The Essex Golf and Country Club — Hotel in Braintree

I booked a hotel room for my daughter and myself as we had booked the Tribute night on the 18th July, 2025, initially the system would only allow me to book one room but for two nights, which I did not want but booked as I did not want to lose a room. After several communications, one of the receptionists, kindly managed to sell the room for the second night, which was very much appreciated.||||However, upon booking into the hotel we were shocked and disgusted at the state of the bath towels, which we did not use and fortunately had our own gym towels with us. The towels were grey, not white, they needed throwing away, never mind washing and the shower curtain absolutely stank of mould and was dark yellow in places, when it was supposed to be white, along with the anti slip mat, pictures were taken and sent to a member of the management team.||||The furniture was well worn, the carpet was disgusting and there was only one bedside cabinet, it certainly was not worth the money we were charged. Almost £100.00 for one night, it was like stepping back into the Seventies! There is no air conditioning, there was a fan but luckily we took one also as you are limited with opening the windows that are directly in front of the golf course. On a very hot and humid night there was no top sheet just a quilt!||||As for the Tribute night, the wait for food was horrendous as were the queues at the bar when waiting to be served. There were only two members of staff serving, sharing one till and one card reader, neither member of staff seemed to know what they were doing and the female kept forgetting our drinks order, two large Gin and tonics and two large Jack Daniels and Coke for two of us, so we did not have to queue several times. When we ordered a bottle of White Wine for our meal, we had to ask for a wine cooler, we were given a beer bucket full of Ice. Our impression was that this event was very poorly organised, with staff attending the event serving meals and tables not being cleared, with a lot of glasses on tables, again photo's were taken and sent.||||The food was shocking, we were very unimpressed! It consisted of a pile of red boiled cabbage which filled the plate, a few slices of very tough pork and a few new potatoes dotted around the edge of the plate. Dessert was supposed to be sticky toffee pudding, this was in fact a small square of very dry cake and a scoop of ice cream. The drinks, even with your members discount were very expensive, obviously this is my opinion.||||As for the toilets, you walk in to the cubicle and are met with a toilet with a black rim around the top and when you use the toilet the corners of the floor facing you are filthy dirty! The hand drying machine was very antiquated and pretty useless. How this is a function room, I do not know. Again photos were taken and sent via email. I certainly would not recommend booking a function here.||||My daughter had a cooked breakfast the following day and said it was warm, dried up and tasted like it had come off the buffet after being there for a long time, please bear in mind my daughter is a fully qualified Chef.||||Upon checking out, a member of staff asked about our stay and I told her we were disgusted and explained why, she then went on to tell me that we should have spoken to reception about the shower curtain and towels and they could have been replaced!!||||When I am staying at a hotel and have paid good money for doing so, I do not expect to have to ask for towels etc to be changed, Housekeeping should not be putting out dirty, stained items, that is not a guests responsibility.||||Several weeks later the pool had filter issues and was closed for two weeks, then spa pool was closed for over a week, lockers often do not work, the showers run too hot and also cold, the air conditioning is often not working the the Ladies Changing room and despite advising reception team and managagement, these issues are still ongoing. Also be aware that there are no family changing rooms so children are often wandering around.||||As a paying member at this club, my daughter and I pay £95.00 per month, each, I felt the need to put forward several complaints with regards to the Hotel, the function we attended and the the issues around the unmonitored pool area, to which the response from the Club Director and the Regional Operations Manager was very disappointing.||||My daughter and I joined The Essex at the beginning of June and were initially impressed and happy with the facilities, however there have been so many issues which despite speaking to reception several times, also The Club Director and more recently The Regional Operations Director I feel that such issues have not been resolved.||||The email from The Club Director, offered us free tickets to the next tribute night and a free upgraded hotel stay, firstly I pointed out that after this experience there was no way we would like either thank you, furthermore we live ten minutes away, we only stayed to avoid issues getting a taxi to and from the Tribute Night.||||When there have been issues around the pool area, which other members also find a problem, the response we have had from some of the receptionists on several occasions was that I should get out of the pool and find a member of staff?? So I am to get out of the pool dripping wet and walk round to reception and report issues, that surely they can see on the monitor in front of them at reception?||||Finally, when we encountered the same issues once again, upon leaving the club I asked to speak to the manager.||He came to reception and after having the same conversation once again, he advised that the reception staff were supposed to monitor the pool area via the cameras and report / deal with any such issues and that I should not have to leave the pool to find a member of staff.||||There have been various issues reported by myself and other club members to reception and management, that we all felt strongly about but seem to still be ignored.||||The response from The Regional Operations Manager at the end of August, was that we could have a refund for the cost of the tickets to the tribute night - £50.00 in total and according to him “The Essex has been receiving excellent reviews of late and although I may be biased, I believe it is a fantastic venue in beautiful surroundings, with excellent facilities and represents extremely good value for money”. Incidentally, as at the 16th September I am still waiting for this meagre refund!||||I have seen plenty of not so good reviews, have spoken with other members, who have also been disgruntled and as for value for money, I consider a dirty, dingy room with a foul smell and filthy towels and shower curtains and very dated bathroom and bedroom furnishings, not to be good value at all.||||Perhaps I have higher standards than management!!||||After being away for ten days we returned to The Essex on Saturday, 13th September for a swim, to find that the showers were freezing cold, we were told that a receptionist was sorting it out, before we went home for a shower. There was also the same issues with parents throwing their children across the pool and children “bombing” into the pool, absolutely no consideration or respect for people swimming in the swim only lanes, Management told me that even on Splash times and Family swim times, the no jumping or throwing rules still apply, yet the member of the gym that was sat observing turned a blind eye, As they usually do.||Monday 15th, September, I telephoned the club at 12.52pm to ask if the showers were working yet, to be told that they were intermittent, hot and cold, (which they always have been since we joined) but at the moment they were warm. So my daughter and I went to the gym then for a swim to find the showers were freezing cold again.||When I questioned the fact that I had called and now the showers were cold all the receptionist said is that a plumber had been called! ||Apologies for the war and peace but I have been very disappointed with this and the lack of consideration and respect from the management team! I can only hope that a Senior Member of The Club Company picks up this review!!||||I do have photo's but my last review was taken down so I have not uploaded them as it has taken a while to set...

Having booked a stay at the Essex Golf and Country Club hotel, we were disappointed to find that what we received was not what we had expected. While the issue with the booking itself was not the hotel’s fault—and I must say, the staff were genuinely helpful and understanding—the condition of the room we were given was entirely down to the hotel. It was so poor that we ended up checking out the very same day, rather than staying the two nights we had booked.||The room we were allocated was extremely dated—honestly, a Premier Inn or Travelodge would have offered a far superior experience. The furnishings consisted of a wonky built-in shelf, an old chair, and a glass table—hardly welcoming or comfortable.||But that was just the start. Upon closer inspection, this is what we discovered:| 1. A dead moth on the ceiling, next to a brown smudge that looked like it could have been another squashed insect—or something worse. I’d rather not imagine.| 2. What appeared to be human faeces on the toilet brush. I truly wish I were joking.| 3. Mould, rust, and general filth throughout the entire bathroom. I feel like I’d come out dirtier than when I went in.| 4. In a baffling bit of design, which made me laugh more than anything, there was barely any space between the sink tap and the edge of the basin—making it nearly impossible to wash your hands properly (which I desperately needed to do after discovering the toilet brush).| 5. Hoping to enjoy the view? Sadly, the thick layer of grime on the windows meant we had to imagine what the outside looked like.| 6. And to top it off, more dead insects—this time in the doorway, crushed by the door and left behind like a warning to other bugs who might attempt to leave.||The room clearly hadn’t been maintained with any care or attention. The little things were overlooked, and basic standards of cleanliness had simply not been met. It makes me wonder what the other rooms were like—or what might have joined me in bed had I stayed the night.||The one saving grace of our stay was the staff, who were friendly and helpful throughout. It’s a real shame that their efforts are let down by such poor room conditions.||Check-in: 4:30pm|Check-out: 9:30pm||We only spent about 30 minutes in the room (having gone elsewhere for dinner) and this will go down as the shortest hotel stay I’ve ever had. If I could give less than 1...

This hotels grounds are well maintained and within a lovely location. The reception staff was very friendly and helpful, the room was basic but clean and comfortable and we enjoyed our stay. We needed extra pillows which the receptionist brought to our room and this was efficient and great customer service.||Sadly we was really let down and disappointed in the restaurant/bar. Firstly when we sat down no one told us that half of the menu wasnt available, this cant be helped but a simple notice board as you enter would prepare you. Secondly the fridges in the bar was half empty which doesnt look appealing or well managed. Our actual food was delicious, hot and good quality however the service we received was disgusting. There were 2 young girls and 1 young man behind the bar, the man was great however the 2 girls were rude slamming glasses down, ignoring customers, bad attitude. The two of us both ordered a starter and main course… the starters came out within 20 minutes however the mains wasnt brought out until 1 hour 45 minutes later. My partner asked politely at the bar how much longer our food would be and the girl walked off without any acknowledgment and took out other peoples food. She returned and asked what we had ordered and then stated they had given someone else our food and would ask the chef, there was no apologies or good reason the restaurant was not busy. At this point our starter plates was still left on the table no one had been to clear them despite the two young girls chatting whilst the boy was working. A manager came over and gave us a complimentary drink, apologised and personally brought our food over.||Luckily the next morning we had a completely different experience at breakfast the food again was great, the staff was professional and welcoming and we had a positive experience.||The pool area is great and clean and facilities are good.||Overall this hotel is nice for a short break however I wouldn’t recommend eating in the restaurant due to how bad our experience is. I am a type 1 diabetic so had injected my insulin which made me unwell due to the extortionate wait on food, i have also worked in hospitality and have never experienced such rude behaviour of staff. We stayed...