bar and reception teams to the people handling our booking and meal arrangements was amazing. They accommodated all our requests easily, served meals when we needed them, and took good care of the kids' likes and dislikes. My husband dressed as Santa and my grandson as buddy the elf, and the hotel let us enjoy the whole experience. They set up the conservatory for dinner, then later for cheese platters and drinks while we exchanged Secret Santa presents. The pool was a great bonus, clean and a good size, with a lovely spectator area. The young man working Sunday morning looked after us well and brought lovely coffees to our table. The rooms could use an upgrade, but the beds were comfortable, the sheets and towels were super clean, and housekeeping quickly sorted out what we needed. Thanks to the staff, we all had a blast and were already planning next year's trip. A wee gem of a hotel. Merry Christmas, and thanks to everyone.

The nicest part of our stay was the pool and sauna, though the sauna and steam room were tiny, and we had to wait a bit for the sauna on Thursday afternoon. The jacuzzi was too busy to use. The woman at the spa bar and reception was lovely, friendly, and seemed to genuinely care. The hotel's convenient location and cheaper price through wowcher sounded good, and it looked nice from outside, but I can't recommend it. Inside, there was a fusty smell like old cigarette smoke had sunk into everything. The place looked very dated and shabby, though the lounge sofas seemed refreshed. There was dust in our room too. The heating was on full blast, and we couldn't turn it off in the bathroom. I like warmth, but it was unbearable and hard to breathe in; my nose got blocked. The bed was so hard that we couldn't get comfortable, and we drove home around 11pm. The old, flat, hard pillows had no bounce and couldn't be fluffed up. Even sitting back to relax wasn't comfortable. There was just one nightstand lamp, and it was too weak for reading. At dinner the burger had far too much black pepper. I was too hungry to send it back. The very young waitresses were nice and tried hard, but didn't check whether the mains were okay. Desserts were good, though nothing special.

We all had a really enjoyable two-night stay with our one-year-old daughter. The rooms were clean, the food was lovely, and everyone on staff was so helpful. Brian the duty manager deserves a special mention for going out of his way to look after us. We'd definitely come back.

We had a brilliant four-night Christmas break, from the 23rd to the 27th. It was a real bargain. The restaurant was the highlight. Someone there really knows their way around the kitchen: the fish came with exquisite sauces, even the simple salads tasted amazing, and the festive turkey dinner was a meal of a lifetime. Brilliant stuff. The hotel itself has charm and a beautiful lounge bar. Our room could use a refresh and some art on the walls. The pool was the best I've come across in a hotel, decorated all over for Christmas. Apparently the staff pay for those decorations themselves.