Aside from Steve at the front desk, who was very welcoming, the bed - which was comfortable - and the shower, which was fine, everything else was so bad I can't believe this location remains in business. Menu choice so poor we decided not to bother spending the £50 voucher we had. Restaurant staff seated us late to a table that still had the cleaning fluid drying on it, no starter cutlery, and no candle - while there were empty, fully set up and clean tables all around. The actual bottle of cleaning fluid and cloth were on a ledge next to the table. Then we were left with menus and had to wait a further 10 minutes while no one bothered to come and tell us what on the menu was gluten free. Having decided not to order, Steve made sure we each got a free drink. Unfortunately, the beer I was served and took back to our room was undrinkable. My partner booked this for me as a birthday treat, and was so upset at how disappointing it was, she cried. As I say, Steve at the front desk was friendly, helpful, accommodating (he would get 9 stars). But there's only so much you can do with a menu so boring and uninspired that it makes fast food menus look good, with untrained and unmotivated restaurant staff, and a location as bland and uninspired as it is possible to be. Terrible location, terrible menu, disinterested and unprofessional staff. I simply cannot believe establishments like this manage to stay in business.

Firstly, the staff at reception is incredibly nice. But the key cards are extremely sensitive and stop working if you get it close to pretty much anything it seems. I’ve never had one so bad and I travel a lot. You should get a protective sleeve to put it into or suggest that guests stop at reception at the end of each day to reactivate them instead of walking down to your room and back to reception every evening. The room was also not well cleaned. The bathtub has stains all over and some bits came off when I tried to clean them. There were also hairs from more than one person in it.

I checked in on-line for a faster check in. This did not happen, had to wait 10 minutes before we were noticed. Was unaware you had to pay £10 a night for car parking, thought this would of been free!? Room overall was nice, 2 single beds, nice outlook, clean, fresh bed linen & comfortable. Tea/coffee/biscuits & water available. My friend & myself went for a Medium night so was busy & only one gentleman on the bar all night, spent 15 minutes waiting to be served. Surely if you've got an event going on you'd have more bar staff!? Overal satisfied, would stay again, just need a bit of improvement on above comments

Good service, pleasant meal, attentive staff, but oh the decor! Shabby rooms and very limited food unless you want a fried meal. Not a true 4 star hotel by any means.

Overnight stay. Clean and comfortable room. We had dinner in the restaurant that night. Food was good, but we thought it was a limited menu. More a small pub menu.

Clean, of course but The Whole place looked tired. My bathroom had rust streaks, the chairs in the bedroom were decrepit and felt greasy. Breakfast was ok, although fruit was not fresh and members of my party had to request croissants and bacon when they ran out…three croissants at a time…. However, the catch all menu was very poor, the same wherever you ate and clearly a standardised menu. Nothing individual and my Sunday ham and Emmental sandwich was a disgrace, at £14. So unimpressed were we that all fourteen of us went to the local pub the following night which was so much better.

Met by lovely Steve, who is always so helpful and obliging. Unfortunately, the next morning when I checked out, there was a lady on reception. When I told her about the uncomfortable beds, her attitude was very dismissive. She said that no one had complained before. She said it like I must have been making it up. I don't expect this response when I report issues. I have stayed at the Mercure on 2 other occasions and the beds have been comfy. Why was this receptionist so dismissive? Although I always look forward and enjoy my stays at Mercure, I have to remark that the cleaning could be improved. I frequently see Dusty skirting boards and cobwebs. I appreciate that parking costs are not set by the hotel, but £10 per night is disgusting. I had to pay for 2 days parking and I was only parked for 1 night. However, on a more positive note, I do love coming to stay at the hotel. It's in a lovely rural location and had a warm vibe about the place. It's quiet too.

We have stayed here many times when visiting family because of its location

The property rooms are dated, I booked one of the superior rooms and ended up having broken items such the hand rail in the bathroom, I also cleaned marks off the bathroom that were easily wipeable. It is dated and renovations are needed. The original front service lady I spoke to was actually quite rude, first thing she said was not hello but ‘you can’t check in till 3’ I said I was aware of this but their website said I could drop luggage and utilise the bar area, she reluctantly took my bag and didn’t even tell me where the bar was, there was also no one available to serve drinks until a guest went in search. That evening I got back late to the hotel, around 12.45 and there were a group of guests in the closed bar area, they were also vaping. The website and app subjected 24hr room service of things such as sandwiches. However this was not working after midnight. I was also not advised of what time check out was. The other two front of house staff I dealt with a gentleman and a women with short hair were amazing and a real credit.

​I am rating this stay 4 out of 10. While the frontline reception staff were polite and welcoming, and the bed itself was comfortable enough to get some rest, almost every other aspect of the stay felt heavily overpriced and poorly managed. The overall experience left me feeling as though I had paid £200 for a stay comparable to a standard budget hotel, compounded by the fact that management failed to reply to my direct email regarding the room standard before sending this automated feedback request. ​Below are the primary reasons for this score: ​1. Misleading Marketing and the "Privilege" Upgrade Disappointment ​I paid an additional supplement specifically to upgrade to a "Privilege" room, relying on the marketing images presented on your website. What I received bore virtually no resemblance to the polished, stylish accommodation advertised online. ​The room was completely ordinary, visibly tired, and lacked any premium feel. It had the standard footprint, dated furnishings, and none of the distinguishing qualities one expects when paying extra for an elevated tier. Paying a premium for a room that looks and feels like a standard room in need of a refresh is unacceptable. ​2. Complete Lack of Customer Service Follow-Up ​Following my checkout, I took the time to contact the hotel directly by email to raise my concerns regarding the discrepancy between what was advertised and what was delivered, requesting a refund for the upgrade portion of the fee. ​I received no response whatsoever. Receiving an automated prompt to provide feedback after management completely ignored a legitimate, direct customer complaint demonstrates poor aftercare and a disregard for guest satisfaction. ​3. Subpar Bar Atmosphere ​The bar setup is poorly conceived. It is situated right in the foyer area, which creates an uninviting and awkward environment. Having an evening drink felt like sitting in a glorified thoroughfare or corridor, with guests constantly walking back and forth past the seating. It lacks any warmth, privacy, or atmosphere expected of a hotel in this price bracket. ​4. Poor Dining Provisions for Plant-Based Diets ​When reviewing the restaurant menu, I was disappointed to find virtually no dedicated vegan options. The menu relies almost entirely on meat, fish, or dairy-heavy vegetarian dishes. ​In modern hospitality, relying on generic vegetarian labels that require guests to interrogate staff or ask for ingredients to be stripped out of existing dishes is well behind the times. A four-star branded hotel should offer properly considered, clearly labelled plant-based main courses. ​5. Additional Parking Fees ​Charging guests separately for car parking on top of an already steep room rate of roughly £200 feels like an unnecessary extra charge that negatively impacts any sense of a premium experience. In an out-of-town location where driving is practically a necessity, parking should either be factored into the room cost or offered complmentarily to paying residents. ​Conclusion ​The stay fell well short of expectations across value, ambience, dining, and basic customer service follow-through. I would still like management to acknowledge my original email and issue a refund for the upgrade supplement that failed to deliver on its promise.

Welcoming staff. Lovely room and excellent breakfast.

The hotel is stuck in time but staff service made up for it

Stayed here due to an early morning hospital procedure, which I was needed to be around the hospital all day, the reception team who checked us in were so helpful and friendly in helping us with keeping our car parked at the hotel whilst I walked to hospital for first part of the procedure then allowing us back into the hotel after to chill out and giving us so much information on what we could do in the area whilst we waited for the second part of the procedure.

It was a pleasant experience Food was amazing Again staff was so kind and helpful

The staff were lovely, especially Steve who helped us catch a cricket that had decided to share our room! Hotel is well located, clean, and comfortable.

Steve at reception on arrival was great, and the restaurant team of Tim and Ernest made our stay super special. The food was amazing.

From the warm welcome from Steven at the front desk to the incredibly attentive restaurant staff, we felt genuinely well looked after from the moment we arrived. Everyone was friendly, professional, and made us feel very welcome, which really added to the overall experience. Sadly, the food was a little disappointing. The starter was unexpectedly spicy, despite this not being clearly advertised, and I found it almost inedible. Unfortunately, this rather spoiled my appetite and, as a result, took away from my enjoyment of the main course. Overall, though, it was a very pleasant experience, with the wonderful service and welcoming atmosphere being definite highlights. A little more clarity around the menu and spice levels would have made an otherwise lovely visit even better

Clean, comfortable and above all quiet.

We received an extremely warm and friendly greeting on arrival from Steve on reception. He provided advice throughout our stay. Members of the house keeping staff were friendly and kept us supplied with all we needed. Breakfast staff also very friendly with a good variation of food and keeping everything well topped up even with a coach party also present. The staff are definitely a huge asset. We travelled to various parts of Kent during our stay with the hotel being well located for ease of access to the road network. The accommodation was clean but a little tired.