Macdonald Old England Hotel & Spa

The breakfast was perfect. The options were great and the cooked breakfast was cooked to perfection and tasted so good. It was right on the lake and so peaceful to swim in the pool looking at the lake. The spa was so relaxing, not stuffy.

Mum and I were a little disappointed in dinner. It was described as fine dining and certainly not cheap. I wanted a treat for mum but she got the lunch menu as she is vegetarian. The lasagne was just slopped onto plate with a packet of salad put in a bowl with no seasoning. My fish was cooked perfectly but with a tiny spoon full of kale. Such a shame as breakfast was so perfect. I don't think dinner should be described as fine dining.

Staff and location

Room was not what I expected asked for a large bath and was given a room with no bath. Room had a marvellous view but was not what you expect for a superior deluxe king no bath

The bed was very comfortable, bathroom large, bedroom quite small but the view made up for that. Breakfast was red hot and dinner was delicious.

Car park charge for 3 days would have been £60 we parked on the council one down Glebe street, £18 for 3 days and ticket valid for most of the other council car parks in the area

The room was lovely and spacious and we enjoyed sitting out on the balcony in the evening after the heat of the day, The bed was very comfortable. We enjoyed the breakfasts which were especially good when a menu service was provided. We were very graetful to the kindness and helpfulness of the staff who went out of their way to support my wife who has mobility problems.

There was a few minor niggles - no batteries in the safe or the TV controller for the bathroom - but we didn't miss not having access to these. Although we said that we liked the breakfasts - the self service model was less enjoyable. For example, scrambled eggs were lovely on the menu served breakfast - but were grey and tasteless in comparison on the first breakfast we had.

Location, food, friendly staff. Beautiful huge lounge area, excellent outdoor areas for sitting with drinks. Lovely pool and gym.

Staff should NOT hold managerial meetings in the residents lounge where residents are trying to relax. Service in dining room both hilarious and appalling. No cutlery, great delays between courses - but the day saved by the excellent tattooed restaurant manager who, quite frankly, should do stand up. He was lovely with all the guests and hilarious. Whoever phoned me prior to my stay to book dinner time didn’t. At reception on checking in, had to book again - and again no booking when we arrived for dinner. What’s going on? Plumbing in room needs attention - flushing the toilet triggered prolonged foghorn noises 😂

Room was very nice with a balcony that had fabulous views, nice big bathroom with bath and shower, all of the staff are lovely and friendly and helpful, nice swimming pool and area, breakfast and dinner was very good, nice views from the restaurant and bar and terrace. Nice touch leaving wine and chocolates in the room upon arrival. Near to all attractions and amenities and lots of nice restaurants within easy reach if you don't want to eat at the hotel.

The bed was a bit sagging and uncomfortable and and the heater in the room did not work (it was quite cool for August). The tables in the bar/lounge always seemed to need cleaning/clearing. Rooms are expensive for what they are and although nicely decorated are a bit tired and old-fashioned but it is the "Old England" Hotel so I suppose it is reflective of that.

Location was perfectly situated for access to all amenities. Breakfast option was very good either cooked or continental which i thought was a great idea. They have a car park a few yards away and costs £20 per night. Staff were brilliant, very attentive and friendly. Hotel was very comfortable and i would definitely go again but for a longer stay!

The only thing i wasn’t happy about was the fact that with it being an old building there wasn’t any air conditioning and it was very warm in the bedroom. We found a fan in the wardrobe which we kept on all night and opened the window but it was still stifling.

From check in to check out the staff were amazing, all were very accommodating, extremely patient with the grandchildren (ages9&6) and did this all with a smile , the reception team, the ladies in the spa/pool, the guys in the bar, and the breakfast team all deserving of 5 stars well done

A very small dislike sorry, There seemed to be an awful lot of laundry and cleaning things in the corridors at all times , I understand this can be unavoidable at times but it never went away, this did take away from the luxury feel of the stay , felt like I was at home 😱

The location is stunning, room was very big had to walk down corridor past bathroom turn left opened out in bedroom, Bathroom had bath and separate shower, The staff in the restaurant are very good especially John he goes above and beyond, he helped a lady in a wheel chair to her table then fetched her food from the buffet for her and her children, very impressive,

On check in i presented my credit card for payment and told the receptionist i had a table for dinner booked, and still at dinner i could not put my meal on my room, had to go back to my room to get my card then back to restaurant to pay, it seems thay have lost trust in there customers,

Breakfast was ok, nothing out of the ordinary. The toast was brought out first together with tea/coffee & cold by the time the breakfast arrived. Evening meal was exceptional & the waiting on staff mostly friendly Our room was lovely & large, bathroom was ideal. Lovely view of the lake from the restaurant.

We had a lovely balcony, however we couldn’t sit on the furniture as it was very dirty. Some of the staff were rather snobby.