Mercure Chester Abbots Well Hotel — Hotel in Great Britain

We booked 2 family rooms and asked to be close to each other as we are a group of six friends who regularly meet up, usually twice a year. The rooms were on separate floors. Room 256 On entering the room, it looked dusty and not very well serviced. There was a sheet of dust on the shelves in the cubby holes that we needed to clean before we could use them. When the air conditioning was switched on, black bits flew out all over the bed. We initially thought that this was just caused by turning it on but it continued throughout the night and one of our party had an asthma attack from this. Clearly the air conditioning needed maintenance. On Saturday someone was sitting on the chair in the room and we were just chatting, not moving on the chair, when the left two legs broke spontaneously and she fell off, jarring her back. We informed reception but had to ask again on the Sunday for the chair to be replaced. The chair that was brought was filthy with brown stains on the fabric so we had to ask for that to be replaced too. Surely they could have seen that it wasn’t a suitable alternative! The USB port by the single bed and the port in the corner by the double bed were completely broken. Housekeeping on Saturday 18th – a dirty cup was left on the bedside table, spoons were not cleaned, the bin was not emptied, milk and coffee were not replenished, glasses were not washed, we had left a couple of towels in the bath to be replaced but they were not although they were taken. We asked for milk and coffee at reception and we were opposite a room with towels so helped ourselves. Housekeeping Sunday – we were out most of the day, returning to the hotel just after 4.30pm. The room had not been serviced. We happened to see the staff chatting in the corridor and spoke to them, saying they must have been busy but they denied this. A male came into the room about 5pm and asked if we wanted anything doing. We asked for clean towels. He took the dirty ones and gave us 2 sets. We explained that there were 3 of us so he then brought 1 more bath towel. He was asked for clean mugs. He took the dirty ones into the bathroom and came out and put them back. Goodness knows what he washed and dried them with. We then washed them again ourselves! He didn’t wash the spoons, wipe any surfaces or empty the bin. We had to ask for milk and coffee to be replenished. He just stood there waiting for guidance on what we wanted rather than looking around or having any kind or routine to follow. Room 156 This room was so hot! Only one window opened, there was no fan and it was impossible to turn off the heating – the knob was turned off but the radiator was still on. The air conditioning didn’t work. There was a pipe in the corner of the room banging all night making it impossible to sleep at all. There were chips in the enamel in the sink and black stains on the shower curtain. On Saturday, reception said that there was another family room available but it was above where a 40th birthday party was being held and likely to be noisy. This shouldn’t really be an issue within a hotel! She was lovely and tried to help and offered two rooms instead meaning one person was on their own. This was not ideal for a weekend where we were all wanting to be together. Room 223 There were chips in the enamel in the sink of this bathroom too, the bottom of the bath was stained and the knob of the shower came off our hand. There was a hole in bathroom door. There was no USB socket working next to the bed. The glasses in the bathroom had paper lids on them but, when lifted, they had toothpaste in them. The kettle was reported as it was not working. Housekeeping were asked for another one. During this time the previous kettle which had been filled leaked all over the table and the girls belongings soaking everything. The new kettle also didn't work, a 3rd one was brought which didn’t fit the base. After the 4th one we realised that the electricity wasn’t working in the room. Two men whom had been dealing with this (they said they weren't maintenance but never explained who they actually were) said that they would sort the electricity and left. An hour later, we went to reception to complain and they informed us the electricity trip switch was in the room, so we don’t know what the other two men were doing as it appears they just left and had no intention of dealing with it. The receptionist came up and rectified this. However it had taken lots of people and time for this to be recognised by staff. Again, this room was not serviced on Sunday. Room 229 This room was not serviced on Sunday. Staff on the corridor were asked to come in to replenish the milk and coffee. While in the room they were asked for clean cups. They went into the bathroom, rinsed the cups and dried them with tissues. Nothing else was done. The bed was not made, towels were not checked and the bin was not emptied.

We complained about all of this as a whole originally on Sunday. The man on reception said that he couldn’t offer any refund or complimentary dinner as it had to be authorised by a manager. He said that no manager was either on call or available until midday Monday.

On Sunday evening we decided to eat in the hotel. We were informed that the restaurant was closed but we could order from the same menu in the bar. Two of our party ordered the superfood poke bowl - lightly spiced grain salad, avocado, chickpeas, soya beans, peppers. There were no chickpeas. When the waitress was asked about this, she went to the kitchen to speak to the chef and came back to tell us that it didn’t contain chickpeas but they could have some garden peas if they wished. We showed her the menu and she went back to the chef. He allegedly said that he wasn’t opening a tin for just us. She was visibly upset and we tried to reassure her that we were not blaming her and that she had been very helpful and courteous and that we really needed to speak to the chef but he wouldn’t come out. She was really trying to help but explained that there were no managers in to oversee the staff until the following day. The junior staff seemed very lost and helpless in all of this.

When we spoke to the receptionist on Monday morning she offered us complimentary drinks. We said that it was too late and that it should have been offered on the Sunday. We told her that the male receptionist had said that it had to go through a manager (who was not available) and we had asked why they didn’t have one on call. She said this was untrue and that he could have dealt with it then and there on Sunday and that whoever is on reception is basically an 'acting manager' and has the authority to do this.

Front of house staff were very pleasant, courteous and helpful throughout the weekend. We have no issues with any of them although there were lots of mixed messages through people not understanding their roles (A major training issue in our opinion). We have stayed at Mercure hotels before without any concerns and Chester was not to the standard we expect of such a reputable company. There seems to be a lack of management structure in the hotel and the housekeeping staff need much more training and guidance on their role and responsibilities. There needs to be a pathway of support for when things go wrong. There didn’t appear to be a manager on call for help and support when needed. There needs to be a thorough overhaul in training and development of all staff.

Many of these things, in isolation, could possibly have been overlooked but, as a whole, this is totally...

Before booking, I specifically called your hotel and explained that my husband and I were traveling with my elderly nan, who suffers from Alzheimer's. I emphasized the importance of securing connecting rooms for her safety and well-being. I was assured that such rooms were available, although not advertised online, and that I should book a double room and a twin room, then call back to confirm the rooms would be connecting. I did as instructed, and even received confirmation that my booking was for connecting rooms.||||This trip was particularly meaningful to my husband and me, as we had married at this hotel when it was still known as The Ramada back in 2011. We were excited to return to a place that holds such special memories for us. Unfortunately, our visit will now forever be overshadowed by the distressing events that unfolded.||||Upon our arrival on the evening of February 14th, we were dismayed to find that no connecting rooms were available. Despite the fact that I had double-checked the arrangements with your staff prior to booking, we were told that the hotel was fully booked. This was both frustrating and concerning, as I had made it clear on two occasions the need for connecting rooms due to my nan’s condition. We were left with no option but to stay in separate rooms, compromising my nan’s safety.||After several hours of waiting, we were told that nothing could be done that night, and that we should return in the morning to speak with the reception manager. We were also offered two complimentary drinks as a token of apology, which we never received.||||That night, I was unable to sleep, frequently checking on my nan to ensure she was safe. The following morning, the reception manager repeated that the hotel was fully booked and that no accommodations could be made. I was informed that I should have booked a Premier Room and a Twin Room, which contradicts the information I had received when I first inquired. The manager then offered a 50% refund for the inconvenience, which I reluctantly accepted as I had no other place to stay.||||However, things took a turn for the worse. On the morning of February 17th, I found my nan had fallen in the bathroom. She had been lying on the floor for an extended period, which caused her severe pain and resulted in an emergency situation. My nan had to be rushed to the hospital on a spinal board by paramedics and later spent several days in the Countess of Chester Hospital, receiving treatment for severe pain and complications from muscle breakdown. ||||Had we been provided with the connecting room I had specifically requested, I would have been able to hear her get up during the night and offer assistance, potentially preventing the fall.||||On arriving back in Bristol, 5 days after we checked out of the hotel, and my nan was deemed fit enough by the hospital to return to Bristol, I wrote an email of complaint to Mark Starkey and Richard Dixon, both senior managers. Although I received no acknowledgement of my email to either I did receive a response from the operations manager, Sue Tamburrini, with an apology and was assured she would look into it. That was on February 24th. I have yet to have any further correspondence. ||||This experience has caused my family significant distress and hardship. My nan’s injury and hospitalisation have taken a toll on her health, and it’s deeply upsetting that the safety of my elderly relative was compromised due to your hotel’s failure to fulfil...

I sent this as an email but recevied no response:

I am just about to check out from a stay at this hotel after 5 nights, and I have to say it's one of the worst experiences I have had in a hotel in many years of travelling. The hotel may have been a 4-star hotel in the 1980s, but it is in serious need of modernisation and refurbishment. It's not at all what I expect from Accor and the Mercure brand.

The first issue we encountered was when we checked in. I had asked for one of our rooms to have an accessible shower when I made the booking because my 80-year old mother has mobility issues, and cannot get in and out of a bathtub. The grumpy receptionist just said 'all our rooms have showers' without even looking at us and seeming utterly disinterested in engaging us in conversation. He was too busy doing his paperwork to seem to care whether we had a nice check in, or our needs were met.

When we eventually got to our rooms, we had been put about as far away from reception as possible in 355 and 357, which was not great for mobility issues, we found that the rooms were very old, items were broken, like the tears in the curtains as pictured, and that the shower was in a bathtub, which my mother couldn't use.

Neither of the telephones worked in the room, so we had to go back to reception and the receptionist was very dismissive. He barely acknowledged us and almost seemed fed up that we were even talking to him. When we asked if he was sure there weren't any accessible rooms he sighed and said, 'there's someone in there.' and turned his back on us. Not only did that make us feel very unwelcome but the fact that the hotel has only one accessible room in 2025 as a sort of token gesture is not appropriate at all.

There were other associated problems with the rooms. The heating was very intermittent, and the radiator in my bathroom did not work, leaving it very damp. Hot water took ages to come through and most of the time was lukewarm at best, even when only running the hot tap. Some days it was completely cold all day. I would have gone back to reception, but we were made to feel so uncomfortable and unwelcome I didn't think there was any point.

In fact several times when we came back into the hotel the reception staff just stared at us as if we weren't supposed to be there and didn't greet us at all.

There were lots of other broken things in the rooms, the mirror, the windows, black mould around the frames, and other things far too numerous to mention.

The leisure facilities were nice, but frustratingly they were closed yesterday on Good Friday despite being advertised as open the day before. So, I walked all the way around the building to it, only to be disappointed.

The only redeeming feature was that the bar stay were lovely and friendly, but it very much felt like they were trying their best to hold together a rapidly sinking ship.

I would expect some form of refund for this. I will definitely think twice about using franchised Mercure hotels in the future, and certainly won't be...