Excellent short stay

Quiet, friendly, relaxing, set in beautiful grounds. A hotel with amost interesting history. A perfect base for exploring the Cotswolds.

Wonderful hotel but poor management

The hotel itself is beautiful and we stayed in one of the main suites in the manor which was large albeit very dark as it was on the side of the hotel and looking onto a load of building rubbish and cleaning utensils were dumped there, which was not great to look at, although we did have a nice view looking left towards the side front. It was surrounded by trees so fairly quiet except for constant hum from generator which we thought might be situated underneath us. Bathroom quite cold and radiator not always on to dry towels and with mosaic floor very cold and again poor lighting no toilet brush to clean the toilet even in the main wc`s. Plenty of coffee & tea in room but we didn't want to sit there during the day due to lighting and being cold spent most of time sitting around bar which is out of keeping with rest of d cor and uninviting. Had log fires which were unlit so didn't help. The weather outside was sunny and warm for end of March this year but needed some heating in evenings so a fire would have been good. Reception area was like a little box stuck in the porch. There did not appear to be any sort of management of staff particularly in the restaurant. My husband booked an expensive bottle of Prosecco to be waiting in the room on our arrival to celebrate our wedding anniversary which didn't materialise so we asked for a refund on the bill, this was not done and we had to mention it 3 times until it was settled on booking out but we got the feeling they didn't believe we hadn't had it. The first night we waited over an hour for starters and eventually served with the main course and had to wait again for starters. Next evening we didn't take a chance and ordered mains only and waited l.50 hours and staff kept apologising and told us they had trouble with the ovens keep going out. I had chicken wrapped in bacon and the bacon was uncooked so was worried the chicken wasn't cooked and sent it back and assured it was, couldn't see if it was properly cooked through as it looked and felt like it needed longer so only ate small amount. Next night same thing happened again and there were only 10 people eating and when we mentioned it to reception next day about the ovens she said nothing wrong with the ovens it was because most people elected to only order mains and meant they could not stagger the cooking! Out of the three nights we spent there only one night the restaurant was fairly busy. The staff were all inexperienced and young although they were very apologetic and offered us a free drink or dessert to make up for the delays, they didn't really know what to do and no knowledge of wines. The lighting again is very poor, although the menu was fairly good and the fish and chips excellent it really needs a shake up with management. How they cope with weddings I hate to imagine. Its a shame as it is a wonderful building and very pleasant well kept gardens and terrace would be lovely in summer. There are plenty of National Trust places to visit and we went to Croome house and RAF tea rooms which was interesting and not too far to drive to. Shame about the service as it rather spoilt the occasion and after a long drive to get there we were disappointed. Would emphasise the staff were very cheerful but the lack of overall management is the main fault with this hotel otherwise it could be a wonderful place.

Could have been better

We were allocated a room which had been equipped for someone with impaired mobility with out informing us.This was not ideal,especially the bathroom layout and low level wash basin etc.
The restaurant seemed to be poorly organised and at times not adaquately staffed. The cooked breakfast portions were very small (ie half a mushroom!)
When checking out our bill contained some bar and restaurant charges that were not ours. This also happened to two other couples who were staying there at the same time. It took quite a while for them to sort this out, even though all the bar and retaurant chits had the correct nos on them.
All in all a very nice hotel with beautiful grounds,but hotel suffers from badly managed staff. Did not see much evidence of supervision and junior staff were left to cope alone.

Two night off peak stay at the WOOD NORTON

This is the first time I've ever posted complaints after a hotel stay. This is a bit long but I don't know how I could shorten it. Off Peak Luxury should be aware of where they are sending their clients.

The Wood Norton is a beautiful building with lots of history. Should be a lovely experience staying there. Our room in Pear Tree Mews was quite nice and a good size. Lighting was poor especially in the lobby area where the wardrobe and the case stand were. I had to move my case to the window end to be able to see in it. Also no magnifying mirror for putting on make up. To be fair this is much the same in many hotels. Nothing so far would have given me reason for complaint.

We were a party of 6. One couple were told they were being upgraded into the main building but asked to be moved because the room was so hot and when they asked if they could open a window and turn the heating down they were told they couldn't do either. They were moved into 402 Pear Tree Mews where they found the headboard of the bed hanging off and a large screw sticking out. They reported it but it was never fixed in a 2 day stay. I suspect if it really was an upgrade it was because nobody else wanted the room and that their room in Pear Tree Mews needed maintenance. The second couple were put into a room designed for wheelchair users. They were not consulted, discovered this when they arrived at their room. Sinks low to the ground, wet bathroom, high toilet. They were not told this when they booked and they were not asked when they checked in if this was OK for them. It is not unreasonable to expect that it would be mentioned at check in.

The restaurant was a very hit and miss affair, with meals arriving as and when. Often things missing from the plate. Our second morning breakfast was a farce. Wrong meals things missing. A normal full English was served half a mushroom and half a slice of black pudding which had to be exchanged for something else on your plate. Who serves half a mushroom or half a ring of black pudding?

We asked at the reception if we could use the allowance from our cream tea ( 8 per person) against our dinner on the second evening as one couple in our group were on a deal where they had 2 discounted evening meals against our deal of one dinner discounted and 1 cream tea. Answer came back from we know not where ... No! There was no explanation just that they were not allowed to mix deals. We accepted the decision. Had we known what a shambles it was all going to be we would have argued the point.

At no time did we ever see any management. All the staff were young (the waitress that served us for both evenings was about 17 and doing her A levels and was overrun). Same at breakfast time. There were never enough staff but those that were there worked hard but with no leadership. The bill was presented with service charge already added and a column for Gratuity. We asked what the difference was, she didn't really know but when asked said she received no tips from either service charge or gratuities. I think this practice is illegal. We deleted the service charge from the bill and gave the waitress cash.

When we checked out it was a shambles. Our bills were all wrong. Discounts we were due on our deal very confusing. We had to work it out for ourselves. While we were doing this a gentleman came and said he had asked for a bottle of Prosecco to be waiting for him in his room for when he arrived and there was nothing. He was checking that he wasn't going to be charged for it! that wasn't all but I cannot remember what his other problem was as I was busy trying to sort out our bills.

In all, a shambles and we would never return.

We will think twice about choosing Off Peak Luxury again. We've used Secret Escapes on a number of occasions and have always been pleased. Off Peak Luxury need to do their homework.

Lacking in ambiance

Booked a 2 night stay at the Wood Norton on a special deal with The Telegraph. On arrival the reception staff were welcoming and checked us in efficiently, our room was on the second floor and was clean and comfortable. The deal included a cream tea which was served in the bar, though the bar tender was friendly, the room itself was lacking in warmth and personality and it's d cor out of character with the rest of the hotel. Service at dinner on the second evening was appalling, after one hour and twenty five minutes we had only been served one course. The reason for this bad service was because there was a corporate conference taking place and the kitchen, for whatever reason, could not cope. They appeared to be concentrating on the corporate guests, who would not be paying their own bills, and to have forgotten about the other guests. Meanwhile the front of house staff appeared to be embarrassed by the situation and were apologising to the guests for the delay. We did ask to speak to the duty manager and he was very understanding and once he had been into the kitchen the meals soon started to appear. He asked to speak to us after the meal and very kindly made a deduction from our bill as way of compensation, He also said that he would address the matter the following day with management and staff.

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RESTAURANT

YOUR VERY HELPFUL STAFF WERE CONSTANTLY LEFT TO APOLOGISE FOR THE VERY LONG WAIT FOR FOOD, WHICH QUITE OFTEN UNCOOKED , AND NOT TASTY, THEY AGENCY STAFF HAD LET THEM DOWN BADLY. THERE APPEARED TO BE NO DUTY MANAGER AT ALL TO HANDLE THE NUMEROUS COMPLIANTS BY OTHER CUSTOMER'S, ALSO THE MENU WAS VERY EXPENSIVE ND MINUTELY PRINTED PEOPLE HAD TO TURN PHONE'S ON TO SEE

Anniversary weekend

Weekend stay for a birthday/Anniversary treat. Room was very clean, beautifully luxiourous but relaxed. Very comfy bed in a room with in keeping features but with a modern twist. Both breakfast and evening meal were superb. Very friendly staff & the hotel had the right balance between luxury, friendliness & relaxation. Would highly recommend & also return