I have stayed at the Grand many times over the past few years and no England Seaside Hotel comes close, I Love it"!

The Hotel went through a really bad patch in the late eighties and I swore I would never go back. Howecer since it's ownership by Elite Hotels, I have beeen back time and time again.

Staff from the moment you arrive are always friendly, polite and accomodating, only once or twice out of numerous visits, have I had cause to be dissapointed by the re-action of a member of staff, the most annoying being when I was told in front of everyone at reception that my credit card had been refused, when in fact it was an error with the receptionist.

The food is great, as are the rooms and the health club.
It is in an amazing setting and I always look forward to arriving at this giant wedding cake of a hotel. It is perfect for all ages and tastes.

The only negatives are that if they have a wedding this dominates proceedings and reduces the enjoy of your stay, they section off areas of the hotel for them, take over the bar etc, ( so check first) The other negative is that although they have 24 hour Room Service, it is very poor. It is very slow and in soome cases they have completely forgotten our order, and you usually have to chase it.

Having said that I would definitely recommend the Grand.

I just returned from a night at the Grand Hotel. We chose this hotel to spend our wedding anniversary, wanting a luxury break that was close to london, and was also child friendly (we have a 16 month old baby).
We booked the Epicurean Escape package. This included: chocolates, flowers and Champagne in our room, one nights stay, dinner in the Mirrebelle Restaurant with a 6 course tasting menu including wine matched with each course, and breakfast.
At £380 total for the two of us, it was not a cheap stay, but was well worth it. After one night I was more relaxed that some week long holidays.

From the time we drove up to the time we left the service was expectional. The little things made the difference, like glass of warm milk delivered to our room at the baby's bedtime (not charged).

We both had a Massage -which was very good and not overpriced.

We were lucky to have a weekend of pure sunshine, but just in case, they heat their Pool. To a wonderful 35deg. This was the first time that our baby enjoyed swimming - normally he hates the cold water - we couldn't get him out!

Dinner was supurb- I have eaten at many exceptional restaurants around the world and this held it own in terms of food, service and atmosphere.
Seven courses of wonderful food (only thing that i would say didn't work was one entree of Foie Gras with smoked salmon and avocado. The flavours did not gel.)
The wines here well matched and generous - the wine waiter knows his stuff.

The biggest thing for us was how baby friendly the hotel and the staff were. I am always concious of keeping our baby well behaved in public spaces, but in this hotel, we felt relaxed enough to let him have a crawl around and this was not a bother to the staff who delighted in stopping and talking to him at every chance.
The Baby Listening service made a huge difference - you call reception once the baby is asleep, then leave the phone off the hook and reception keep an ear out - they come and find you if they hear anything. this is so much nicer than a babysitter as you dont have to rush back to your room at a certain time. Free too.

We are already planning to book for our next anniversary (two nights this time) and cannot reccommend it more for anyone wanting a special treat.

We stayed in a room with a sofa bed, suitable for my 12 year old son, over the Bank Holiday weekend at the end of May. Arrival was excellent, with one of the porters taking the luggage out of the car and another parking the car. Check-in was effortless and we were taken to our room by another member of staff, who also took the luggage. The room was spacious, with a King-size bed (With canopy), an armchair, sofa-bed, chest of drawers, writing table and chair, rather small TV housed in a unit and a reasonably large wardrobe. All was spotlessly clean. The bathroom was rather cramped; the over the bath shower was an old-fashioned large brass drencher, although there was a hand-held shower head attached to the brass bath taps as well.
As mentioned by others, the windows were single glazed. Fortunately we weren't disturbed too much by traffic noise, but I did hear one woman asking in reception for a room swap due to the noise.
The indoor leisure pool is quite small, sauna and steam rooms adequate, but I felt that a hotel of this stature should have had something a lot bigger and better. It was too cold to go into the outdoor pool, but that too wasn't very big.
Breakfast, as mentioned by others, is buffet style. The quality was good, and there were plenty of alternatives for those who don't want cooked breakfasts - cheeses, meats, salmon, pastries, fresh fruits, a variety of rolls and a selection of cereal. Once you are sat down (after queueing for about 5 minutes on the busy mornings) the member of staff will take your tea/coffee and toast order. Service was slooooow. If you are going to have a cooked breakfast, you may have finished it before your tea and toast arrives unless you wait for a while.
Didn't eat in either restaurant as they were both fully booked. Bar prices are hiked high, higher than I would have expected, even in a establishment like this.
The staff throughout were magnificent, nothing was too much trouble.
Overall, a very enjoyable visit but a bit over-priced compared to other similar places I have stayed in

My husband and I stayed at The Grand Hotel in Eastbourne for two days in May. This hotel is aptly named - the experience was indeed "Grand"....from the Sitting Parlors where drinks and tea are served on silver platters, to the dining rooms where meals are served on covered dishes and from silver bowls, to the elegantly furnished rooms. We had a standard deluxe room furnished with antique furniture and marble/granite bath. As stated in other reviews, I suspect the furnishings in the hotel are very much as they were 30 years ago - lovingly cared for to preserve the ambience of a bygone era. The hotel also has a lovely indoor swimming pool, jacuzzi and sauna with fully equipped mens and ladies dressing rooms, complete with showers, dressing tables, hair dryers. Our room rate included both dinner and breakfast and we were not disappointed. The breakfast buffet was indeed one of the best we have ever experienced and the dinners were outstanding. Wine selection was also impressive. Note: While a family friendly hotel, proper dress and attire are required in the parlors and dining rooms after 7:00 pm (no jeans, sweats or trainers). The experience was very enjoyable - the only distraction being other guests that did not uphold the high standards of courteous, polite, genteel behavior. We would definately return to this lovely hotel.

I stayed at the Grand with my girlfriend in April 2007. We don't normally stay in expensive hotels, but we booked at the last minute and got a good offer for a 5* hotel. We stayed Friday and Saturday night.

The hotel is very impressive on the seafront and the valet parking on arrival was excellent. The hotel is stunning inside and really has the touch of luxury. We had a very nice meal in the Garden Restaurant on Friday evening, which is essentially a good quality traditional restraurant (silver service etc.) serving classic French food.

Our room was large with a nice bed and had everything you would expect. The location of the hotel is excellent, being a short walk from the centre, right on the coast and a bit of a walk upto the top of Beachy Head if you are feeling energetic!

The only disappointment with our stay was the breakfast in the morning. The cooked buffet was a bit disappointing, but I now realise you can order a fresh cooked breakfast if you prefer-I would recommend this. Also, we arrived for breakfast at just after 10, with the last service being 10.30. However, when we went up again for more, we came back to find our table had been cleared! Not a big deal, but we maybe expected a little bit more for the price.

The hotel did have an older clientelle (my girlfriend and I are in our 20s) but it didn't affect our stay. Very enjoyable time and would stay again - wallet permitting!

If you are expecting mini bars, flat screen TVs, DVD players, power showers and cutting edge decor don't set foot in this place!

The Grand has probably not changed much in the 30 years I have known the place. Although the whole place has been refreshed the furniture is dreadfully old fashioned. The WOW factor is the staff. We came away after a 3 night break just after Christmas and before New Year when the rates a lower and have never been so relaxed. Staff actually smile, they are helpful, courteous and pleasant and call you by your name. We even had a real French Maid in a delightful pink frilly uniform.

The success of the hotel (and it was absolutely packed) is attention to fine detail ensuring your absolute comfort. We arrived after a gruelling 9 hour drive, the porter suggested we have 2 large gin and tonics delivered to the room (there is 24 hour room service). Large cut class tumbers, lots of ice and lemon, nibbles were sent up before we even had our coats off.

If you are a people watcher, come here. I have never, ever seen such a spectrum of people, old boys on their own (who book in for the entire 2 weeks), couples, thirty somethings with children,
bored teenagers with parents, whole families!

In essence this is what you get: fanastically comfortable beds, superb linen, Molton Brown in the bathroom, turn down service with water left on your bedside table. The dining room (there are 2 restaurants) offers 4 course table d'hote with coffee, with a different menu every night. Crystal as standard, silver, bone china, silver service, candles, amazing flower displays.

Drinks in the bar come at night with little eats, olives, nuts and crisps

The porter takes your car keys so you dont have to worry about the car park..

We saw people having afternoon tea....best booked...mountains of homemade cakes, strawberries, champagne, superb.

This place is value for money on a big scale.

The Grand, a Grand old lady, and very much "in-tune" with its location. Location is just what you want, just far enough away from the centre to be peaceful, but easy to walk into the main town. It is a great looking hotel, white, set back from the main road.

The welcome was superb, all luggage taken away, and my car parked up for me in the horel car park. An excellent set of ladies on reception, everything was taken care of very well indeed.

Afternoon tea, as always, an institution. try and get a table by the fireplace, in autumn and winter months it is the place to have your tea. The small pots of jam are of outstanding quality, try the blueberry. The service was impeccable here.

My room, (120) was a "De Luxe" at the back of the hote, that means non sea view. The room was a good size, bigger than I was expecting. TV is small and old. The decor is comfortable, traditional and very much "Eastbourne". The only issue is that the road outside the back of the hotel. It does not have much traffic, but the hotel windows are SINGLE GLAZED, and the frames do not always fit too well. You keep warm by turning up the radiators, but the windows do leak in some noise.

Not a Grand bedroom but comfortable enough.
The bathroom was OK, a bit small, hot water excellent in the evening, but a bit cool in the morning! Not sure that it is a good idea to have carpet in bathrooms!

Dinner: A part of a package, so we had it in the hotel, (remember, a jacket OR a tie, please!)

Barman in the bar is professional, did a good G & T.
Very good service, beef dish was fine if unadventurous, lamb was very good, just as it should be. Vegetables very good. Wine waiter did a good job, although I had to ask for ice in the water jug.

A good selection of 3 cheeses for my dessert, but, too refrigerated, which meant the cheese lost a bit of flavour, and not enough crackers! Shame. My wife's dessert was terrific though. A nice, Grand style dining room. Super.

Breakfast, excellent choices, great fruit, super jam portions again and lots of hot dishes to choose from, 2 types of bacon to choose. Excellent hot coffee, (hotter than the average hotel, well done) Nice experience.

Overall, a nice place to stay, great for Tea, and breakfast.

I have stayed at the Grand twice now, once with a friend and the last time in December with my family. We splashed out and booked a junior suite with a sea view. From start to finish we as a family could not have been treated and served better. The room was spacious and comfrotable. Two t.v's meant that the children (then aged 5 and 9) could watch cartoons whilst we could catch up on the news. Facilities like the children's room and swimming pool meant that there were things for my children to do indoors in the cold winter month of December. The food was wonderful (my eldest managed to eat a four course meal!) and even taking the children into the bar for pre dinner drinks was absolutely not a problem for staff there. We have booked to return this December and I would firmly recommend this hotel to families. Having just read a review from a woman who suggested to the Grand that children under 7 are not admitted to the restaurant I would say that if her suggestion were taken up families like mine would suffer! Perhaps I should also mention that my two offspring are not angels either!

Checked in for 3 nights with 2 kids (1 & 5), attracted by the website focus on providing a good time for kids.

So what was good? Rooms ready on arrival (2 inter-connecting rooms). Clean and spacious. (If a little old-fashioned in terms of decor - but that's the Grand). The Spa great for kids, and the staff in the kid club cheerful and pleasant. High Tea also provided for kids (at £9.50 a head). We used the baby listening service in the evenings to get out of the room. The public areas (especially the Hall) are immaculately kept, and great for tea/drinks/snacks. Probably what sets this hotel apart from others is the level of customer service, which was pretty awesome. Nothing too much trouble: plenty of unforced smiles, plenty of staff on hand (which should be standard for 5* hotels), and a focus on presentation. From Concierge to room-service, all the staff appear well-trained and customer focused.

What could be improved? Not cheap! The entrance to the Spa from the lift appears to be a service corridor, and needs smartening up, as does the overall feel of the Spa which feels a bit dowdy (it is carpeted everywhere the same as the rest of the hotel). We ate in the Garden restaurant for dinner, which is a formal affair. We found the food overpriced for what it was, and the service overly-formal and lacking in much charm. (Didn’t feel any warmth from the waiters at any stage). Also dinner service can take a long time. My tip: if you want to take dinner at the hotel, eat at their Mirabelle restaurant, which is about the same price, but a much more serious kitchen. Also there is no half-way family dining with kids: it’s either a formal restaurant dinner, or a sandwich/cold salad at the bar in the evenings. Nothing in between.

OK, so the clientele can be on the mature side, however, this is off set by the numbers of families around, and if you take kids, you won’t be on your own. Definitely a good place overall for kids, they are well provided for. The major selling point is the service: they do take care of you…. Will go back.

Although I live in Eastbourne, I have stayed at the Grand Hotel on a number of occassions over the past few years. I also eat at 'The Mirabelle' on a regular basis and take afternoon tea a few times a year... so I like to think that I am a bit of an expert on the place!

In August of this year, I booked an overnight stay to celebrate my husband and I's eigth wedding anniversary. As per the previous review on this site, we booked a junior suite. It was roomy and had all the 'trimmings' you would expect (bath robes, molton brown products etc.). Yes, the rooms are a little tierd in terms of decor, but the view of the sea more than makes up for it.

Our room was ready on arrival and, after we had checked in, we spent the afternoon in the health club (swim, sauna, steam room etc) which was very relaxing. For dinner we eat in the mirabelle restuarant (NB: there are two restaurants - I would also eat in the mirabelle if given a choice) which was, as always, fabulous! This restaurant always gets top marks for the food and general level of service (we can't fault it!).

After dinner we retired to the lounge for a night cap. At the weekend there is a small band/singer who sing songs you can dance (i.e. ballroom) or try and move around the dance (like my husband and I do!).

Breakfast was superb - there was so much choice and the quality was excellent.

Overall we had a great stay and felt totally spolit. I would recommend this hotel to anyone.

P.S. You don't have to be old to come to Eastbourne (Mary, aged 33).

Have just returned from a weekend stay with mixed feelings. We went for a special birthday as a party of 9 with ages ranging from 9 to 80. The location is ideal right on the seafront although beware the early morning seagulls and rubbish trucks. The rooms were large and clean. The public areas are magnificent and we were impressed by both the indoor and outdoor pools. The staff could not have been more pleasant or helpful. Our biggest complaint was with the restaurant and the food in general. At dinner we rarely got in and out in less than 2 1/2 hours. Both old and young found it difficult to sit for that long. We tried changing our dining time to speed things up but it made no difference. We ended up describing it as a war of attrition as it was terribly hot in there. This would probably have had less impact if the food had been something special but it was not and certainly not what we were expecting from a 5 star hotel at a price of £35 per head. The vegetarian menu was particularly poor and we ended up asking for plain pasta with tomato etc which the staff were happy to cook for us. The wine list was shocking, with bottles I know are £8 in the shops selling at £40. Breakfast was at least quicker although as other reviewers have said no better than you would expect for a 3 or 4 star hotel. Tea was served in the fabulous lounge but surely for £5 a sandwich you are entitled to more than a scraping of egg mayonnaise! Overall a nice weekend but the catering needs a shake up.

Booked the night before and went for a suite with a seperate lounge and bedroom. Two z-beds were provided for my 8 % 5 year old girls.

Turned up the next day and certainly wasn't disappointed. The welcome was first class (even though a wedding reception was about to start). The room was fantastic - huge and brilliant seaviews.

The evening meal in the garden room was reasonable value at £35 a head.

Breakfast was above average for a buffet style breakfast.

Unfortunately the weather was poor so we couldn't spend much time on the beach. However, the kids used the leisure facilities and kids club and had a great time. In fact the kids have asked us whether we can go back every year!!!

Absolutely first rate hotel. Oustanding staff (probably the best in any hotel we've been to) and excellent restaurant. Have never been there before but would definitely go back. On balance, prefer it to the Grand at Brighton (no relation!) Public rooms are lovely. Bedroom was nice enough - reasonable size, bit drab though. If you want tea and coffee making in the room, you have to order it free of change from room service. Decent enough sized pool plus jacuzzi, steam room and sauna.

This was our second stay at the Grand and provided us with a wonderful and relaxing weekend in amazing surroundings. Overall, the staff is charming, although I agree with previous reviewers that for some obscure reasons, some of their receptionists (one in particular) represent their weak points (it is a question of luck, some of the other receptionists are perfectly nice!) We were upgraded to an amazing suite, room service is of an amazing quality, and so are the restaurants, and breakfast is great (by the way, one of the previous reviewers gave a wrong price for breakfast: it is included in most room prices, but if it is not in yours, it costs £13.50pp and not £27, which for a full breakfast including fresh squeezed juice, kidneys, black pudding, haddock, kippers, and about 100 other dishes is very reasonable by British standards!) All in all, when I step at the Grand, I feel as if I was stepping in another century (in a good way). Other reviewers are correct in saying that a majority of the guests are older than in most other hotels (probably because here, they are treated with respect and given time and attention), but who does it bother? My partner is 24, I am 31, and we found most people's conversation very interesting indeed, plus there are always lots of families and children as the hotel has two swimming pools. Anyway, just a great experience.

We went to The Grand for our wedding anniversary and it was wonderful. The staff couldn't be more helpful, they were polite, friendly and professional. We used the facilities: the pool, the steam room and the sauna in the ladies changing room were particularly good. We had dinner in the Mirabel restaurant, which again I can recommend but it is as expensive as you would expect in a classy restaurant - the maid even pulled back the bed covers while we were dining!! When we left, any stress we had arrived with had melted away. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this hotel to anyone.

This is a lovely hotel. We had a great sea view and a well furnished, comfy room (called Executive, no idea why) with luxurious robes and towels in the bathroom. No coffee making facilities in the room, but you can request them apparently. The staff were friendly, efficient and unobtrusive. The food was great in a restaurant called 'Mirabelle' and afternoon tea by the main fireplace is recommended on the big squishy sofas. Warning: cocktails strong but good!

This hotel had a great attitude to all its guests, we found it was a good place to escape from London for a weekend and I personally think it's less hectic than the Brighton Grand. TS

Had a brilliant stay at the The Grand hotel travelling with 2 children under the age of our 5 i felt it met all our needs, Staff at the Grand are the most friendliest i have ever come across at a hotel and we travel regulary with our children. Had a great kids play room. Rooms were clean and adequate to our needs.
The only problem was parking such a large hotel and parking spaces are limited however this was not a problem as the concierge if full would park your car for you.
Overall a brilliant hotel and great place to stay with children, would most definately stay here again.

Stayed 3 nights. Staff most helpful. Rooms good sized, bed very comfortable, bathroom a bit small but spotlessly clean like the whole hotel.Not cheap but good value for money. Dining room excellent but again not cheap.Will definately go again.

It is wonderful to find this time warp that is the Grand Hotel. This Hotel is all about how it should be done. Every aspect of our stay exceeded my expectations, from the afternoon tea, as good as the Ritz but considerably less expensive. The dinner was wonderful ,their wine list has some very interesting wines.
Overall a very special place, taking you back in time to a world of Luxury and service.

We had reserved and received confirmation for a Deluxe sea view room for one night at the rate of GBP 190, including tax and breakfast. On checking in we were told by the receptionist that our room was on the side of the hotel and that you couldn't see the sea from it. I found this incredible and told her that a room from which you couldn't see the sea was not a sea view room. After a little more conversation in this line she said that she would speak to the duty manager and asked us to wait.

After about ten minutes the duty manager explained to me the different room categories at the Grand. I asked if you could see the sea from our room, and he told me only if you put your head out of the window. I told him that this was not a sea view room. He told me that they would give us a room with a sea view, but that it would take a little time as the hotel was full (we had tried to check in before 12:00). We were upgraded to a Superior room with sea view (GBP 230 per night) for no extra cost.

Although we ended up with a better room than we had paid for I found checking in very annoying. I hate to be treated as an idiot, and can you think of a more extreme case than being told you can't see the sea from your sea view room?

In general the hotel was good, but there were small annoying things which I wouldn't expect from a five star hotel charging these prices.

There's not much I can say about this hotel except, what a wonderful place! My husband and I had the most enjoyable stay (only 1 night). The staff were helpful, polite and well mannered. We both enjoyed a wonderful massage, the beautiful weather and the joy of the outdoor pool. I was a little concerned that the outdoor pool was situated to the front of the building, with the busy road and the general hustle and bustle I was a little worried that this would disrupt my day of relaxation. However, we were pleasantly surprised to find that we had no troubles relaxing, the pool was warm and a delight to swim in and the hustle and bustle of the nearby road was very well hidden by the wonderful rock and tree garden. The noise was non-existent from the road and the in-house hotel band were wonderful to listen to whilst reading and relaxing. We almost felt as if we were abroad.
We visited a nearby Restaurant but decided to come back to the hotel for dessert. We ordered coffee and cheese and although my husband's coffee looked more filtered than esspresso'd he enjoyed it, and my coffee did arrive a little while after he actually finished his coffee, it was delicious. Our cheese did not seem to arrive at all so we waited and waited... In the end it was getting late so we decided to just go to bed, we told the waiter that we were still waiting for our cheese but it was now too late. He rectified the problem by apologising and not charging us for the coffee we had. This simple but excellent customer service response was satisfactory and ended my slight frustration, so no bad feelings towards our 1 and only little incident.
We were however rudely awoken by the sound of a fire alarm at 6am! But I s'pose its better to be safe than sorry! We simply headed back inside from being evacuated, read our papers and went down to breakfast. Breakfast was yummy and once filled with fresh fruits, toasts, eggs and cereal we headed back upstairs to relax and get ready to check out.
Check out was once again as expected, a breeze, with friendly and helpful staff.
Although a very pricey hotel, it was well worth it and if we ever find ourselves Eastbourne way again, we will be sure to book another night.

The Grand is something you will love if you love the charm of days gone by. It features beautiful public rooms, spacious guestrooms (although the bathroom was small, at least in #407), a well maintained health club, an outstanding restaurant (Mirabelle) and all this facing the sea close to the marvelous Beachy Head. There is live music and dancing on Saturday evenings in the bar and at the latest then you will feel as if time stood still for at least some decades. It is quite expensive but worth the money. We liked it very much.

I had my wedding party at the Grand, and was given a complimentary room. It was spotless and beautifully appointed.

The building is err.. "Grand" - and the service from the minute you arrive to the minute you leave is just how you would expect from a 5-star hotel, but without any air of superiority from staff.. It almost feels classless, but the surroundings soon remind you exactly where you are!

I live locally and have become a member of the health club - and visit the gym there 3 times a week. I must confess that although the gym has a "side entrance" - i always come in through the front door, as i never get bored of looking at the lobby, especially when they have the lovely roaring log fire in winter!

I'd also agree with another review on here that you dont need the biggest and best room to have a comfortable stay. A deluxe sea-view is good enough for anyone. I have stayed in the Master Suite and its humungous!!! You get an A to Z handed to you to find your way round!

All in all, a superb hotel - managed to perfection, and one that i unfortunately judge others by - (yes, i am frequently disappointed..) !!

This is undoubtedly the finest hotel on the south coast. What makes the Great White Palace so special is the attention to service without pretention. The two restaurants are exceptional. Dining in The Garden Room restaurant frequently is the extraordinary fact that each time the food seems to reach new heights of imagination. From the entrance lobby to the well appointed bedrooms, to exciting flower arrangements, crisp linen to crystal glassware, even a short visit is worthwhile. Afternoon teas are a joy, presented in the lounge with a choice of delicate sandwiches and interesting cakes. The Grand is a peaceful hotel but not stuffy. The staff are friendly unlike some leading London hotels. The tariff reflects a hotel of this standard but a night in a suite with balcony overlooking the lawns to the sea is money well spent. The late Sir Alec Guinness stayed here under the previous owners and was not too impressed. (Nor was I). However, I'm confident that he would most certainly approve now.

The hotel is indeed grand, with uniformed concierges meeting your car, parking it, taking bags, and a fantastic building with large elegant vaulted reception areas. The room rates reflect the service and decor and this is where my negative feelings start to form. Although enormous effort has been put into staff training and procedures (staff always smile and say hello when greeting; beds are turned down and towels all changed in the evening, even on the day of booking in, cleanliness is superb throughout) there were too many failings for my liking in a hotel of this class and cost. We had booked a meal by phone at the famed Mirabelle restaurant, but were told on checking in that we had not. We asked to see a menu for the restaurant while having pre-dinner drinks, but this was never brought to us. Having sorted out the restaurant booking with reception, we arrived at the restaurant on time to be told once again we had not reserved a table. Fortunately the restaurant was less than half occupied (which somewhat belies the hotel publicity 'book early!' and this was a Saturday evening). Our starter was brought before our wine, we asked for some bread, but it was never brought, my wife's lamb was running blood it was so undercooked (maybe the dish demanded it but it was not to our taste). My sweet arrived on its own (about a half an hour after ordering) and my wife's a full half hour after mine. On returning to our room to shower we found the temperature control broken, so scalding hot or scalding hot were the only available temperature settings. The buffet Breakfast was ordinary rather than special and the only way of getting butter for the toast that was brought round was to raid another table's supply (as most people were doing this there was a continual emptying of newly laid tables butter supplies). On checking out, we found the Concierge had parked a car behind ours and could not find the keys so we could not get out! In general terms all of these things may be seen as relatively minor annoyances compared to some of the disasters some have experienced in hotels, but these accumulated to the point where I felt for the £370 the one night stay had cost my wife and I we had been fleeced, and would not return here. Additionally, when reporting these problems to staff, they were well versed in how to humbly apologise, but did not engage (or understand enough English in some cases) when I tried to get things put right. All this is a shame because the hotel almost gets almost everything else almost right!