The Priest House Hotel

Hotels
Independent
8 (131 reviews)
Park Lane Kings Mills, Castle Donington, Derby, England, DE74 2RR , Derby , GB

Pets allowed

Facilities

Proposal/romance packages available
Express check-out
Firepit
Long-term parking (surcharge)
Free WiFi
24-hour front desk
Terrace
Garden
Luggage storage
Express check-in/check-out
See all facilities

Review Highlights

Pros:
Good location
Pleasant staff
Decent food
Cons:
Poor cleanliness
Room quality issues
Overpriced accommodation

Categories

Cleanliness
5.89
Numerous mentions of dirt, dust, and spider webs made the condition of cleanliness very poor.
Service
9.36
Staff were reported as pleasant and helpful, indicating good service overall.
Location
9.9
The property's location was highlighted as fantastic and very nice.
Room Quality
5.85
Many negative reviews related to poor conditions and maintenance of the rooms.
Amenities
8.88
While some amenities like Wi-Fi were inconsistent, overall suggestions indicated room for improvement.
Value for Money
6.84
Guests mentioned the accommodation seemed overpriced relative to quality.
Food and Beverage
8.89
Food at the restaurant was praised, contributing positively to the overall experience.
Overall Experience
8.36
Overall stay was mixed; guests had fun due to location and food, but faced significant issues.
* This sentiment is summarized by AI based on user reviews.
Updated at: 2026-01-06 12:06

Property Description

Scenic Views and Modern Amenities
Experience a stay at The Priest House Hotel with its terrace, garden, and free Wi-Fi. Enjoy dining at Millstream Bar and Grill, with room service available.

Exceptional Services and Facilities
Benefit from wedding services, a picnic area, 3 bars/lounges, and express check-out. The hotel offers event facilities, a conference center, and 5 meeting rooms.

Comfortable Rooms and Nearby Attractions
Relax in one of the 42 guestrooms with flat-screen TVs and free Wi-Fi. Explore nearby attractions like Donington Park Racing Circuit and Melbourne Parish Church.

Secure your spot at The Priest House Hotel for a luxurious and convenient retreat.

Important information:

  • Up to 2 children 12 years old and younger stay free when occupying the parent or guardian's room, using existing bedding.
  • Only registered guests are allowed in the guestrooms.
  • Contactless check-in and contactless check-out are available.

Check-in and check-out hours:
Check-out: 11:00 AM
Airport code: EMA

Property Policies

  • Pets

    Service animals are exempt from fees/restrictions

  • Noise policy

    Noise-free rooms not guaranteed

  • Check-in & Check-out

    Contactless check-out is available

  • Accessibility

    No elevators

  • Pets

    Pets allowed

See all policies

Location

Guest Reviews

8
Based on 131 reviews
Cleanliness: 5.89
Service: 9.36
Location: 9.9
Room Quality: 5.85
Amenities: 8.88
Value for Money: 6.84
Food and Beverage: 8.89
Overall Experience: 8.36
R
Rod
10
Pros:

Great hotel and good value for money

2025-10-11 via Nuitee
B
Barry
2
Pros:

A worn out hotel
Arrived 5 minutes after kitchen last orders and advised no food was possible and was given my rooms, having booked main house double rooms i was given 2 single rooms in the annnex building.
Receptionist was completely uninterested blaming hotels.com and no other rings were avaliable and that no refund of the price difference was offered.
The annex rooms were poor at best, badly decorated and very dirty, evidence of damp in the paint marks, a worn out single bed with a mattress clearly passed it's prime. The pictures on the walls one had a smashed glass and the remains were still stuck in the frame.
To top it off in the morning the shower was cold.
This place might look good in the images but in reality it's one of the worst places I've stayed.

2025-10-09 via Nuitee
E
Erica
8
Pros:

Lovely location. Quiet cottage room. Furniture dated but very clean and everything one would expect : iron, safe and kettle.
Comfy bed.
Entrance to room smelt a little musty but room was warm and no damp.
Tiny shower room- beautiful but would be a squeeze if one is not slim .

2025-10-02 via Nuitee
S
Stuart
4
Pros:

Allocated wrong room from what I booked, complained and the response was oh well. Very rude breakfast waitress, she should not be customer facing. Will not return.

2025-09-30 via Nuitee
M
Mark
8
Pros:

Property itself is in a fantastic location, and main house is very well maintained.
The cottages are quite small, could do with a refurb. Tv in room kept losing channels and had to be reset. I'd l say the accomodation is overpriced.

2025-09-28 via Nuitee
C
CHRIS
8
Pros:

Great setting, all staff very pleasant, the Restaurant was rustic and food good, table laid and clean although a little sticky. Room spacious and clean although entrance hall to Cottage area a bit worn. I would definitely visit again.

2025-09-26 via Nuitee
K
keith
8
A reasonable place to stay
Pros:

Room was spacious and comfortable.
Let down by poor Wi-Fi coverage in room.
Staff were pleasant and friendly.
Nice quiet location next to the river.

2025-09-20 via Nuitee
J
Jelena partner
4
Pros:

The room was in very poor condition. There were spiders inside, along with visible spider webs both in the corridors and stairways. The bed was covered in dust and room had a strong, unpleasant old smell. The shower barely worked, with only water dripping from the head, making it impossible to properly wash out shampoo. The entire property showed serious wear and tear, which made the stay uncomfortable.

2025-09-20 via Nuitee
P
Paul
4
An old and very tired hotel - needs an uplift
Pros:

Where do I start? - I travel a lot on business and stay in a lot of different hotels. I'm a working class man who has simple tastes, so I am NOT a hotel snob. Clean and functional is generally all I'm after. Thos hotel provided neither.
I was moved to a executive room in the main building after being put in a cottage room - see my previous feedback for that one.
The only thing that might have defined this room as an "Executive" room was the fact it had a separate chair in there - which was old and uncomfortable.
The room itself was very tired and very dated. The TV was at least 20 years old - hardly any Freeview channels and not a smart TV - really!!!! - In this day and age?
The bed was comfortable I'll give them that, but the paint work was blotchy, the carpet was probably as old as the TV.
The bathroom looked like it had been improved - but the bath leaked and there was water on the floor of the bathroom constantly - there was a smell of stagnant water in the bathroom which seemed to be coming from the toilet. The shower gel was impossible to get out of the little container - I don;t know who designed those.
The Wifi was very intermittent - making it difficult to do FaceTime calls to family.
It's a real pity because the location is very nice.
My view - this is a perfect example of hotel owners who never stay in their own hotel - they'd be horrified if they were to live as a customer in this hotel - or they might not be bothered?
Definitely won't be staying here again

2025-09-04 via Nuitee
P
Paul
4
Just not up to standard - poor
Pros:

This hotel looks nothing like the pictures on the website. The cottage rooms were frankly appalling. The whole area around them looked like a crack den. very poorly maintained and in an awful condition. furniture was old, bed was awful, condition of room was awful - paintwork hadn't been touched up. The TV was at least 20 years old (no smart TV is just not acceptable for today's travellers.
The room was SO bad, I got the receptionist to move me to a room in the main house. she was great, but the room is still very average at best. This hotel needs a full makeover, probably looks the same as it did 25 years ago. I won't be staying there again

2025-09-02 via Nuitee
L
Linda
8
A fun and joyful stay
Pros:

We stayed in the cottages next to the main hotel. Two of the group were in the ground floor units which unfortunately suffered from damp. The musty smell was overpowering at night especially as it was unwise to leave the windows open due to the water flies getting in from the river.
We asked for the two rooms be changed to upper rooms on the second night which was done without question. The rooms generally were clean and the beds comfortable.
The food in the restaurant was excellent and the staff team very attentive.

2025-08-25 via Nuitee
C
Cath partner
6
Pros:

Perfectly located for inbetween stop off for us, location was perfect. No lift, no help offered with bags, rooms electronic sockets dangerous/broken, dirty fan, broken tiles etc in bathroom, shower screen not fitted so water floods out when showering. All said, im disabled, so all points to a disaster waiting to happen, and pillows very uncomfortable.

2025-08-20 via Nuitee
G
Gabriele
10
Pros:

The Priest House is situated in beautiful settings. I often stop in the cottages as I find them convenient and comfortable.

2025-08-20 via Nuitee
H
Helen partner
6
Pros:

The restaurant and food was faultless. But unfortunately the cottage we were allocated had a smell of damp and mould. We were given another,slightly less smelly room, but still in the Cottages, This had flies on the curtain and windowsill plus the window frame was rotten and no way to open and securing the window open. Very disappointing.. we were told the cottage's are to be refurbished. Sorry but they are not fit for purpose and should be closed off. This is a lovely location and the property could be very special but not until it is brought up to standards. Other things wrong but could be accepted if the rooms were up to standard. Really disappointed with our stay..

2025-08-11 via Nuitee
V
Verified traveler
6
Overall substandard
Pros:

We stayed for a wedding, the photos online look amazing. When we arrived I was shocked, the place is run down and in need of some TLC. The public areas, bar, lounge, restaurant was ok, breakfast was ok it was a buffet style, however I only ate the pastries so not sure on the quality.

Other than one night porter I think his name was Jay, who stepped in to help they were all a little slow to respond to anything. With it being a wedding that cost a fair bit of money you would have expected everyone to know what was going on and a bit more forward in helping. There was definitely no special treatment for the bride.
Rooms, main building were ok, spiders everywhere. Some of the taps in the rooms were broken, missing indices, generally in need of replacing. Cottage, rooms were small, loads of spiders, in need of a refresh, one room on the ground floor was covered in mould so they had to move rooms.
Wedding food, they had a change of staff just before so the food was not as expected from the tasting day, it did taste lovely but the presentation wasn’t the best.
Overall substandard, I would not come back to this hotel.

2025-08-08 via Nuitee
E
Eve
6
Pros:

The hotel itself was lovely but the rooms in the

2025-08-07 via Nuitee
M
Michael
10
Very Nice Stay
Pros:

We had a very nice one night stay, The Hotel is in a nice Location. With friendly Helpful staff, A nice restaurant and outdoor space to enjoy the surroundings with a drink.

2025-08-05 via Nuitee
P
Paul
8
Pet friendly and excellent accommodation.
Pros:

We stayed in one of the cottages with our 2 dogs. These cottages are ideal if you have pets. This is our 2nd stay this year and will not be the last. The only downside is that the parking is a bit away from the cottages. There is 2 parking places for many cottages. We have a blue badge but can't be used. It is a fair walk with the luggage our dogs and their pet beds. But the room is very good and ideal for pets. The shower is probably the most powerful shower i have ever used.

2025-07-30 via Nuitee
M
Margaret
8
Place to stay near the arboretum
Pros:

It is a lovely place to stay the hotel part is in a beautiful setting right on the river Trent the only thing that lets it down is the outside of the cottages accommodation. It is the need of some tlc paint work wood work needs looking at. The inside of the cottages are fine beds are comfy shower is good. Food in the hotel is good, breakfasts are very good help yourself. All said I would stay again.

2025-07-27 via Nuitee
A
anita
2
Poor
Pros:

Booker for my husbands birthday the receptionist was very rude didnt tell uz the air conditioning wasnt working

2025-07-19 via Nuitee