Eastwell Manor, Champneys Hotel & Spa

Ploughmans was diar!

Sadly, the standard rooms seem dated and in need of a little tlc and refreshment. With that said, the room was very clean..

Not enough loungers and had to stand around the pool for over an hour until even a char was available- not acceptable.

Staff were not to the standard of what you pay for. The staff in reception are great, and a few bar staff are also good. But spa staff are quite rude, cleaners entered the room before check out without knocking and service wasn’t great in the restaurant. That being said, not all staff were awful!

Several aspects of the stay fell short of expectations.

The spa experience in particular was disappointing. When booking, we were asked to select a spa time slot of 7-10am or 5-9pm should we want to use it, which gave the impression that access would be managed and capacity controlled. In reality, this did not appear to be enforced. The spa was extremely overcrowded, with no available loungers or seating, leaving guests standing with their belongings waiting for space in the jacuzzi, sauna or steam room. Reception weren’t expecting us and it’s more of a sign in service for people to come and go as they please.

The jacuzzi/whirlpool also seemed to be struggling with the volume of people, the water was very foamy and caused eye irritation even without submerging your face, which did not feel like the standard expected from a spa environment. The outdoors being closed further added to the pressure on already busy indoor facilities.

What was particularly frustrating was the inconsistency in how access to facilities is managed. While the spa appeared to be operating at or beyond capacity, hotel guests were unable to use the gym without paying an additional £15pp each time! Even when it was completely empty. This felt unnecessarily restrictive and, at times, more focused on gaining from additional charges than on providing a balanced guest experience. I’ve never stayed in a hotel where something as basic as gym access comes at an additional charge per visit.

There were also some issues within the cottage itself. After a standard shower, the bathroom flooded as the shower did not drain quickly enough, leaving water pooled across the floor. While reception did send someone with towels right away, this did not address the underlying issue. The sink also drained very slowly, suggesting a wider plumbing problem.

Dinner at the Gardenia wasn't as great as we would expect, but I have submitted a separate feedback. While we truly enjoyed the quality of the food, the level of service did not meet expectations on this occasion.

Vétusté de la salle de bain avec des murs endommagés, toilettes presque hors d’usage.

Broken window lock, drafty. Breakfast cutlery and china vey dirty. People staying Nextdoor were so noisy our relaxing break was ruined. I did report and was told by Paige someone would reach out but unsurprisingly I’ve heard nothing yet

Nothing

The Queen bed was two single beds put together, annoying and hard join in between them

It smelt like the drains were blocked in the bathroom which wasn’t pleasant at all
The room needs some tlc - the carpet near the window needs to be replaced & walls need to be repainted.
It would be nice if concierge could take your bags for you.

Liked everything just could have been a couple of hot chocolate sachets in the room. Only slight criticism decor slightly shabby in places but did not spoil the stay.

Our room was very tired looking, it certainly needs to be re decorated and I’m amazed that there wasn’t one usb socket to be seen.

Needed an outside balcony to view beautiful scenery.

The room was a little run down and could of done with some TLC, bathroom extractor fan didn't work so bathroom got very steamy, to add to this, there was no air-con in the room... and the windows didn't open! Also the radiator was set to maximum so the room was very hot, after turning down the radiator the room did cool but took some time.
The worst part was breakfast next morning, they were very short staffed and took ages just to order, then 45mins to come out and it was then wrong, it took another 30mins for them to bring the right order.