Moorville Hall — Hotel in Staffordshire Moorlands

My daughter and I booked a one night stay.|After a 5 hour drive we were disappointed when we arrived but managed to have a good laugh about it as we were only there one night.|However, I do feel ‘it’s under renovation’ is not an ok excuse.|Initially we couldn’t even find the reception as signs said ‘walk straight through’ but there was a big event on.|We then learnt we were to walk through this event! Nice!|We didn’t feel overly welcomed at reception. A lady was very busy moaning about where she could put someone and muttering / moaning about that while looking at her laptop, while a young man took our key money and took us part way to the room.|I guess after 5 hours driving a welcome would have been nice.|The smell as we walked to our room was horrible. Musty and very unpleasant.|We opened our room door, the smell continued. We opened the balcony door for some air….we were hit with farm/manure smells.|I should add that my daughter is almost 8 months pregnant so she did need a little comfort (which we thought we were going to get)|It wasn’t possible to use the balcony. It was absolutely filthy and there were no chairs anyway.|We’d hoped to flop in front of the TV but that was also not possible because it was hung in an alcove meaning it couldn’t be seen from anywhere other than the wooden chair that was provided and I wasn’t going to fight my daughter for that!|The en-suite was a toilet and tiny shower. An 8 month pregnant lady struggled to fit. The sink didn’t even fit in there!|Sadly the light above my bed didn’t work, my daughter had dirty sheets and the tired decor included cracks and leaks.|On a plus there was a small kettle with tea and coffee.|I would have graded 1 star but put 2 in trust that refurbishment will happen.|I felt very alone. No faith that I could call on anyone for help if needed. I wasn’t keen on the carpark as it wasn’t secure, and when I asked the young man who had booked me in if I could park nearer the hotel as there were spaces he responded ‘I don’t know, I guess you’ll be told to move if it’s not ok’. I questioned myself if he was an unknowing guest rather than someone who worked there.|We stayed as it was only one night. |It was £55 - room only. When I enquired about breakfast I was again told ‘room only’ ||I really hope things improve. A local came to use the leisure centre and asked what I thought if the place as it had gone downhill so much since ‘he left’. I pointed out I wasn’t a local but a visitor.|He looked at me with sympathy!||I really hope this hotel can sort itself out as it clearly has potential...

We booked here for 2 nights. Upon arrival we went to check in and no one was in reception, there is a bell to ring which we did and it took a while to be seen ( no massive issue but not great customer service) be prepared to pay a refundable deposit for you’re room key too.Were were given a family room in the motel. We knew that it wasn’t going to be 5 star however the carpet looked like it was covered in sick at the side of the bed and other unknown bodily fluids. The rooms had a unsavoury smell to them also. There seemed to be a smell outside too I can’t confirm what it was but there was a burst water pipe on the approach to the rooms and there was a number of large bins next to the room. There was a gap in the main doors and no locks on them. There seemed to be a group of feral cats living in the bin area too. For some reason both mornings around 06:15 there was a dog close by I believe on site that was non stop barking which woke everyone up again this just may be the way they like to run things who knows. The bathroom wasn’t pleasant see the pics including old tooth cleaners left in there. |The cleaners had been in while we were out the bedding seemed to have been changed and so had the towels so clearly not there fault seemed they were trying there best. If I was going to stay again I wouldn’t pay more than £30 a night.|If you’re just looking for a bed and a shower it may suit otherwise there are more pleasant options locally.|The staff were fine and polite that we spoke to I believe the issue lies with owners not investing.|The biggest issue for me was safety not having locks on the doors when I had kids with me and having to wedge the rooms rotten chairs against them. All of what I’ve said is in the...

A Most Civilised Retreat: Hospitality at Its Unfussy Finest

In the quiet hierarchy of lodgings, one occasionally stumbles upon a place that does not trumpet its virtues, but rather wears them lightly — a hotel that offers not extravagance, but restoration. I recently had the pleasure of staying at such a place, a hotel whose nightly rate (£40, almost implausible in its modesty) belies a deeply comforting, near-vanishing standard of English hospitality.

The building evokes a classic, old-world charm — a throwback to a time when hotels were run with instinct rather than software, and comfort was measured not in designer flourishes, but in quiet space and human presence. The rooms are generously proportioned, not showy but spacious in a way that grants one the rare privilege of breathing fully indoors.

It is the facilities, however, that elevate this hotel from mere accommodation to retreat. A pool, a sauna, a steam room, and a gym — all included, all immaculately maintained — offer that rarest of modern gifts: permission to pause. There is no corporate sheen here, no ambient music piped through sterile corridors. Instead, there is silence, warmth, and the steady kindness of real staff providing lovely, personal service with no need for scripts.

The sauna, in particular, deserves praise — hot, honest, and elemental. One emerges not just refreshed, but somehow clarified.

That I am returning tomorrow night is no coincidence. This is, without exaggeration, the best value-for-money hotel in England — and possibly the world. A hotel that reminds us how much can still be offered when the goal is not trend, but care.

Five stars, emphatically. May it...