Best Western Shaftesbury The Royal Chase Hotel

The room was in such old, worn condition compared with the pictures online, and it seems which room you get is luck of the draw. What made it awful was the spiders. My partner was so scared she couldn't imagine sleeping there. The ceilings were 9-10ft high, and even standing on the bed with my arms stretched up, I couldn't reach them to get rid of them. I went to reception to ask about switching rooms. The man there seemed not to care. He said he was night staff and couldn't change anything, and that the receptionists had left. When I asked whether anyone else could help or be called, he said no. There appeared to be other rooms available to book online that night, so I don't understand why moving wasn't possible. The gentleman who first welcomed us had been chatty and helpful, which makes me hate leaving this review. But we were left in this room with nowhere to go, and were considering sleeping in the car. We planned to demand a refund in the morning. The lack of empathy or acknowledgement, along with how old everything was, left me disappointed and frustrated. I would never recommend staying here. Go somewhere else.

We left without using the pool and won't be back. We'd only been in the facility for 30 minutes at most, so we asked for our money back, but staff said management doesn't issue refunds. In the past, we've had a lovely time at this pool, which makes this a shame. At first it was quiet, with two children and one adult swimming. We changed and went into the sauna. During the 10-15 minutes we were there, another four adults and ten children were let into the pool. It's small, and with 17 people already in it, not counting us, it felt too crowded. The kids were screaming, dive bombing, splashing, jumping in and running on the sides, despite the rules displayed on the wall. It also felt like a health and safety concern. There was no lifeguard, just CCTV, and staff weren't monitoring that either. A waste of time and money.

Reception was excellent, everyone there was really friendly. The kitchen service was a disaster, though. The English breakfast on the first day was a letdown, with the food swimming in oil. On day two I ordered continental breakfast and waited almost 28 minutes with no delivery. Such bad service.

Lucy at reception was very helpful, but breakfast left a sour taste. The elderly man who greeted me was ignorant, and a disgrace to the hotel and hospitality industry. Housekeeping was only average too, with hair in the bath and dirty mugs in the room. The hotel is dated, though in decent repair, and has a good location with ample parking. Still, I won't return or recommend the place. This review is 100% accurate.