my company has an office close to the hotel and a corporate rate with them (which by the way is still pretty steep), so staying there seemed to be the most sensible thing to do. which leads me to the only really positive thing i can say about it - the best thing about the OGH is its location, an easy walk to the centre of town.

the impression of the hotel is best from the outside. a lot of effort seems to have gone into an apparently recent facelift of the facade. unfortunately, not so much effort was spent on the inside. while it may be historic and some of the public areas try to recreate the good old times, it is not executed in a nice way. rather than having a romantic and charming feel about it, it just seems old and grubby, as there is a strange kind of smell throughout the hotel which i can’t really describe, other than it just smells OLD. my room was not nice. though it seemed to have new furnishings, they were made to look old, which again gave it a rather tacky feel.

overall, i would say the hotel has a strange kind of 50s feel to it that may appeal to the elderly couples the hotel is so full of. and, what’s more, for the price they are asking i would be expecting a lot more!

breakfast is made to order only, which may be nice when you are on a holiday, but doesn’t really suit business travelers who are in a hurry in the morning.

if this is the best hotel in guernsey - so we were told - i am curious about the standard and value for money at the other ones!

This is a lovely hotel conveniently located in the heart of St Peter Port. The service was second to none and nothing was too much trouble. The staff clearly enjoy working here and it shows in their dedication to making our stay as comfortable as possible. Can highly recommend it and would love to go back sometime.

We spent three days at the OGH for a special occasion. This was our fourth visit to Guernsey and our first stay at The OGH - it certainly will not be the last. The service was exemplary -precise, painstaking, and caring without being overwhelming. We honestly felt that the staff actually cared about our stay at their hotel - this applied to all staff. It was also welcoming to be spoken to by name - a real effort was made to make us at home. Being centrally located there is immediate access to all the shops and restaurants of St Peter Port. Having said that, the hotel's cuisine is exceptional, notably the freshly prepared and wide ranging breakfast available. Our compliments to the management and staff and we look forward to our next visit in the not too distant future. Incidentally, we found no negatives to call - perhaps the best hotel we have stayed in on our wide travels.

A disappointing break in all, chiefly due to the small size of our room and unhelpful attitude at the reception desk and other staff members.
This 2 night break was booked by the Co-Operative Travel company which was unusual for me as I normally tend to do things independantly via the web or phone. Their local service was exemplary I have to say and we set off with short local flights, private transfers and a 'Classic Double' room with breakfast tucked under our belt all for the princely sum of £715 via Premier holidays. I had been shown a picture of what to expect in their brochure, a large, spacious, light filled, high ceilinged, long windowed, room with a large ensuite to boot.. however, what we actually were given was an unacceptable small room at the side of the hotel via a long corridor walk, even if you took the lift...with one small high window without a decent view, low ceilings as it was at the very top floor in the eaves and a badly designed tiny bathroom that two people could not share comfortably at any time! The TV screen was badly positioned so that when in use it blocked the door to the bathroom ! Disappointed bleats to reception gained us zero response and lame excuses. The double wardrobe was placed adjacent to my side of the bed and we couldn't access our belongings easily once the doors were open!! It was a joke but as this was a corporate/ pleasure visit we had little time to address the problems as we had places to be at and schedules to keep.
Please could someone responsible for this place take note! It was such a shame as we had met the South African owners there during last years stay, from Carnation hotels; a charming couple who had high hopes for this beautiful building in it's refurbishment and fresh start. They had just taken over this historic place and were revamping the pool and spa area which meant yet again we didn't get what we'd hoped for but we were understanding on that occasion despite not being informed of this when we booked. To have it happen twice is careless!
Sorry to be a grouch but some of the staff were dreadful...we had booked dinner at their expensive in- house restaurant but decided to take champagne on the terrace beforehand...our waiter didn't approve and made some sarcastic remark as we ordered! WHAT was that all about! When we finally entered the dining area in a small intimate room full of clients except for one visibly empty table (ours) the server let us walk in and promptly left us to suddenly attend to others before seating us!! We were just left standing in the midst of people eating... What was that all about???!!
Perturbed, uneasy,disgusted springs to mind! Who trains these people? Are they in the right job.. it begs the question... on a positive note there was a lovely young chatty waitress who looked after us beautifully during our stay, usually at breakfast and she made the difference along with the pleasant barman.
We visit Guernsey every single year and the problem is that there is little choice for quality hotels near the Port where we have to be for business but I doubt I would return here sadly unless I was given certain assurances.I couldn't even arrange anything in the spa as it was fully booked up ;-(
In total the expense with all meals, beverages and incidentals at the hotel by far exceeded the original price and it still irks me months later that I didn't have a pleasant experience to warrant it. It could be so wonderful in so many ways, sad.

Another fabulous stay at the OGH. We were lucky to catch the 'Tenner Fest' and had two wonderful meals in the brasserie. A very nice touch now is the staff greeting us by name, very reminiscent of Raffles in Singapore, wonderful.

* OUR EVENT: We celebrated our 25th over four days within this beautiful, well maintained Hotel; our room was excellent, decorative, clean and very comfortable with a balcony and a lovely sea view.
* DINING: We dined in both the sunny Brassiere and refined Governor’s Restaurant, both very pleasant surroundings. Within the plush Governor’s restaurant we were seated into a private intimate booth. We both enjoy good quality food and this food is mouth wateringly delicious, superb standard of presentation and outstanding service; the A La Carte, “Degustation menu,” was fabulous, exceptional high standard of culinary art, the chefs know their stuff and our individual tastes were catered for. They have a good selection of wines to choose from. Even our taste in music was catered for, playing low-key in the background. Good old fashioned afternoon tea in the lounge is a must!
* RECEPTION: The reception staff are very pleasant and accommodating, we arrived at 08:30 and were able to check in earlier and on departure we were able to check out later at no extra cost.
* ALL STAFF: They are pleasant and friendly; each showed a high standard of professionalism, from Jane in reservations, Arun’s service in the Governor’s restaurant Gino in the restaurants and bar. A special thank you to Harry, director of guest services for a delightful surprise of bubbly and fruit dips served in our room on our special day.
* SPA: The facilities of the Spa along with steam room, sauna and chill out room was included within our price and we enjoyed these very refreshing facilities.
* SUM UP: Our every need was catered for. Our stay was an absolute pleasure, we highly recommend the OGH and we will have no hesitation in returning. If ever the Red Carnation Group want me to be a mystery guest in one of their hotels, please don't hesitate to contact me! :)

The service at the OGH is second to none; the staff seem to know what you need before you do. The room was large and plush, the bed was massive and so comfortable. The bathroom had shower and bath, excellent complimentary toiletries too. The hotel is located right in the centre of town with great views over St Peter Port and close to good restaurants, brassieres and bars, should you need them as the hotel restaurants are superb. The overall atmosphere and style of this hotel makes your stay wonderful. The only down side I can see is it’s a good walk up the hill to the OGH after a good night out.

The Old Government House Hotel is in a fantastic location a couple of minutes from the marina, 100m from the main shopping centre in St Peter Port and with stunning views from the terraced gardens across the harbour. It combines sumptious decor, with outstanding customer service. The rooms are lovely with crisp sheets (turned down in the evening and sweets and newspapers left for ones return), L'Occitane toiletries and plentiful tea and coffee. Afternoon tea in the library is a delight (or you can have it on the terrace or by the swimming pool after a swim) but the most outstanding thing about this hotel is the staff. Staff went out of their way at every opportunity to be helpful, courteous and attentive . Red Carnation hotels pride themselves on luxury and attention to detail and our stay could not have been better.

on arrival at the OGH we were greeted with a warm welcome, our room was a good size and very comfortable, the food is quality and a night in the guvoners restuarant is a must for anyone, the interior has a very warm and relaxed feel to it and take a visit to the spa, the hotel is in a prime location and ideal walking distance to the main town, we absolutely loved it at the OGH and we will most definately make this our hotel choice on our next visit.

Booked a special break to get engaged,everything about the OGH looked good but it surpassed all our expectations.From our pick up at the airport (we booked the romantic experience) to our joyus engagement dinner the hotel and staff couldn't have done more for us.A very comfotable,well appointed room,extremley attentive staff on top of that a lovely island to boot.Certainly both of these are a wonderful find.Thank you OGH and Guernsey for a memorable weekend

we were made so welcome when we arrived one of the staff took use all
round the hotel .On the day of a 40th wedding anniversay we returned back to
room only to find fruite on sliver paltter and a bottle of champane

We were very impressed with this hotel. The facilities are very good, and the hotel was welcoming with extremely helpful and friendly staff. The food was superb. We had a hire car and the hotel car park is limited in size and difficult to access. The staff whenever we wanted our car brought it round to the front for us. Excellent service throughout the hotel.

We had five glorious days at this charming hotel where the service was first class, discreet and attentive. The food in the main resturant was very good but the Governors dining was amazing seven courses of the best food l have ever had and l have dined in top London resturants. The location was good near all the shops, so we could walk there.
I know l keep talking about food but the high tea is a must at the hotel very old English and quaint in the grand drawing room. Could not fault the service, we were treated very well and the welcome is warm and friendly, the garden is very relaxing and the room clean, well maintained and perfect for our first break all year.
It is so nice to be in a non chain style hotel which has character and is immaculate, it felt like days gone by...manners, charm and good service...also love the spa a lovely much needed facility very nice!!

The OGH is situated in an ideal location in St Peter's Port, very close to the centre. The staff are all very welcoming and efficient and on arrival you immediately know that you have arrived at a first class hotel. Our room, although a little small, was ideally situated overlooking the pool and garden and was attended to efficiently.
Dining in both restaurants was a pleasurable experience with good food and excellent service.
Any request for porterage or taxi's were pleasantly handled and all staff appeared to enjoy being helpful. We will certainly look forward to further visits in the future.

A real jewel for a short 2 or 3 day stay.staff cannot do enough for you. rooms, food, service second to none.only short walk to shops and harbour,if you want a shot flight or short boat trip from the main land for a break this is hotel is very highly recommended.

Myself and my wife were recently married and were lucky enough to enjoy our wedding reception at the OGH.

The staff were second to none. Before the 'Big Day' and during and even after the event have been exceptional.

The food was suberb. All 75 guests were served the same food at the same time and it all came out hot and tasting great. Everyone raved about it.

The staff even put us and several guests who had stayed overnight in a special room for breakfast and were just as helpful as the previous day.

The wedding package is also a good deal better, both in price and quality, than those offered by many hotels.

I cannot recommend the OGH enough. If you are planning a wedding, get in there, quick!

A beautiful room with a lovely view across to Herm, small perfect balcony. Lovely bathroom, sumptious bed......and lovely sweets with turndown. Would we return?? We already have..........this was our second visit and there will definitely be a third!!

Margaret and David Sills

This hotel reflected its name - gracious elegance. It was located in the heart of St. Peter's Port within easy walking distance of the town. The staff were extremely attentive, friendly and helpful with answering questions regarding the town and also with confirming travel bookings.

I had a superior harbour view room which was very spacious without being huge. I had reserved a harbour view but although it was a harbour view, this entailed looking down the side of the hotel out to sea. It appeared the front harbour view rooms were suites.
The facilities in the room were excellent with tea and coffee making facilities and a fridge on request. However as regards the latter, there appeared to be a limited supply of these and I felt I was fortunate to secure one. I would suggest you request confirmation in writing should you also request any extras.

Location of hotel was excellent for walking to town or bus connections.
The view was beautiful. Breakfast and High Tea - service and food were tops. Front desk staff were friendly, helpful, and caring; they even mailed our packages at the Post Office for us.

One of the best boutique hotels you could ever find. The rooms are impeccable, the hotel itself is exceptionally well appointed and the staff are amongst the most dedicated we have ever had the pleasure to deal with.

We have stayed at the Old Government House seven times over the last twelve years and have never been disappointed. We thought it could not get better, but it has. Ever since Red Carnation Hotels took over the property two years ago, the service has been exceptional and the refurbishment of the rooms has been done well. The location is terrific, as the heart of St. Peter Port is just about a two-minute walk away. Many of the rooms have seaviews and look out upon Castle Cornet. We usually visit Guernsey every other year, but have gone two years in a row. We always stay at the OGH and have no plans to change. You cannot go wrong staying there!

We stayed at the OGH hotel for our silver anniversary on the 29th Sept for four days. We had booked a studio suite which was very pretty. However, within 5 minutes of being in the room we noticed there was a considerable leak in the ceiling (Room 325) and a large puddle on the floor. We contacted the duty manager who apologised profusely but was unable to offer another room as they were fully booked and everyone had arrived. We had to spend the night listening to the drips of rain falling into a bucket! This was not what we expected and we were very disappointed as this was supposed to be a special time for us, but, here is where the story changes................
Next morning the Manager (Andrew Chantrell) contacted us, he had already found another studio suite (larger and nicer) and told us that there would be no charge for the room or the dinner that we had in the restaurant that evening. We had eaten in the A La Carte restaurant and had chosen the seven course taster menu (the most expensive - we were trying to cheer ourselves up!) so getting this complimentary was a very pleasant surprise and more than we expected. This in itself would have been sufficient to calm our ruffled feathers but Andrew had obviously briefed his staff about our bad start and thereafter they could not have been more attentive. The Director of Guest relations (Harry) was an absolute star - he made a point of finding us every day to check everything was still okay. He gave us a glass of champagne at the beginning of our meal the next evening, offered liquers the second evening and bought us a very splendid afternoon tea on the day of our departure, which also happened to be my husband's birthday. He could not have done enough for us. The restaurant manager (Xavier) and one of the waiters (Arun) were also excellent. They made sure that the service we had was second to none. Between them, they turned our experience from a disappointment to a delight. Andrew Chantrell should be proud of his staff. I would recommend anyone to go here -not only is the food fabulous (and deserving of a Michelin star) but the service and attention to detail makes it a wonderful customer experience.

First time staying at the OGH and very impressed. The character of the building is very much old style but the facilities in terms of wifi, plasma TV, telephony and internet radio are up there with the best in latest offerings.

Everywhere I walked a member of staff would say good morning, good evening etc and treated every guest with the greatest respect. You don't get that all the time these days.

We used the conference facilities which were great for our event with a superb view across St Peter Port and down to the harbour.

Superb meal in the restaurant and a good atmosphere in the bar.

On checking out in the morning there was also the chance to grab a tea/coffee to take-away.

Really enjoyed my brief stay.

The hotel staff are exceptional and nothing is too much trouble, which is why it is very hard to make a complaint.
We opted to stay for seven nights in a Queen room with the one night free package.
The room posted on there website bore no resemblance to the tiny room the large bed was sqeezed into. I had requested sheets and blankets instead of a duvet and thats precicely what we got no sign of a suptuous throw, just a brown blanket.
They go to great lengths prior to your arrival to make your stay enjoyable, a request for an iron and ironing board in the room was over looked but on request one was duly sent.
I also had to request more hangers as there were only 8 in the wardrobe, this request was met with, " i'm sorry madam but we have a wedding and all the hangers are being used", they did however say that they would see what they could do and some hours later another four were sent.
We had also requested a table be reserved for the night of our arrival in the restaurant, asuming this to be the govenors as opposed to the more casual brasserie. So we were a little surprised to be told that they did not have a table for us, evidently this was because we had not been specific in our request ( why did they not ask for clarification when we first made the request), so we were given a table with apologies in the brasserie.
Overall the food was pretty good, the first meal in the brasserie was excellent but the degustation menu which we opted for on the second evening was fairly average( mushrooms on burnt toast) but billed as something exceptional. Breakfast however was a very hit and miss affair. The first morning we were placed in a very chilly part of the garden as all the tables were full inside and within minutes of our food and drinks being served they were as cold as we were. The second morning we insisted on waiting for a table inside and had to wait twenty minutes. The chef is a big lover of the heat lamp and my husband gave up having the full english as the eggs were always dried up, as for my eggs benedict which i decided to have as a treat on the last morning, which consisted of soggy muffin (because the poached egg had been placed on it wet) hard poached egg and toasted benedict sauce, which instead of being a nice creamy yellow sauce was a dried brown glaze.
Overall an excellent hotel with fantastic staff let down by an "acclaimed chef " who is far from it. If you are a foodie this is not the place to stay.

We spent five nights at The Old Government House Hotel on a pay for four, get one extra for free basis. The OGH, as it is called, is a five minute gallop down to the harbour front, or a 7 minute wheeze uphill. I'd forgotten that Guernsey is hilly, especially St Peter Port.

Everyone was helpful, friendly and cheerful. The Hotel has a pleasant air of stately charm about it, but it is rather easy to lose direction when heading for the rooms: corridors rise, fall, twist and turn, but that is part of the charm.

Faults? The sash cords in two of our three windows had broken, but with quiet and efficient air con, you could argue that you do not need to open anything. However, the bathroom had no extractor fan, so we propped the window open with a deodorant pack! Shows up nicely in our photos....We reported this, and the failed lamp above the shower, to the front desk after they gave us a welcoming courtesy call. Nothing was done about it. No great problem, but, if you are asked if everything is OK, and you say something isn't, then either fix it, or don't ask in the first place!

The cosy and pleasant bar had good staff; Sky Sportsonly on TV, but with no sound, and canned musak emanating from behind the screen somewhere. One day, they opened the door to the garden, where a young saxophonist was playing soothing airs for those partaking of tea in the garden. The curious stereo effect of him v. the musak when sitting in part of the bar near the door soon required a request to kill one or the other. Musak lost, but the staff looked terribly surprised that it should be necessary. You just need to ask. And folk don't go to the OGH for the musak. At least, I never saw any faces fall when it went off.

Breakfast was excellent, though the area used had a capacity well below that of the Hotel when full. Which it was. Early or late was OK, but around 9-15/9-30 a wait of over 30 minutes for a table was the norm on 2 days. I had much fun watching the plaintive Mrs Two Eggs, as I christened her, for whom nothing was right. "I always have two soft boiled eggs, my husband always has one". You can guess, can't you? She got one egg. When two came, they were hard.She needed two more. Meanwhile, grumpy husband didn't get his toast. Nor milk for his tea. The next day I was inadvertaently shown to the table that they had briefly vacated to get their starters. "Oh, didn't you see my handbag?" Nope, not when it was hidden behind the curtain on the window ledge! Place settings had to be relaid after I'd moved. Then the eggs appear - but "We are still eating our fruit, you'll have to take them away." They went. For a very long time. "Now our toast is cold..."She and her husband would not be writing kindly to Trip Adviser! Great fun.

We never ate in the two restaurants, apart from breakfast. The plush one seemed to be very small: the other was bistro style and was used for breakfast as well.

I used the swimming pool: OK, but you can only swim in circles. Whilst there is a shower nearby,and towels, there are no changing facilities, so you have to wander the corridors in a bathrobe

We liked the place: it was fine for us, it was in an ideal spot, and we'd happily go there again. Might take spare light bulbs, though. I think that my captions match the photos: I had a struggle with these, so apologies if they get mixed up.