Lodore Falls Hotel & Spa — Hotel in Great Britain

We had planned this break for our friend’s 40th birthday and we decided on your hotel due to its location and the fact it was supposed to be a high star resort.

Upon arrival at the spa there was no direction or explanation given from staff about the services available, the purpose of each room, or even basic amenities such as the location of the water station.

We were asked to complete a form about any ailments we may have or preferences for services, but no one followed up or provided any feedback so what was the point of us divulging this information?

Later in the day we attempted to order food, the situation became even more confusing. We were initially directed by the barman to the restaurant, who then sent us back to the bar. The barman, rather than assisting, displayed a poor attitude and provided no menus on the tables or anything to help us. After expressing our frustration, we did speak to a manager who kindly offered us a complimentary cocktail, which we appreciated, though it did little to offset the overall confusion and lack of basic customer service.

We booked the suite with breakfast included which is clearly stated on the invoice we paid. However, when returning to our room we could not find any literature or instructions on how to book for breakfast (or even if it needed to be booked as already states it on the paid invoice). You would have assumed this would have been explained clearly to us along with the spa instructions upon arrival. It wasn’t.

Only after calling reception to enquire about breakfast for the next morning were we told it had to be pre-booked – this should have been communicated with us upon arrival.

We then had to contact reception again as we were cold and the room wasn’t heating up even when we increased the temperature on the thermostat fixed on the wall. We were advised to go round the room to turn each radiator on. The radiator in the main bedroom would not turn on and the radiator control just kept rotating loosely as if it was broken.

Things did not improve on Monday morning when ordering breakfast, two of us received our food, the waitress left (we assumed she’d gone to get the third breakfast). As three guests turned up you would have assumed the staff would know three people would require food.

Ten minutes later we had to chase the third persons breakfast up as it had still not arrived. We were asked three times what we had ordered to then be told it had been forgotten and they would prepare another breakfast straight away.

When the forgotten breakfast finally arrived, two different waiters tried to clear empty plates away while the third guest had only just started eating. We had to tell both waiters someone was still eating, and we did not appreciate her feeling rushed and plates being cleared around her.

Finally, and the most galling and disappointing aspect of this stay was the uncleanliness of the room. The room had clearly not been cleaned prior to our arrival, layers of dust in the sleeping area, musty smell, a bath that had seen much better days and looked in a state of disrepair, boiling a kettle on the floor as the cord did not reach the socket (clearly this is a health hazard) etc.

Having retrospectively read the poor reviews on google, I would not have booked had I any inkling that most of the poor reviews are what we experienced ourselves.

Upon contacting management with our concerns we were given a very brief and rushed response (after a lengthy wait), absolutely no compassion at all.

We reluctantly accepted £150 “good will gesture” as it was obvious our experience was not going to be taken seriously and there was no interest in restoring our faith in the establishment. We are still awaiting a response from the spa manager with regards to a complimentary visit to make up for the poor service...

We stayed across two rooms for a family holiday and found the hotel to be perfectly situated, classically styled and clean.

Our rating is low because of the cost of the package, had our stay been appropriately priced we would have scored it higher.

Unfortunately, the service was lacking for a four-star venue. Every breakfast service had a at least one mistake by staff, who seemed to be overworked and rushed - inexperienced, perhaps. Cleaning of tables was done rigorously, great until the clattering of cutlery constantly interrupts the conversation at the table.

Dinner service was much better, with excellent food prepared by the kitchen and served quickly on very hot plates.

The entire team we interacted with seemed very new to the hotel industry, with two notable exceptions. Where the request of a banana caused three independent conversations with staff who said “but there isn’t a button for fruit on the till so I can’t sell you one” (including one manager?).

However, Matthew on the bar was incredibly friendly, professional and courteous with all guests. He had good stories to tell and operated efficiently but never rushed. We saw him take ownership of another guest’s issues and resolve it when other crew had struggled. Equally, Joao in the restaurant was friendly, highly professional and knowledgeable on the dishes and going’s on in the kitchen. He even performed some magic tricks for us toward the end of the meal - a memorable moment which brightened our evening.

The rooms were averagely sized, with a Classic Supreme room having more space for getting ready than the Standard. They were reasonably equipped, basic, but nothing was lacking. We visited in the middle of summer, the rooms were too warm with no air-conditioning. Fans were provided, but this required windows to be open. We struggled to fall asleep as we could hear loud extraction fans at the rear of the hotel, as well as late and early deliveries at the back of the hotel.

Servicing of rooms was ‘as they pleased’ - first day they were fully clean, the next day the bed was tucked but nothing replenished.

The spa is excellent. Very well equipped with four saunas and an outdoor heated pool. You can also book additional treatments, these were excellent. The staff were caring and knowledgeable, providing instruction and laying out expectations as treatments began. There is a lounge to relax in after treatments if you do not have spa access. Spa access is for two hours at a time and must be booked. There are plenty of signs warning you of fines should you steal a robe, (the number of robes stolen is far fewer than the number the internal eye rolls from everyone seeing these warnings given the venue and their pricing).

We had a wedding party staying at the same time, and the staff didn’t make this clear (by locking a door? Adding another of their signs?) so I did accidentally find myself walking through a private dining experience - obviously fine for me but a shame for those who’d hired the venue.

Overall, we had a pleasant stay. Matthew and Joao were particular highlights of the staff, with everyone else just needing more experience and level setting of standards, particularly housekeeping and food service. The rooms need to be renovated to include AC, though I appreciate this is a...

This hotel has the potential to offer a pleasant stay, but significantly professionalism, cleanliness and overall service improvements are necessary. It seems like the lack of staff training, organization and bad management mixed with the prices shows the Lake District Hotels Group are quite simply looking to make a profit making business for little or next to any value in return or care for their customers.

The hotel offers a range of amenities including several restaurants and a spa with stunning views. Just be sure to book ahead of time for the spa otherwise you won’t get access – residents of the hotel do not get given priority access, nor are they warned ahead of time. It was a challenge to even speak to anyone when we booked in January and guests that were checking in were complaining they were unable to book until trying on the day too.

The purpose of the stay was threefold, to celebrate and gift my parents a 10 year wedding anniversary, look at Lodore Falls as a potential wedding venue and stay there due to the variation of quality vegan/ vegetarian options in the restaurants. As we had also luckily booked ahead of time, we were able to go into the Brasserie that evening. Unfortunately, once sat, there was food all over the table and the seats, to which the service came and just wiped it on the floor. We were then moved, and with over an hour’s waiting time for food we were told that this was indeed acceptable. While we discussed that there were beef fat chips on our vegan dish and the vegan burger was not as described; the restaurant manager dissected and played with the food in front of us, when we challenged this situation he kicked us out publicly claiming we were looking to get a free meal. I am a vegetarian and had already eaten from the cross contaminated dish, I wasn’t expecting to be additionally humiliated by being kicked out of a restaurant.

We spoke to Marcell, the manager in the morning and while we discussed the matter privately, he offered us not pay for the night’s meal (of which we didn’t actually eat) but we should pay for the drinks. We were offered a space in the Mizu restaurant on the other side of the hotel, but quite frankly, all I wanted to do was leave in embarrassment. The parents were climbing Scaffel Pike so we had not option but to awkwardly stay here.

Considering the weekend cost £1,500 for two rooms for two nights, I struggle to see where anyone can see the value in a supposedly 4 star hotel. We certainly won’t be returning given the fact we were publicly kicked out for stating a cross contamination of foods.

Until these issues are addressed, I would recommend considering other four-star options that provide a more consistent and reliable guest experience. There are plenty of other places in the area that are more than half the price that we’ve stayed in and offered more than double the satisfaction. So if you’re looking for public humiliation, lack of cleanliness and competence alongside overpriced, underserviced food for an expensively below subpar stay, then this is most definitely the...