Stratford-upon-Avon Lodge Retreat — Local services in Stratford-on-Avon

We just returned from a 4 night break as a couple. We stayed in a one bed lodge with hot tub. (No.30)|We arrived at 3.50 and was told our lodge was not ready and to go back at 4pm. You can pay an extra £25 for earlier check in apparently.||On arrival the site itself is not what we usually experience with Darwin escapes, we stay with them a lot. Although the site maintenance guys can be seen to work very hard it just didn't feel as well maintained as other sites. It's very rural and grass is mostly left to grow and pathways are cut through it. The immediate area around the lodges are kept neat though. ||The lodge itself was lovely. Very romantic and cosy. The Fairy lights over the hot tub were a very nice touch. |When I lifted the hot tub lid, which was quite worn and weathered, the water looked dirty and cloudy. But when we called on the very polite friendly maintenance man he came and agreed it didn't look inviting.He said it would need to be drained and refilled. I don't know if it wasn't cleaned or if it was just a chemical issue. It looked dirty to me. The issue was solved quickly and within an hour or two it was ready for us to use. ||The lodge kitchen is very well equipped for what you need. I was impressed with the mirrored lights for makeup and hair! The bathroom was lovely and a very comfy bed. ||The decking area however could have been cleaner. I know its quite rural and it's outside but the cobwebs and dust were beyond. Could have done with a big bit of a brush. Also so many spiders eggs on the roof and so many wasps around! We were sure there was a nest. This made the outdoor experience less enjoyable. The hot tub blower and a lot of the jets didn't work, the maintenance guy said they had not worked for a while. Maybe this is something that needs addressing to avoid complaints. Luckily it didn't ruin the experience for us as we like to just sit in the quiet tub and chat anyway. Our tub felt overlooked by a couple of other lodges, maybe the privacy glass could have been on the otherside also?||Stratford is a lovely place to visit, we went on the river cruise and took in the Shakespeare sights. Also visited The Farmers Dog pub and diddly squat just over an hour away (we are Clarkson farm fans) absolute must in our opinion. |Kenilworth castle was also worth a visit about 20 minutes away. ||In conclusion, a really quiet site, nothing there, not even a shop or pub but a very pleasant small lodge. |Tip... take a throw and cushions for the leather sofa. Too hot and sticky to sit on in summer, probably would be...

Me and my partner had booked this as a getaway for December 2024 and I have to say this was the worst lodge I've ever stayed at.

Upon arrival I was greeted by the lovely reception team to collect my key. I was told by them my lodge is already accessible and the key is inside.

As soon as we had entered the lodge, we had a little wonder round as you do. I kid you not, the state of the place was horrific. PUBIC HAIR ALL OVER THE BATHROOM FROM THE TOILER TO THE SINK TO THE BATH TUB AND PRODUCT ALL OVER THE BATH TUB AS WELL AS SO MUCH DUST. (SEE PICS). Within 5 mins, i was back in reception to raise this issue.

The receptionist had a walkie talkie and instantly raised this with one of the lady managing the cleanse on site. The cleansers response was 'well i have just checked that lodge and it was all clean, my shift is nearly finished so I'm going'. (it was 16:50) I was fuming with this response as this suggested to me as if i was lying. i said to the receptionist that I'm appalled as there is actual pubic hair all over the entire bathroom in which she requested for me to email her pics. I immediately went back to do so.

They did send that lady to clean the place who was just full of excuses and had said she wouldn't have ever said such a thing had she of known I could hear but in my head i was thinking, 'that completely defeats the point'. She kept saying how her shift had finished and how there was some power cut hence why she couldn't properly see, she didn't have her glasses and how she is a single carer for her elderly grandmother at home so can clean one bathroom then will have to leave.

The clean of the rest of the place had yet to be done, the first night and following day was awful as we had no choice but to stay in this filthy place. The next day late afternoon they had sent another cleaner to ensure the place was all clean and she did an amazing job

This had been raised with the site manager who took forever to respond and when he did, it was after us chasing at least 3-4 times.

In the end they offered £100 off out stay which we wasn't happy with had written to us via email saying and i quote 'Your feedback is invalided to us'

I would not ever go hear again and most certainly don't recommend....

We stayed here for the Easter break. We arrived early afternoon and found our lodge, the lodge was being cleaned so we were hopeful for a slightly earlier checkin. We went to reception who informed us they would call when our lodge was ready. |We arrived back to reception at 3:30 pm where some guests were receiving their keys. We were informed that our lodge was still not ready. At 4:15 pm we were still waiting for our keys, Reception staff and the onsite manager informed guests that the delay was due to it being Good Friday, previous guests checking out late and a new house keeper who personally liked check each lodge meant they were running behind, we felt this was a poor excuse.|At 4:40 pm we eventually received our keys (the last lodge to be ready). I expressed my displeasure to the ‘on site’ manager and reception staff who really didn’t seem bothered and presented with a flippant attitude. The manager explained that arrival information states check-in time is “from 4:00 pm” however, the email I received from Darwin escapes did not state this fact ???? In frustration due to the delay I expressed I would not check out till 10:40 am however, we morally obliged to the 10 am ‘check out’ purely because we decent people. |Based on the lengthy wait for house keeping checks we expected the lodge to be cleaned to a high standard however there were many flaws which normally would not bother us but after the wait we felt they needed to be acknowledged - a very dirty, smelly washing machine that required a hot wash and clean before we used it, crumbs in the pan draw, lots of dust around the lodge, dirty cutlery, and a blocked, black shower head - all of which should have been detected in the supposedly pre-housekeeping checks. We have stayed at many Darwin escapes sites and regrettably this has been the first issue we have ever encountered. ||However, we put this disappointing start behind us and enjoyed the lodge and its amenities, the site is situated in beautiful grounds that are maintained by two very hard working grounds staff. The lodge is comfortable and contained everything needed for a relaxing stay. ||Despite our check-in experiences we would consider staying here again if visiting...