Woodlands Park Hotel

This looks lovely from the outside and in the public areas inside until you look more closely when you see the years of neglect. The window frames are all rotten inside and out. Internal secondary glazing has been added but that’s just a patch on the problem.
Our room, number 35, was L-shaped with the bathroom forming the rest of a square. It was very clean but shabby. The bathroom in particular was in need of attention with a cracked sink and the bathroom panel in a state due to the fact that the shower panel is too small and the sides of the bath has a broad edge to it that just seems to funnel water onto the floor. To prevent flooding we sacrificed a towel to act as a dam.
We had significant problems with the aged aircon unit. It made a high pitched continual whine like a car alarm going off in the distance, accompanied by random Vrrrr noises whenever the pump kicked in. Attempts to turn it off failed as it’s centrally controlled so still keeps running the pump. Given it was in the middle of a heatwave and we were under the roof we couldn’t do without it. On the first night we got about 2 hours sleep which ruined the following day, which happened to be my birthday. Attempts to fix it just added in the noise of trickling water to the other noises. Complaints were met with a lot of sympathy, but that’s a cheap solution.
We were going to dine in the hotel but discovered the menu was different to what was online so we cancelled. However the restaurant seemed to be rarely used so I think we probably made the right decision.
Another issue is room keys. Apparently they are very sensitive and ours constantly wiped itself.

Good location

Warm welcome, nice room, friendly staff, good food, secure parking. Huge thanks to Cianna on check in. My husband and I have stayed in hundreds of hotels worldwide and we both thought Cianna was exceptional, the nicest person we ever met at check-in.

Convenience. Air conditioning. Comfy bed. Excellent staff

Staff were excellent. Air con in the bedroom was fantastic. Shower amazing

Beautiful house with lots of charm. Feels like time tunnel in a positive way. Very friendly and helpful personnel. Good food. Great flair. Easy parking.

Beautiful setting

location and ambulance

Good: really large room, with excellent air-con, and nice bathroom plus, and I do not say this lightly, the most outstandingly powerful shower pressure I have experienced; a lovely great hall in which to sit and watch the world go by and/or have tea, a drink or a light meal (we did not eat a full meal in the restaurant); a beautiful, huge terrace with southerly aspect; and lovely staff who were always doing their absolute best.

Bad: far too few staff; an absolutely shambolic mess of a buffet breakfast on the Sunday (for which, after complaint, we were reimbursed) was followed on Monday morning by a breakfast as it should be, cooked to order with proper at table service, although the ham under my eggs Benedict was supermarket wafer-thin sliced, not the ‘carved ham’, as advertised. The reason for the massive difference was the vastly reduced number of guests eating on Monday, compared to Sunday, morning. Who could have forecast that?

Summary: really pretty good and enjoyable but I wouldn’t stay on a Saturday night again and run the risk of a repeat of the car crash of a Sunday morning buffet breakfast, the likes of which I had never seen and hope never to experience again. I would rather have paid a little more and shared the cost of a few more staff. It would have made all the difference. The owners, Handpicked Hotels, ought to know this. I suspect the group is being run by accountants. Perhaps they have made the usually fatal mistake of promoting the CFO to CEO.

The air conditioned room, incredibly comfortable and spacious room and delicious breakfast made this stay very enjoyable. The staff were also extremely accommodating

receptionist, room

Clean & staff very polite

Staff are friendly, professional and really helpful. The room is a good size for an executive room and the bathroom has a bath and shower. Tea and coffee making facilities are always welcome and we were lucky enough to not be overlooked. The grounds are beautiful and the patio area is large and comfortable.

Beautiful hotel in a stunning location with exceptionally polite, helpful staff and an excellent breakfast (standout eggs Benedict and full English). Had I known about the scaffolding in advance, however, (not just via the letter we were given on check in), I would have stayed elsewhere.

My experience was undermined by a poorly allocated room (room 41): it was small, dark, and directly affected by exterior scaffolding. Just after 8.00am, ongoing roof works created a dreadful noise and disruption as materials were lifted repeatedly outside the window via a squeaky bucket on a pulley, and the builders scaled the scaffolding noisily, sometimes dropping heavy materials on the platform. It was the least restful stay I have ever had in all my years, unfortunately. There was a touch of Fawlty Towers about it all, except I did not want to stay in Fawlty Towers!

The bathroom was adequate but required stepping into a high-sided bath for a shower, which may be difficult for those with mobility issues.

In contrast, my friend’s room was spacious, bright, and well-appointed with a walk-in shower, highlighting a clear inconsistency in room standards. Both rooms cost the same. I did have a word with the manager before leaving - apparently the roof work should not start before 9.00am and only has a few weeks left to run. But check thoroughly before you book is my advice.

Great location , clean .