Doxford Hall Hotel & Spa

The room and grounds were beautiful, the breakfast was amazing, and the staff were friendly and always willing to help. I stayed one night with a friend for her birthday, on a room and dinner package that included spa access. I'd happily return, though a few things could be improved. We lost about 20 minutes of spa time because robes weren't available there, so we had to go back upstairs to get them. The spa closed at 6, and staff came to ask us to leave at 5:50. The area could use a deeper clean: there were cobwebs, and the door by the jacuzzi looked discoloured or dirty, I'm not sure which. The yellowed sunbed mats were covered with wet towelling, and we wanted to take it off, but the mats didn't look nice to lie on. The water cooler was oddly placed by the stairs on the way out, and it would make more sense in the lounge. They'd run out of cups. When I asked for a clean one, I got a huge stack to refill myself, which was funny but unexpected. The front desk flowers and those in other areas looked untidy, with cloudy, dirty water and leaves hanging off. Our chicken Caesar salad had little chicken or lettuce, lots of bacon and far too much dressing. At dinner, staff called us “guys” quite often, which I hadn't expected. We were also nearly charged twice: we'd prepaid £90 for dinner, but were charged again for what we ate until I asked them to remove it. The staff were polite and helpful about fixing it, but it was a shame it happened.

We had such a lovely three-night stay, and could easily have stayed a whole week. The grounds are gorgeous, though take wellies if you want to explore the maze. The staff were attentive, the rooms beautiful, and the old-school decor was impeccably tasteful. Food was out of this world, the afternoon tea was delicious, and the spa treatments were fabulous. Cocktails and board games in the bar made for a hilarious evening. We'd love to come back for Christmas next year with the children.

Breakfast didn't meet our expectations, as key buffet items, especially marmalade and fruit salad, were missing. Staff should check more regularly and replenish those items. Dinner, on the other hand, was excellent. We got a friendly welcome, and the room was better than expected. It was too hot, though, and we couldn't lower the temperature overnight, so I slept badly. At checkout we told reception, and they said we should have contacted the night porter, which wasn't an option for us.

The evening meal was really good, and the staff at dinner and in the spa were lovely. We had a nice evening and spa day, though the pool could have been a little warmer. The English breakfast was disappointing, undercooked and not very tasty. Our room had old wooden windows that rattled at night. I understand it's a listed building and replacing them is difficult, but I'm sure they could be modernised. The shower head was covered in limescale. We enjoyed the stay, but don't think we'd return.