Whitley Hall Hotel

Christmas Eve to 27th December 2025

This was our first stay at Whitley Hall and understandably, despite reading existing reviews prior to booking, there was a degree of anxiety regarding personal expectation for our Christmas 3 night break.

At time of booking in July, we were reassured by the booking process which was well organised, easy to navigate and the communication was great and subsequently, remained excellent throughout. I was even able to make enquiries via email at the last minute and this was handled promptly and efficiently.

Christmas Eve check-in at 2pm was our initial interaction with reception staff, where the process was swift and informative despite being predictably busy, but we were instantly made to feel welcome. We then went for afternoon tea, which offered a good selection of both savoury and sweet treats with portion size more than adequate for the two of us.

We had booked a luxury room, which was ready at 3pm as stated, and we were allocated room 40. The room was beautifully decorated, full of character, immaculately clean, warm and cosy, it also afforded us a view of the lake. It had everything to make our stay enjoyable, in addition were complimentary mince pies and a small bottle of port which was a very nice touch from the Hotel.

All our meals (with the exception of Christmas morning breakfast which was delivered to our room by a couple of Santa's Elves) were in the Restaurant 1584 which is tastefully decorated. The food was exceptional, delicious and beautifully presented, it's clear to see the Chefs have a passion for food, we just couldn't fault anything. Service was excellent too and although staff were very busy, nothing seemed to be too much trouble, it was obvious, that every effort was being made to make our experience special.

From the moment we stepped into this fabulous hotel with beautiful surroundings, the whole experience was outstanding. The atmosphere throughout the hotel was warm and festive with open fires in several areas of the hotel. The Christmas decorations were impressive throughout the hotel including a large wreath attached to the main gates upon our arrival which was a very lovely touch.

Joe Ciara and all the staff, irrelevant of role and what time of day, whoever we came across, they all appeared happy in their work. They were approachable, competent and there was a clear willingness to help at every opportunity and they all engaged in a friendly way whilst maintaining professionalism. Their prominent smiles gave such a warm positive first impression and was so welcoming throughout our stay, it's a credit to you all.

Overall Whitley Hall delivered a truly wonderful Christmas stay and dining experience - it was just perfect. It made such an impression, we have decided to return with family for Christmas 2026!

Whitley hall is an amazing place to stay and provides a truly memorable experience. 1584 restaurant should definitely be visited. It’s clear to see the chefs have a passion for food and this shows in the amazing dishes they create. This is a beautiful welcoming Hotel set in wonderful grounds. Our room was very comfortable and had everything to make our stay enjoyable. All the staff we came across during our stay showed great professionalism while being friendly and attentive to our needs. Would definitely recommend a visit and we will definitely be returning.

This is a beautiful old building with creaky floors and classic British style. The room was cosy and had everything you’d expect, including a big bath tub. There is some complimentary port too, a nice touch. I was on my own so wanted room service. The only negative thing I have to say is that the tray charge was £10. I queried this when I left and the receptionist waived the charge. I think £5 is reasonable but £10 is a lot! Breakfast options were excellent. This was a business stay and I’d love to stay again for leisure.

Beautiful hotel in lovely setting. Real fire making a cosy atmosphere. A range of different savouries on the afternoon tea which was all stunning. One of the best we have had, well done.

Love coming to Whitley Hall. The food is always gorgeous and beautifully presented. The staff are so attentive and are a credit to the hotel. We had a lunch to celebrate a friend’s birthday and it was made extra special with a special dessert for her which was a lovely touch. I will be back and it was my friend’s first time and she is already looking to book her next visit. Highly recommend

First time here, for evening meal. Excellent venue, albeit slightly difficult to find in the dark. Greeted on arrival and ushered into bar so that allegedly we could peruse menus and have a drink, have some bar snacks. Took half an hour before we actually ordered, so this was maybe just a clever way to get us to spend money at the bar in advance of our meal! Limited cocktail menu but generally very pleasant in the snug. Had two meals in very tastefully decorated restaurant, which were generally quite pleasant, one more so than the other. Staff were all very attentive and helpful, Joe especially, and the price was quite competitive - the 3-course evening meal at £30 is especially good value. At last a venue where the background music is just that - background! A place to return to.

The history and unique feel. We loved the decor and feeling of the place

Bed too hard. Food was good, Cups in the rooms too small and at breakfast

Fine

We booked a Junior Suite for 1 night. After having driven from our home in West Cornwall, a journey of 380 miles, we were looking forward to checking into our room and then having a relaxing evening with a couple of drinks in the bar before settling down for an early night. Whitley Hall is a place we hold very dear to us after many family occasions there before we moved away from the area.

On our arrival just after 6pm we were given a key to our room and directions. I noticed straight away how cold the room was, my husband checked the radiators and realised both had been turned off. He turned them on and I called down to reception to request a plug in heater whilst the room warmed up. One very small heater was reluctantly brought to us as it was the reception team's heater. This showed as it was very dirty and covered in spilt drinks. After waiting the requested time of 30 minutes for the room to warm through I once again called reception as no heat was coming into the radiators. A small oil filled radiator was proving inadequate for a room of the size of the Junior Suite and I was getting colder and colder.

It was agreed that a room change was going to be the only solution, and I realised this was going to be quite difficult for me to undertake as I was already exhausted. I have walking difficulties due to osteoarthritis and I use a stick, I was assured there weren't any more stairs. This was NOT the case as I counted 6. The room offered was a fairly bog standard room with no seating other than the bed and no bath. Surely staff members are trained to make room downgrades apparent to guests beforehand, not after? Once again I called reception, I was told rather abruptly by Joe that I would need to compromise on the bathroom or the bed as there weren't any other rooms available.

I checked availability myself on the internet and I could see amongst others there was a four poster room available and the Peacock Suite. I was somewhat disappointed to say the least not to have been offered either of these in the first instance. Having now been in the hotel for over 2 hours I was in desperate need of resting and my husband was looking forward to a soak in the bath. So yet another call was made to reception, and somewhat reluctantly Joe agreed on a further room change. We were given yet another key and directed (not escorted as I would have expected in view of the previous 2 rooms being unsuitable) to a four poster bedroom on the 1st floor of the Parker Wing, the opposite side to where we now were but very close to our first room. On entering this room, it too was freezing cold, the Juliet balcony doors were wide open as were the bathroom and bedroom windows and the heating was turned off. My husband closed the doors and windows and turned on the radiators, fortunately the heating wasn't broken, just turned off. By 10pm we were just starting to get warm.

This room we later discovered needed a very thorough deep clean, the bedside lamps were covered in dust, the paintings had cobwebs and the top of the bed hasn't been dusted in years. The dust motes brought on an allergic sneezing reaction in both of us once the room had warmed up.

The relaxing evening we had planned of having drinks in the bar and reminiscing about happy visits in the past was not going to happen now.

I wrote to the Operations Manager to complain about the shocking lack of customer service on the night in question and the lack of cleanliness in the room that we ended up staying in. It turned out the receptionist called Joe we had been dealing with on the night was actually the operations manager of Whitley Hall, not a fairly new and inexperienced receptionist still learning the layout of the rooms like we had wrongly assumed due to his lack of knowledge of the building and the location of stairs. This was quite a surprise as he hadn't demonstrated any managerial experience, can do attitude or expertise when handling the situation we found ourselves in.

In response to my complaint I received a reply from him advising me of what steps they were now putting in place to ensure the cleanliness issue doesn't happen again and that the heating was now fixed in the Junior Suite. This is just paying lip service and of no consequence to us, own the problem and either put things right for the customer or apologise profusely and offer compensation. The offer of a complimentary upgrade should we decide to return is not going to entice us back that is for certain. The email also stated “Regarding your mention of potentially posting your experience on Tripadvisor, you are of course free to share your feedback publicly. Should you choose to do so, we will ensure that any response from the hotel is fair, balanced, and reflective of the steps taken on the night to support you to the best of our ability.”

Oh my word, there is no hope for the place if they feel veiled threats are appropriate towards regular customers who have visited the hotel and restaurant for over 50 years! I can't believe a member of the management team would actually write this or are they cutting corners and using AI ChatGPT to write their replies?

The steps taken on the night to support us were practically non-existent. Not even an offer to assist with our baggage. I also wish to point out that it was my own tenacity that found us a suitable room, not the steps of the operations manager.

I first visited Whitley Hall the year it opened as a restaurant in 1969 aged 5 and it saddens me that after our recent experience we certainly won't be returning under the current management team. I rarely complain or give negative TripAdvisor reviews but in this instance it is completely justified after the response I was sent.

One comment that was rather interesting to hear when chatting with the waiting staff at breakfast the following morning about the bed in the four poster bedroom. Apparently it's a particular favourite room for the manager to stay in when he is on night duty. One has to question if this is why we weren't offered this room in the first instance!

Stayed here for 2 nights on dinner, bed and breakfast. Nice hotel with clean rooms, and helpful staff. Only bar food was available on the first night because the restaurant was closed- poor quality and small portion of undercooked cannelloni. The restaurant was opened for dinner on the second night, which was lovely. Breakfast this morning was great. Telephoned by reception at 2130 tonight to say the only time breakfast is available tomorrow is 0645, despite booking a time during check in.

We had a large family gathering to celebrate a 60th birthday, we were given the parker room to ourselves which was perfect. There were 5 small children in our party and the room enabled them to get down on the floor to play rather than be sat at the table for a long lunch. The staff were amazing, the food was fabulous and the venue was perfect. We will be booking again in the future - Thank you

We had our fabulous wedding here in 2022 and try and return every year on our anniversary with the hotels amazing romantic package.
This has bubbly in the room waiting, an afternoon sweet treat tray, a beautiful evening meal and of course their brilliant breakfast.
The grounds are beautiful although we do miss the peacocks that were an important part at our wedding, hopefully they will get some more back
The staff from start to finish are fantastic, very attentive, happy and make you feel at home, this is one of the treasures at this hotel.
Definitely worth a visit

The decor. The comfort
The staff

2 night Stay for wedding anniversary.
The hotel was busy with 3 or 4 weddings and other events, not that it had an impact on our stay. The only reason we knew was because of the signposts to the different events…The whole hotel was otherwise as peaceful, quiet and relaxing as it ever has been. It didn’t feel busy at all.
The staff were extremely helpful, efficient and looked to enjoy what they did…they were polite wherever we saw them, from reception, housekeeping, restaurant or bar.
The food was excellent!
The ambience was friendly and warm, the rooms were just lovely and charming - full of character and we will go back without a shadow of a doubt!!

New years day lunch. Absolutely brilliant, such an array of choice, lovely friendly staff. Beautiful surroundings from the lights on the trees outside to the festive decor inside. We had drinks in the lounge surrounded by the warmth and glow of the real fire.The whole experience was delightful from start to finish. A wonderful end to our family festivities. We will definitely be back. Great value for money.

Stayed here from Christmas Eve until Boxing Day. From the second we stepped inside until the moment we left everything was just outstanding, if you are thinking about going please do it because you won’t regret it one bit. I can honestly say our stay was worth every single penny paid. The atmosphere, the staff, the food everything was just perfect, can’t give it enough stars. Thank you to each and everyone there that made our Christmas just perfect! ❤️

Had two night New Years Eve package. We stayed 30th and 31st, and met some friends for the Black Tie Gala Dinner. Dinner was scrumptious and served in the dining room before allocated tables for the singers and disco. Great evening, good company and everybody stayed to celebrate into the New Year. Would highly recommend. Joe and Liv (bar and serving staff) are great hosts and went beyond the usual standards of service to make our stay very memorable.