Macdonald Alveston Manor Hotel — Hotel in Stratford-on-Avon

UPDATE: 6 follow up emails have been sent to multiple addresses, multiple phone calls have gone unanswered and ALL reviews on ALL platforms have been ignored. Paul the owner gaslights his customers by publicly responding ‘ Dear Laura, I am glad we managed to resolve this through spa breaks, Paul’ when NOTHING has been resolved and I have not received ANY kind of response. AVOID AT ALL COSTS.

Worst spa break experienced - avoid at all costs.

I have emailed all points of hotel contact every week for three weeks with no response. I would like to make it clear that this was the worst spa experience I have had to date.

Firstly, myself and my boyfriend were aware we needed to make our treatment bookings prior to arrival so we called the premises over 20 times. I used extension numbers for the spa reception, the hotel reception and bookings, and not one phone call was ever answered. Our treatment was finally booked at last minute following failed live chats on the website and THREE follow-up emails.

When we arrived, we were shown to our room, and I was given broken (likely already worn) flip flops that were useless and dangerous when walking up and downstairs. No one was available at the spa to replace these. The robes were not 'fluffy' as stated on the website, but itchy and dry - a sign they had been washed and reused too many times.

We found our way to the 'spa' to be greeted with a pool that looked NOTHING like the pictures advertised - the website states 'plenty natural daylight and breathtaking views of our grounds' which is ridiculous - the windows have been covered up and outside is a grotty car park - there are no breathtaking views.

The website also states that this is an 'oasis of relaxation and tranquility' - how can this be when there were not enough seats/beds for all customers? We were NOT prewarned that half of the pool would be cut off for 'lane swimming', and that the other half would host parent-led swimming lessons. There was no chance to relax when we were repeatedly splashed by other customers and surrounded by the screeching of children. The website also falsely states that the pool is heated, and this is clearly not the case. We also could not locate the 'thermal suite', stated on the website - I don't think this exists.

We were very grateful to get away from the awful pool/'spa area' to attend our treatments, which were average at best. One young lady running the spa alone meant that we were left waiting for some time - but she was polite and well-mannered when she did get to us. The treatment itself was great - but the surroundings afterwards were awful. Multiple candles were out, the chairs were covered with throws/towels that were falling down and this was NOT 'an oasis of indulgent relaxation'. Instead we felt on edge and couldn't wait to leave.

Our room was average, with paint peeling and the main room light not working. Breakfast was awful - service was slow (we wanted to order from the menu rather than have the unappetising, condensation-filled buffet) and had to call a member of the team to serve us. The food was disgusting - the oil on the omelette had to be mopped up with a tissue prior to eating, and the avocado toast had no flavouring whatsoever. The restaurant itself was dark and unwelcoming, and a visitor next to us stated that he couldn't tell the difference between the ketchup and jam, due to the lack of light.

This was the biggest disappointment for our anniversary break and I cannot emphasise enough how much the spa was mis-sold. This grotty, outdated swimming pool should NOT be featured on the Spa Breaks website, and I have warned all friends and family to AVOID. There was no chance to relax and no 'oasis'. This was a limited gym with an outdated pool attached, with an upstairs room claimed to be home to treatments. This has been the biggest waste of money and we will never be returning to any of the Macdonald's...

I'd like to preface my review by acknowledging that my experience might not be representative of what most guests encounter, as I suspect the hotel might have been having an off day. However, overall, I found this stay to be less than the value it should have been for the cost.

I'll break down my experience into different sections:

Arrival The hotel's location is excellent, just a short walk from the town center. Check-in was relatively swift, with a second staff member stepping in to assist their colleague who was already engaged with another guest. We received information about our booking, directions to our room, details about breakfast, and an overview of the spa and pool facilities.

Room Upon entering the room, it left a positive initial impression. The room featured charming period details alongside modern amenities like air conditioning, a fridge, and a generous selection of tea and coffee facilities, including Nespresso. There were a few cobwebs around the light fixtures on the vaulted ceiling. The bathroom, bed, and sheets were clean and well presented. However, I did notice a few old red stains (presumably either blood or wine) on the carpet, which was a bit concerning.

Pool Facilities We visited the pool facilities after returning from an evening meal in town. The changing rooms were clean and well-maintained. We essentially had the pool to ourselves around 9 pm. The pool, while 18 meters long, had a constant depth of 1.2 meters, making it suitable for lane swimmers. The sauna and steam room were good. Unfortunately, I didn't get to experience the gym or spa facilities, so I can't provide feedback on those.

Sleep The bed, while of a good size, had a mattress that was overly soft, possibly aiming for luxury but causing backaches and neck cramps. Additionally, the room's air conditioning resetting to 24 degrees throughout the night disrupted our sleep. We couldn't open the windows due to the proximity to the main road, which would have subjected us to noise from passing cars and pedestrians.

Breakfast Our breakfast experience was marred by a lengthy wait. We arrived around 10 am and joined a queue of 10-15 people who had already been waiting for a considerable time. Waiting for an hour in the queue before being seated, we noticed that the entire restaurant was covered in dirty plates, and hardly any guests were seated. The staff struggled to clean the tables, and only after a guest complained did a manager from a sister hotel across the road intervene to address the chaos.

While breakfast was acceptable, it hardly justified the wait, as some items were already unavailable despite the service continuing for another hour or so. A nearby guest had to request a pot of tea from three different staff members multiple times before ultimately giving up and lodging a complaint with the management.

Other Notes An evening visit to the hotel bar revealed a bustling scene with only one person serving. After ordering drinks, we were told they would be brought over. However, several patrons walked in and stood at the bar, waiting for service for a good ten minutes before the server was available to make our drinks. When the drinks were brought over, the table was cleared, but the server spilled milk from a previous guest's coffee on the table and never returned to clean it.

If any staff from the hotel would like to discuss this stay with me, please reach out. I'm uncertain whether I would choose to stay again, given the cost, as I've had more satisfying experiences in 3-star hotels, despite this one being a 4-star establishment. Nevertheless, the beautiful grounds and the period building are distinctive and noteworthy...

In summary, nice building in a nice location. The staff were pleasant and friendly, but the hotel is let down by bad management and lack of staff.

The hotel is in a great location in the centre of town. It looks beautiful from the outside. The standard rooms are quite small.

After making the booking I rang up and asked for a room for my mother, who is 90, that was close to reception and explained she couldn’t walk very far, so they said they’d put her close to reception. Unfortunately when we arrived, we discovered that the room was upstairs and there was no lift.

The receptionist offered to upgrade this room to be close to us, which was great, but this seemed to take an age and there was a large queue of people waiting behind us to check in. The receptionist kept ringing through to housekeeping to see which rooms were available.

Quite a few times during my stay I noticed that reception was understaffed and there was a large queue.

The hotel is popular with weddings, there were two on successive days while we were there. I was woken up a couple of times as wedding guest made their way back to their rooms in the early hours.

We sat a outside at the front of the hotel with the notion of having a coffee and a snack. My brother specifically asked for a hot cappuccino, emphasising this a lot, but it was like warm, and he had to send it back. We asked for the food menu but were told there was no food available as the chefs were too busy with the wedding reception. We complained to the hotel reception who knew nothing about this. After a few minutes reception came back to us and said we could have food but it may take longer than usual. The food menu only had two sandwich options so in the end we decided to have a snack elsewhere. This area was used by all the smokers too, so not very pleasant! During the stay, I had some nice decaf lattes there although one I had to send back as it was like dishwater; I guess made by an inexperienced barista.

Next morning we discovered that there was no tea or coffee in the room, so called reception to have those replenished. The aircon in the room didn’t work. On Saturday, breakfast was self service, and very tasty but on Sunday this wasn’t available and we had to order the cooked breakfast with the waiter; this meant waiting in a queue for 30 minutes.

We booked an afternoon Tea on Saturday for my mother and her sister and daughter as a treat. There was a nice area in the courtyard but we were initially told that that area was reserved for the wedding reception and we couldn’t have the Tea there. After making a fuss and given our other issues we were told that we could have the Tea there for 2 hours while the guests were at the church. After all our issues, reception offered to not charge us for the Tea, which was nice.

We used the pool and sauna which were excellent.

Checking out took an inordinate amount of time even though we’d had no...