Orsett Hall

We went to this venue for one of my best friend’s wedding and the dissatisfaction we all have with the service of this booking and the events surrounding the wedding day.

From the outset, communication was poor. You originally booked their wedding at a time when the venue was undergoing renovations and was not fully operational. This should have been the first warning sign of the further issues to come.

Additionally, guests were only informed the day before the wedding that a £50 per person deposit hold would be applied. This was particularly frustrating given that the room had already been paid for in full. Such important financial information should have been communicated well in advance to allow guests to prepare accordingly.

The most disappointing aspect of the experience was the conduct of a member of staff on the wedding day. Our wedding manager had advised that we could take photographs anywhere on the venue grounds. However, whilst taking photographs, another manager approached us and abruptly instructed us to move. The manner in which this was handled was both rude and unprofessional. Rather than politely clarifying any restrictions, we felt as though we were being shooed away. This behaviour caused unnecessary distress to the bride on what should have been a special and memorable day.

The conflicting instructions provided by different members of staff resulted in the wedding party being repeatedly directed from one location to another during a heatwave. This lack of organisation caused considerable frustration and discomfort for the couple and the guests. While I appreciate that the staff member may have been managing another wedding, this does not excuse the attitude displayed towards our party or the distress caused. If you don’t want your wedding on at the same time as another bride then pick another venue – don’t create issues for the other brides who are trying to enjoy their day because you don’t want another bride having their photos before your guests have even sat in the chapel and your wedding has even started.

Further concerns have arisen regarding the deposit holds taken from members of the wedding party. Many guests have still not had their money returned. Rather than simply placing a temporary hold on funds, payments appear to have been processed, and over a month later some guests are still waiting for reimbursement. This reflects poorly on the venue's booking and payment systems and has only added to the dissatisfaction surrounding all of our experiences.

As a result of these issues, I would not recommend this venue for weddings, events, hotel stays, or spa visits. Since our experience, I have noted numerous reviews from other customers raising similar concerns regarding communication, customer service, and payment processes, suggesting these are not isolated incidents.

While the venue may be investing in renovations and improvements to its appearance, these changes alone will not address the underlying issues. Significant improvements are required in customer service standards, staff professionalism, communication practices, and deposit management procedures. Without addressing these fundamental concerns, any physical refurbishment will do little to improve the overall customer experience.

Overall, what should have been one of the most important and enjoyable days of my friends’ lives was overshadowed by poor communication, disorganisation, unprofessional behaviour, and ongoing financial issues. I hope all these complaintd and negative reviews are taken seriously and used as an opportunity to make meaningful improvements for future customers and brides.

Orsett Hall sits in beautiful grounds and really has the potential to be a great hotel but it is let down by the lack of investment in it's upkeep, awful customer service and penny pinching attitude towards their guests.
It’s not often I bother to write negative reviews for places we have stayed at but I make an exception here for the following reasons:
First up the spa is now permanently closed.
We arrived 30 minutes early and were told by the receptionist we could have an early check in then after thanking them were told it would cost another 10 pounds
We had booked a room on the second floor for our stay and were told at reception the lift had broken down the previous day and would be fixed the next day. The hotel provided a staff member to assist us in carrying our heavy suitcases up 3 flights of stairs. The next day I enquired about the lift and was told the maintenance company had brought the “wrong part”. For the rest of our stay, we were provided with the same disinterested response by reception and when we left the lift remained out of action and resulting in us carting our luggage down the stairs again.
The room was big enough although the décor of the building wouldn’t have looked out of place in a nursing home and seemed to originate from the 1980s.
For some reason we were only provided one collapsible pillow each.
Instead of glass tumblers the hotel provided cheap plastic disposable cups the sought you find in vending machines.
The room temperature was consistently too hot and the air conditioning control for the room had been disabled with a sign advising heating or cooling of room required reception to come to room every time you wanted to adjust the temperature.
In response to the unbearable heat my wife and I with great difficulty were able to pries open the window which was so heavy it could just be lifted enough by 2 people to let fresh air in if wedged open with the tissue dispenser
On day 3 we were awoken at 0545 am by the fire alarm (later discovering the shower had caused a false alarm ) despite staff knowing this no one bothered to alert us and we dashed to reception in our night clothes along with the other guests to be told it was a false alarm.
On thankfully the last night we were subjected to bass tone from a function on the ground floor ballroom which vibrated the whole room. I called reception to enquire when it would finish and was told around midnight. As we had a flight to catch early the next morning. I politely advised her we were unhappy about this and was told if we wanted, we could have a late check out yes, you guessed it for a charge of an additional 10 pounds.
All requests and complaints were met with the same platitudes by the receptionists of “we are very sorry”.

The staff friendly the outside areas are beautiful

It’s the location for me.

Beautiful

Comfortable room. Lovely staff. Good evening meal and breakfast.

Lovely location

The location was great for what we needed. The grounds are lovely. Staff in restaurant were great

The hotel and grounds were impeccable. The room was very clean and spacious, well equipped and thankful for the air con with the hot weather. The dinner was very good; and the staff were really helpful to our table of 15 people. I would like to give a big thankyou to the ladies on reception who assisted me with the storage of gifts for our farewell meal.

Exceptional staff.

Location and the grounds. We also met Elton, a handsome peacock that owns the place.

Breakfast was excellent

Close to car links

Very nice and beautiful place to stay few nights during business trip.
Car or other transportation required when leaving the hotel. But I really enjoyed my stay in this peaceful environment close the nature after long working days. Restaurant was okay and the service was very friendly everywhere.

Nice hotel, nice grounds

Lovely hotel in beautiful grounds .

We came for a wedding function and did not disappoint. The chapel is beautiful and the food was out of this world. What an amazing chef there!! We stayed in the rooms at the back of the chapel and I think we got a good deal there as it was cosy and comfortable, other members of our family stayed in the main hotel and was kept awake for most of the night due to another wedding party and plus selfish people shouting outside which is shame. The venue its self is very well presented and very clean.

Sad to hear the hotel will close and change soon.

Air con. The whole place was beautiful