Judges Court Hotel — Hotel in Great Britain

Aside from the friendly housekeeping staff, this was a stressful and bizarre experience.

I made an incorrect booking (my mistake) and tried to correct it via expedia, I explained to the staff i'll book via expedia because it was cheaper than booking direct through the hotel. As I tried to make my purchase the receptionist increased the price on expedia and my bank declined the online purchase as it deemed the business to now be fraudulent. I had just driven six hours and had no other option than to pay the hotel directly with a different card, which I avoid using at all costs.

My colleagues complained to me that they felt the other receptionist was rude towards them - even jokingly telling me that it is called "Judges Court" for a reason.

No lift and the stairs to the room were very narrow and windy. Carrying luggage up them was ridiculous. Staff offered to help, but honestly it was a scene I would rather have avoided witnessing.

They have no cutlery available, nor a dining area, so I ate my food with the tea spoons in the room.

The extractor fan was really noisy yet also useless.

No parking available and parking in York is extremely expensive.

Not sure why this is billed as a "5-star hotel" as it holds no services to note whatsoever.

Smoking area is directly in front of the entrance, so you're greeted with second hand smoke and silent, weird looks every time you enter.

Windows are thin and at night you can easily here the revellers in the street.

I was told my receipt would be sent to me upon checkout, yet I had to request it a few days later. Then they sent me three separate receipts, apparently they can't make one receipt for my purchase - even though I made one purchase.

The lobby is dark, cold and uninviting - I sat to eat some food whilst I waited for my friends and was made to feel very unwelcome.

Location is good and housekeeping staff were friendly enough, but overall this was a dismal and stress inducing stay. I try to support independent hotels as often as possible, but I must say, the treatment and services at a chain are much better than what is available here.

Update: In response to the below reply.

I informed you that the price on Expedia was coming up at £357 against the hotels price of £389. When I tried to purchase the rooms via expedia the price had gone up to £407, this was due to an increase from the hotel at time of purchase. My bank sent me a warning and then refused to allow any purchase associated with your business - hence why I had to use a secondary card when making the purchase directly through the hotel after the reservations had been made.

I appreciate the mistake I made in the booking, and highlighted this in my review. If I hadn't had received the warning, nor had to pay the higher fee, the experience wouldn't have been stressful at all. You could have lowered your price to match expedia, instead you increased exepdia's and forced me to pay more money.

I didn't say the business was fraudulent, however my bank did send me a warning that it was and then refused any payment to you.

I was told a receipt would be sent at time of check-out, it was not and I had to request one. I asked for the whole bill to be squashed into one singular receipt as opposed to three separate - this should have been manageable considering I made one singular purchase, not three.

When I ordered food on the second day of stay a member of your team explained that no cutlery was available, this is why I ate with tea spoons in my room.

A member of my group did smoke in this section, though this doesn't change the fact that the placement is still directly in front of the main entrance.

Ear plugs are a low cost solution and should be made available to guests when you are situated in a noisy, urban area.

Refusal to believe or none, when I sat to eat a little bit of food on the check out day your entire team were sat behind the reception in silence whilst I ate. I felt so uncomfortable I literally got up and sat outside to...

Location||A hidden gem tucked just off York’s main shopping high street. It’s incredibly central — perfect for exploring — but the narrow, dimly lit alleyway leading to the entrance is easy to miss. We walked past it twice. It’s no wider than a doorway and not particularly welcoming, a view shared by other guests I spoke with. The hotel’s promotional photos show a beautifully lit frontage, which is technically true but doesn’t reflect the rather gloomy approach from the street.||Check-In / Reception||Once we got over the slightly off-putting entrance, things improved dramatically. We arrived early, around 1 p.m., knowing our room wouldn’t be ready until 3. The young lady on reception couldn’t have been more polite or helpful — she immediately took our small case and stored it safely so we could enjoy a couple of hours exploring York.|When we returned, another equally pleasant receptionist welcomed us with two ice-cold beers and had us checked in within thirty seconds. A lovely surprise: our bag had already been taken to our room — a thoughtful and appreciated touch.||Room||We stayed in Room 6 on the ground floor — and what a room it was! Spacious, full of character, spotlessly clean, and wonderfully “olde-worlde.” The décor oozed charm with original features throughout. The large bathroom, complete with a walk-in rainfall shower, was clearly part of the building’s old and delightful charm.|All the essentials were there: TV, Nespresso machine, kettle, and a very comfortable bed. The solid dark-wood frame with built-in bedside tables added a real touch of quality. My only minor criticism — no USB charging ports by the mains outlets. Not a deal-breaker, just something modern travellers might miss.||Sleep Quality||Being on the ground floor, we did notice a bit of early-morning noise from drays delivering barrels to nearby pubs, but it didn’t spoil our rest. We were up early anyway — no time for lie-ins when there’s so much to see in York!||Service||Every member of staff we encountered was polite, cheerful, and genuinely helpful. At checkout (just before 11 a.m.), we mentioned we had a late train, and without hesitation the receptionist offered to store our suitcase until we were ready to leave — another thoughtful gesture that rounded off our stay perfectly.||Overall||A lovely stay in a charming and characterful hotel. Yes, the entrance could do with brighter lighting and clearer signage, and a couple of modern touches wouldn’t go amiss, but these are minor issues compared with the warmth of the staff, the quality of the room, and the unbeatable location.|We’ll definitely stay here again next time we visit York — and will happily recommend the Judges Court Hotel to anyone looking for something with genuine character and...

Firstly, let me say I have never left a bad hotel review, but I have been so disappointed, and I dont want anyone else to be taken in by the online presentation of this hotel !! We booked for a 2 night wedding anniversary stay with my husband (we love York, and are regular visitors - usually stay at Jorvik house or Judges lodgings- both fabulous but unavailable!) | So, as we love a bit of quirky, and this hotel came up on a great deal (and with a bit of research we thought hotel was owned by people who have the Churchill hotel (another good one) we thought it would be great !!! WRONG!!|As expected, quirky looking little hotel, down an alley in central York- the welcome by 2 ladies was friendly & welcoming. We were directed to our room, and were met with a very dated room, which would have been okay in itself - however - the wall emulsion was peeled off in areas, but the worst was the state of the divan bed - which did not look fit for use (see photos), and definitely not a bed you would want to sleep in !! The window paintwork was badly peeled, and totally filthy, and black mouldy areas were present - whIch is actually a HEALTH HAZARD.|The room state was bizarre, as the bathroom had obviously been recently renovated, but the room, in my opinion, was uninhabitable. |We went to reception, I expressed my disappointment, and was told that our concerns were understandable but they were waiting for new owners to renovate rooms!!! (No longer owned by Churchill).|I requested full refund as could not stay in unfit room, and we would have to find and pay for alternative accommodation. This request was declined, as we had booked via Expedia. I rang Expedia who said they would refund full stay if hotel confirmed room condition, the hotel reception refused to admit room unfit, even though I had photo evidence. But they would refund 2nd night possibly. By this time we just left as so upset, ( I felt close to tears with frustration) as had spent 3 hours trying to resolve issue between Expedia & hotel. ( we subsequently booked and got a great deal at The Grand hotel which was amazingly fabulous). |The hotel has new owners, and I made email requests for my complaints email to be forwarded and for them to contact me directly but did not even get a reply !! No way to run a hospitality business We are in process of having 2nd night refunded, but feel a full refund was totally justified. |Please use your well earned money at one of the many other lovely York hotels, as this hotel needs to close and refurbish - no point having a lovely bathroom, and a filthy room & divan bed !!- they seem only interested in taking your money for unfit rooms.|If the owner would care to contact me, I would be delighted to...