Hintlesham Hall Hotel

“Wonderful ”

I loved this hotel. Accommodation and staff superb. I enjoyed the restaurant, the food was excellent, as were the grounds. All areas are spotlessly clean. I thought I'd booked one of their cheaper rooms, so was surprised to find a four poster bed, seating area and bathroom with both a bath and sh... more

I loved this hotel. Accommodation and staff superb. I enjoyed the restaurant, the food was excellent, as were the grounds. All areas are spotlessly clean. I thought I'd booked one of their cheaper rooms, so was surprised to find a four poster bed, seating area and bathroom with both a bath and shower. Everyday extras were added to the room. Peaceful grounds and the location is close to tourist attractions including Constable country. I only wish I could have stayed longer. My holiday was a disaster until I arrived at Hintlesham. Thank you to everyone for making my stay so memorable. Thoroughly recommend.

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“Country House Living”

Friendly country house hotel, with good rooms, nice bar, dining room & grounds. All staff very friendly & efficient. Food good but expensive. Good service. Fair selection of wines at fair prices. Room complete with water toiletries, slippers & robes. Plenty of parking & EV facilities.

“This was a return visit, but we had a very different experience this time unfortunately”

When trying to book, I telephoned to ask that if I booked the ‘country escape offer’ would dinner be included on all evenings. I was told it would be, so asked to book, but the price given was about £120 more than it was booking online so I was told “you’d better book online then”! I booked onli... more

When trying to book, I telephoned to ask that if I booked the ‘country escape offer’ would dinner be included on all evenings. I was told it would be, so asked to book, but the price given was about £120 more than it was booking online so I was told “you’d better book online then”! I booked online, stating that we would be celebrating our Silver Wedding Anniversary, and if possible could I book the Regalia room as that is where we stayed last time and it was a gorgeous room. I didn’t receive an email confirming my booking so after a couple of hours I then rang again just to check it had all gone through. This time I spoke to a lovely lady who apologised and said I should have received one by return, so a confirmation email was sent. The receptionist said that unfortunately she could see I had requested Regalia room, this was already booked out for a wedding, but she would find a lovely room as she could see we were celebrating our anniversary. On arrival we booked in and were told we were in Applestore which was in the annexe. We went to the room and I thought they may have done something for our anniversary, but nothing, such disappointment. (I will add, swan towels and rose petals were on the bed when we came back on the Thursday, but I think it was because a lovely couple who we’d got talking to, and celebrating their golden wedding anniversary, had spoken to reception, but unfortunately it was too late, the moment had passed). There was an envelope propped up addressed to somebody else. We took it down to reception and they apologised and said there had been a late room change. There wasn’t any Prosecco and chocolates either, which was part of the deal, but as I haven’t been very well and wasn’t drinking didn’t bother saying anything, but it’s still the lack of detail that is not acceptable at this price point. The room was so dark and dingy. The sofa looked like it had been rescued from somewhere and needed a good re-stuff as every time you sat on it it just sagged. There was no side table to put a drink on, there was a huge stain under the window where it looked like someone had dropped a cup of coffee/drink. The bathroom was very tired, and when you went in, the shower screen rattled. The mastic needed doing badly along the shower screen. There was very little water pressure so the shower just dribbles out, the extractor fans didn’t work so steamed up. (We did inform them). The entrance by the bathroom was cheap laminate flooring, which was sagging. The wardrobe doors needed to be painted and there wasn’t a door catch on them, we felt the room had been done up on a very low budget, certainly nothing like Regalia room which is at the same price point. There was a note asking to make sure lights were turned off etc when leaving the room, but there was a lamp on permanently at the bottom of the stairs and lights on in the dining room when having breakfast which was unnecessary. We also found the same menu each night a bit boring, as we started to struggle with things we liked. Why not have a special main each day, and a soup of the day maybe, or 2 menus that are alternated. I will add the food was lovely, and even the desserts (not usually a dessert person) but I found it hard to find a starter I liked. It would have been nice to have a steak maybe on the menu. On a plus, the waiting staff worked so hard and were really friendly, even though they were really stretched at times. It would be nice to have someone in the bar area in the evening, I think you need that to get a bit of atmosphere. The couple working in the garden around the pond worked tirelessly and their efforts were much appreciated as the gardens are beautiful. We also felt it was a bit awkward trying to get out into the garden to have lunch or a drink after we’d been out for the day, and felt we were intruding walking through when people were having lunch. On checking out we weren’t asked if we’d had a good stay, and then we were overcharged as they had only credited our meal allowance for 2 nights and not the 4 so had to go back and get a refund. All in all we had quite a different experience to our last visit and in all honestly don’t think we would return. I know times are tough for a lot of industries, and I have thought long and hard about writing this review, but it’s the little things, attention to detail and great customer service that make all the difference, we both felt a bit down when we left especially as we were celebrating a special occasion.

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