Gara Rock — Hotel in South Hams

Unfortunately this is a long review because there were so many issues at this hotel. Some may think they are just little things, but it’s the little things that make the difference between an average hotel and a good one.||We were really looking forward to our 5-night stay at Gara Rock having known about the hotel for some time and followed it on Instagram. It’s in a lovely spot right on the coast with easy access to the coastal path. There is nothing else walkable nearby (shops, pubs etc) but we knew this in advance and wanted a few days relaxing and not doing not much of anything.||First impressions were of nice lounge, bar and restaurant facilities but it’s not a place to come to if you don’t like very narrow roads with few passing places.||An immediate disappointment was upon check-in when we asked for a daily newspaper we were told they couldn’t provide them as they are so remote nobody will deliver them. Part of our relaxing stay would have been to sit with the paper and a coffee for an hour or two in the morning. They have staff coming to work here from around the area and surely it wouldn’t be hard to have an arrangement with a newsagent or garage to take newspapers on a sale or return basis (which all newspapers are) and be picked up by the member of staff on their way to work? Yes it’s all available online these days but some of us still like to read a newspaper. ||In general the staff were helpful and accommodating, however a few did have an attitude problem, acting like you are being a nuisance for asking them something - in particular on the reception desk and the spa desk. As one example we asked reception twice for a pole to open the Velux bathroom window as it was too high for anyone to reach and also the extractor fan wasn’t working. We were dismissively told there was a pole in the room but we explained we had searched and there was not one. The receptionist insisted that ‘there should be one in the room’ and again we had to explain that there was not. She ultimately said she would get one sent up by maintenance - It never happened. We asked again on another day still with no response.||Regarding the Spa, my partner wanted to book an appointment but was told “we have nothing today”. She asked about the next day and got the curt reply “no, nothing then”, finally offering something on the 3rd day which wasn’t convenient. The point is she never once smiled or said “can I let you know if we have a cancellation”. She just made my partner feel like she was being a nuisance.||The restaurant was a big disappointment. The dinner menu is somewhat pretentious. It is very overpriced and limited, especially if your stay is for more than a couple of nights. On our first evening my partner ordered a starter that was really not very nice - in fact inedible - and looking at the online photos of the dish it didn’t look right either. The waitress said she would pass our comments onto the chef but we received no feedback. It seemed like there was no manager or even assistant manager there most of the time, certainly not during our stay. Later on we asked Reception to take the dish off the bill and they said “if you want your meal taken off the bill you need to talk to the kitchen” (again with an attitude). My partner said she did not want the meal taken off, just the starter, which finally happened but with no apology or smile from the person at the desk.||One day we decided to have ‘pizza on the patio’ which is advertised on their A-board and is for passersby as well as guests. The patio is next to the indoor restaurant where lunch is also served. I asked for some fries to go along with the pizza and was told I could not have fries on the patio, only in the restaurant! I was lost for words and told them to forget it. Ultimately though we wanted some lunch so had to move indoors (on a beautiful day) because we wanted a side order of fries. When the waitress came we explained what had happened and she said it was actually now fine to have fries on the patio as a resident - they recently “changed their policy” Evidently guests are allowed to have the Room Service menu items anywhere in the hotel but this was not explained to some staff and in any case the initial outside server did not ask if we were residents. Regardless, it’s a stupid rule. Surely if you go to lunch somewhere you should be able to choose if you sit inside or outside regardless of what you are eating?||At breakfast my partner ordered porridge and the server asked if there was anything else he could bring. She asked for some brown sugar & he replied “it’s over there” while pointing at the breakfast buffet table! Great service. And it was brown sugar cubes, so not suitable for porridge anyway! On subsequent days we brought our own from the tea trolly in the room.||Also if they want to be considered high-end then they should serve their guests with tea and coffee at breakfast, not expect them to help themselves from plastic push top urns that you find in office meetings.||The room itself (No 1, Junior Suite) was pleasant enough but upon closer inspection it was found not to be especially clean, as previously mentioned, the bathroom extractor fan wasn’t working, there holes in the bathroom towels and I really don’t know when the bathroom floor was last cleaned properly (see photos). This particular room is above the outside bar & patio area so it can be noisy with the music and chatter from below, especially if sitting on your patio.||To add to everything the lift wasn’t working and evidently hadn’t been for some time. No sign of it being repaired during our stay so luggage had to be carried up the staircase.||After two days I was ready to leave to go to another hotel in the Salcombe area - which were all cheaper than we were paying at Gara Rock. We decided to stick it out but didn’t eat dinner in the restaurant again.||We were told by a local business owner that Gara Rock is trying to position themselves as a high-end destination hotel/restaurant. Unfortunately they are nowhere near that standard in any way at all. They should visit the Pig’s Nose just down the road in East Prawle some superb food with faultless, friendly service.||When we arrived we hoped this would be somewhere we would come back to time and again (as we have with other hotels in the area) but this will be our one and only visit. Overpriced and...

In a similar vein to Ray R’s recent review we had a very underwhelming stay at the Gara Rock Hotel. It took place at the end of September and was a joint 60th celebration with my girlfriends.||Before I start, the reason for this post is that I rang the Hotel Monday 29th September trying to speak to the General Manager Mr Alan Holliday, this to let him know about our “very underwhelming stay” rather than just go to print. Unfortunately he was unavailable so I spoke to a receptionist who said she would get him to call me when he was out of his meeting and that she understood the importance of the call. Well I have still not heard back from the General Manager hence the post!!||Ok let’s begin. We booked the “Out of the ordinary suites” Penthouse last year. It set us back just shy of £3k for the 3 nights! ||I decided on Gara Rock Hotel as the venue because I have been to Salcombe many times and often visited the Hotel for coffee, brownies and lunch whilst out walking. On all those visits the staff have been friendly and accommodating and the food and beverages have been great!||When we arrived we were not welcomed as you would expect with smiles and a warm greeting like we had in the past, instead it was with rudeness and basically uninterested staff! No mention of our 60th celebration!||We then decided as the weather was awesome to have lunch on the terrace whilst waiting for the Penthouse check in.|Similar to other reviews we were given a lunchtime menu but told we could only order Pizza outside! |We asked if we could have a salad and some chips but were told this could only be served inside the dining room which has doors opening onto the terrace!|I have had lunch many times on this terrace before without a problem!|The table next to us who were on the second day told us it was ridiculous but they said it was more like staying in a Motel not a Hotel !!||We then checked into the penthouse which has the Most amazing view from the master suite and lounge but that’s about it!|The Right hand window in the lounge is broken and it was so hot it was hard to get any natural ventilation!|The master suite shower tray was also blocked!||The following morning we went to reception prior to Breakfast and reported this, the shower would be looked at but the window has been broken for months!|We then went for Breakfast. Again as other reviewers have mentioned we were told tea and coffee is on the station which basically is plastic push top urn and flask!|If we wanted a cappuccino or flat white this was to be an additional cost! Really!! ||Underwhelmed by this experience we headed to Salcombe for a great day and lunch |When we returned that evening our door was open with all our valuables inside! The attitude from Reception was a sorry but it’s safe around here! ||We had booked the private cinema for that evening|On arrival the room was set at 28 degrees 🥵🥵|Ok they did kick in the air con but we also asked for some water and when it arrived it was over £4.00 a bottle and they charged us!||Oh and I forgot to mention when we arrived we only had 1 bottle of complimentary water in our suite for 5 persons and it was never replenished!||The following day we headed down for Breakfast and asked the Manager on duty to check our birthday Celebration dinner for that evening, he confirmed the booking I had made some 10 months prior but unfortunately all window tables with views are fully booked!|I was so disappointed as this was supposed to be such a special night and then looked closely at the menu to discover with the exception of a couple of steaks and fish of the day which was Mackerel the menu was the same as lunch time! Burger, pizza, fish & chips|I decided to talk to the rest of the group later and proceeded to have another lovely day in salcombe||On our return we were horrified to find our door unlocked again!|The attitude from Reception was we were too much trouble to even talk to and yes once again, SORRY!||We all made a decision to cancel our dinner reservation as we were all so disappointed with our experience at Gara we did not need any more stress and put it down to a bad choice of venue||I particularly feel totally responsible for this trip as it was on my bucket list to stay here ! It was a lot of money and to be honest so so disappointing!|I am devastated as I really don’t want to ever come back even for a coffee and brownie!||Checkout was the final disappointment!|Nobody asked if we enjoyed our stay let alone the stay that should have been extra special celebrating our 60th Birthday!||What has gone wrong with Gara Rock?|Whilst looking at who to contact re my unhappiness, it has just been brought to my attention that Gara Rock went on the Market in September 2025!|This all makes sense to me now!|Staff feeling vulnerable, cut backs etc etc etc||I so wish I would have read the recent reviews as I could have cancelled my booking for this celebration ||It’s very sad to write this review and I am lucky to have friends who understand it’s...

We recently stayed at Gara Rock for four nights and were left disappointed by several aspects of our visit. While the hotel has potential, the issues we encountered overshadowed the positives.

Firstly, there were two main boiler outages—one on the first morning and another on the final evening. During the first outage, we were asked to use the penthouse bathroom as an alternative, which was inconvenient since we weren’t offered a room change. The second outage was resolved within an hour, but this delay caused us to miss part of our dinner reservation. We were told the outages were due to cold weather and the hotel being at capacity, which felt unacceptable for a property of this standard.

The cinema room was another disappointment. We were advised by a staff member earlier in the day to connect via Wi-Fi and use the Apple TV, but the system was outdated, with all apps requiring updates. No staff on duty in the evening could assist, and after 40 minutes of trying to make it work, we gave up and settled for an old DVD from their collection. Additionally, the cinema room lacked surround sound despite having speakers installed. The stereo sound was very limited and quieter than the air conditioning in the room. It took another 10 minutes to figure out how to raise the volume to a tolerable level. Overall not worth the fuss. Please update the system to match casting in hotel room.

Our room was underwhelming and felt poorly maintained. There were noticeable scrapes on the walls, which detracted from the aesthetic. The wardrobe had no lighting, a single rail, and a shoe rack, leaving minimal space for clothes. Lighting in the room was poor, with one side of the bedroom completely unlit. The living room unit and shelves were bare, missing personal touches like books or décor that could have made the space feel more inviting. The TV in the living room stayed bright all night, repeatedly turning itself back on to a sign-in page after being switched off.

The bathroom amenities provided included small bottles of shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, and a bar of soap. However, the shower gel was used up on the first day and was never restocked, despite daily housekeeping.

On a positive note, the restaurant and lounge areas were very welcoming. The food was excellent, with beautiful presentation and high quality. While the restaurant menu was somewhat limited, the lounge menu offered more variety. The bar area was cozy and relaxed, and the hotel’s dog-friendly atmosphere was a nice touch. TVs in the rooms had casting ability, which was good feature, allowing us to bring streaming services away with us.

The staff were attentive in part; some were welcoming and helpful, but others were less so, particularly at key moments like our arrival and during the boiler issues.

We were offered credit equivalent to one night’s stay as compensation for the boiler issues, which was appreciated but didn’t fully make up for the inconveniences. The hotel's marketing set high expectations, but the experience fell short. While we’d recommend the restaurant, the hotel rooms—at least the one we stayed in—need significant improvements to...