The Notary — Hotel in Bruges

A hidden gem...with many cracks. The Notary really is a beautiful property however allow me to share my experience with you so you can make your own informed decision:

I had two rooms booked for a family trip in which there were four of us staying at the Notary. I received an email prior to arriving that their family room was available if I were interested in the 'upgrade' at no additional charge. Yes, I would love for my wife, aunt, daughter and I to stay in the same suite with two attached rooms.

We arrived, everything looked beautiful. It was a hot day...the AC's didn't work.

The hotel maintenance came in and turned them on without any issue, not sure why we couldn't get them to work as they're simple mini splits. You push the button, they turn on. After a couple hours we notice the one in the smaller bedroom was leaking when the purge pump (condensation pump) would turn on, and leaking a fair amount of water down the wall, on the headboard and onto the mattress. So much water in fact that I took a glass and held it underneath the unit to capture the water so as not to drain onto the mattress and it filled the glass 3/4 with water. I let the front desk staff know, at this time it was after 21:00 (9pm). They stated nobody was available to fix the unit and to just keep it turned off until someone comes in the morning to fix it. We turned off the unit. However, the purge pump kept turning on and pumping water out onto the bed. We let staff know again, they didn't know what to do or say - neither did we as we had turned off the AC unit yet the pump was still activating. After doing some web research it's common for mini-split units to pump after the unit is turned 'off', as they don't have a condensation tank to store the water. Short of it all; my daughter and aunt got dripped on all night and had to listen to the pump kicking on and off throughout the night. Not good when you're spending $1000/night for the room. The next day the tech came in and mostly fixed the problem. Though there was a slight drip still leaking from the unit, it was much better than it was.

On a side note, I asked if they could do some laundry for us; "YES" was the enthusiastic answer, which I was delighted to hear. I gave them approx 10kg of clothes to wash and received them back the next morning. Perfect...until check-out. Upon reviewing my bill I noticed a €240 charge for three loads of laundry. When I questioned it, they apologized for the excessive charge and adjusted it to €70, which was still expensive but on par with what most hotels would charge.

After we departed I emailed asking to speak to the manager and requested a 15% credit (a mere €300 on a €2300 bill). They responded quickly with an offer of 15% credit on my next stay within the next year. Given I'm on a family holiday, it's very unlikely that I'll be back within the year and if I am I certainly would NOT stay at the Notary. I simply asked for a refund of €300. They refused, only pushing back giving every excuse not to issue a refund including inferring I was lying about the leak.

I considered legal action for one nights' credit, but frankly it's not worth my time. I've already spent countless hours dealing with emails trying to get any type of resolve to my satisfaction only to be told I'm lying about the water leak and pump turning on after the unit is turned off.

I share my story so you don't have to write your own.

The Notary is a beautiful property, however it is NOT worth the expense. There are so many other choices around the lovely town of Bruges. When I pay $1000/nt I expect a great experience. That was NOT a...

I've stayed in endless 'great' hotels, but there are only a few that offers a sense of uniquenss (where no other options in the location are remotely meaningful in comparison), compassionate and professional service (professional of course, but compassionate is the extra step) and also sports aesthetics that do not feel contrived but rather truly organic and thought through.

I've stayed at The Notary at two different occasions: one just me + my dog , the second time with my wife + 2 month baby. Not only did I get to sample two different exquisite suites, but more importantly I could not have wished for a better reception and care.

In my mind there are very few hotels that meets this particular level of excellence - for reference, Ett Hem in Stockholm comes to mind (if you had the joy of staying there)..

I will certainly be back and can recommend The Notary without hesitation - knowing that a stay in Bruges will be truly silver lined in a way that it otherwise wouldn't be.

I have read some of the other reviews and I do not get the negative ones. I guess they didn't stay there. Being upset about a breakfast at €xx cost (which is excellent) makes no sense when you're in a personal, intimate and caring space - it's obviously the opposite of the buffer at Four Seasons (let alone that breakfast at the latter would be more expensive).

My five cents is that you get a level of comfort, service, aesthetics and thoughtfulness that is extraordinarily rare for what I feel is a very reasonable price (not to say that it's inexpensive, but you get the point).

If you have a chance, do spend a couple of nights. You will not regret it. :)

I understand that my review (and I do not write a lot of them) comes across as a dithyramb, and that's exactly why I'm taking the time to write, as The Notary it's exceptional and should be...

LOVELY BUT I stayed here twice during a recent trip. There were many wonderful aspects to it - the staff team were really lovely, the food is really good and the hotel is beautiful. The grounds particularly are amazing and so tranquil tucked away so close to central Bruges. However, there were a few things that really let it down, so I'm not sure I'd go again. The biggest problem was that, during my second trip, I had the most overwhelming smell of sewage in my room. There were no other rooms available so, when I first arrived, I had to wait a couple of hours for the team to try and fix this and they kindly gave me a couple of drinks in the garden while I did this. By the next morning, however, the smell was again horrendous. I had come down with a terrible cold and so would have booked to stay another night to rest and recover. But this smell was so unbearable that, with no other rooms to go to, I had to check out and leave. I wasn't charged the late check out fee for doing this and they didn't charge me for that night for my dog as compensation - but I still spent over 400 euros for a room that smelt overpoweringly like a sewer and I was definitely made to feel very unreasonable for asking for a discount. I was also caught off guard on my first trip with very high charges for my dog (40 Euros/night) and for parking (38 Euros/night) which added nearly 80 Euros to each nights cost. This was in the T&C, I just hadn't read them, but it did make me feel a bit ripped off. The hot tub also smelt pretty bad and didn't feel clean, with grit in the bottom and a build up of scum around the filter. It wouldn't take a lot to fix these things and make it a really special...