Mercure Warwickshire Walton Hall Hotel & Spa 4 stars

• Wonderful spa afternoon and very attentive, kind and thoughtful masseuse • Very nice staff in spa (let me borrow £1 for a locker) • Room very comfortable • Waitress in restaurant was very kind and once again very attentive to our dietary needs. Really fabulous attitude, even the next morning dealing with what sounded to be a difficult customer

We arrived and had to move rooms as the room we had been given was tatty and things were old and broken. The new room was better thankfully and the receptionist was helpful. The food at dinner on the Thursday night was awful. I am pretty sure things had been reheated and that the 'pie' was a pukka pie and not homemade as it stated. We had a spa day the next day and the 'spa' is the shoddiest I have ever been too. I think that the building was originally a sports hall or something similar and then made to be a 'spa' which does not work. The lockers did not work and the changing room smelt of urine. The steam room smelt of damp and was not pleasant. My hot stone 'massage' was the worst I have ever had. My therapist thought it was appropriate to talk to me throughout the whole treatment telling me about her life (even though I made it clear I did not want to chat). Honestly, I could tell you her whole life story. She then proceeded to lean across me to access the oil instead of walking round the bed like good therapists do. She also pointed out my birthmark on my back, PICKED at it and then asked me what it was and said it 'didn't look good'. I mean, how unprofessional and personal. The refreshment facilities at the spa were a joke. There were never any cups and glasses when you needed them and there was a disgusting bowl of old dried coffee (with coffee that was stuck to the sides) with a spoon in it for you to make coffee with. Nothing about the 'spa' was relaxing at all. We went for lunch to the restaurant and my boyfriend had to send his sandwich back. Half of the contents that were stated on the menu were not in the sandwich and the bread was stale. I mean, how hard is it to get a sandwich correct?! This was rectified quickly by the helpful waitress but if I was a chef sending continuously bad food out, I clearly wouldn't care about my job or the reputation of the hotel and its food. The food and service at dinner got better on the Friday evening so I am assuming the weekend staff and weekend chef then came in. Also, there was Christmas music playing everywhere. It was 2nd and 3rd January so just depressing to have that playing still in the New Year. Staying at this hotel was the worst £360 I have ever spent and I will never stay at a Mercure hotel again.

Despite the heating not working properly and the toilet leaking, we had a lovely break. Staff were friendly and food was good, Would have been a 10 but for the problems in our room.

Spa, food, disco and bed and breakfast were, as always, superb. The staff are so attentive. Already booked for Christmas 2020

Staff were helpful and polite, the only thing noted was there was only one lounger chair in the room.

Danielle was very helpful throughout the booking process. Food was lovely as were our rooms. Our serving staff were very friendly. Biggest issue was feeling forgotten about as we had a private dining room. I had to go and find a member of staff to ask for the mints, teas and coffees we had paid for as part of our meal because by 11pm we hadn’t been served them, and he was rather abrupt and rude. He grudgingly came for our order but we never received the mints we had paid for. A minor detail I know but when you invest a lot of time, energy and indeed money into an evening it’s the little details that really matter. Another minor issue was the man who checked us in circled the wrong room on the map so we walked around for 20 minutes with bags and two young children in the dark and drizzle to find it. Only one member of staff wished us happy new year and that was at breakfast the next morning. Overall my party paid over £1100 between us for the experience and I can’t really decide yet whether it was indeed value for money.

Generally a good stay. Staff friendly and welcoming and service good. However we booked early check in for 10am and the room was not ready when we arrived at midday. In addition, staff gave incorrect directions to room. Had to go back to reception to clarify and staff member who then accompanied us didn’t know where room was either which left us wandering about the hotel hunting for room with our cases. Generally a lovely stay but a little attention to detail would improve.

Checked in online but this wasn’t noted upon arrival and had to go through the process again. Paid £800.00 when checking in online but then had to pay another £210.00 upon arrival even though the agreed rate was £647.00? The apartment is in desperate need of renovation. Water started leaking through the bathroom roof on the day we arrived 02.01. Maintenance came AM 03.01, water leaked again that evening. Reported again. Manager came out to inspect 04.01 as water was still leaking. No alternative apartments were available. The apartment had two bathrooms so my son and I used the shower in the leisure club, which was far from ideal. We departed Sunday 05.01 and the water continued to leak taking pieces of plaster off the ceiling. We stayed dinner, B&B food very good but evening menu very limited and didn’t change at all of the course of our stay. Restaurant staff were all fantastic. Lovely lady from Lemington Spa was great, she served us dinner on the Friday and breakfast on Saturday and Sunday. Sorry I did get her name but she’s a credit to the hotel. Leisure club staff all very friendly and helpful. Leisure club itself getting very tired and dated. The grounds were absolutely stunning. Spoke to Jonnie the manager who knocked 25% percent off the accommodation bill, which I thought was still very poor when you bear in mind the issues with the accommodation were never resolved over the entire course of our stay. Photos and videos available if required

I was really disappointed with the stay, after reading the awful reviews published before we stayed I did get in contact directly with the hotel who reassured me that it was a one off occasion for the bad reviews. I can tell you that this isnt the case. First impressions were great but.. The spa is abosolutely filthy, the carpet in the dry room is covered in stains, the floor throughout the pool was dirty, the shower didnt work properly, empty plastic cups everywhere and the pool was very cloudy. The only thing we used was the sauna, and we had to ask for slippers to walk around it was that bad! The changing rooms were also vile, blue bleach around the base of the toilet and splashed on the floor. The lockers look like they havent been wiped out for months. Just a dirty place which I wouldn't have expected from such a large hotel group. This was the first experience of the hotel so as you can imagine we didnt actually go back to the spa which was upsetting as I travelled just over 2 hours for my partners birthday as a special treat. The room was lovely, but I did pay extra for a superior room. The food on the evening, was very very basic. To the point where my partner has suggested it was like weatherspoons food. Nothing special about it at all. I had noticed a number of guests commenting the same as us. I wouldn't be coming back to stay at this hotel, and I would question staying at another Mercure because of this. I regularly travel for business and this is probably one of the worst hotels I have stayed at for a number of years. Real shame.

Very relaxing and comfortable

Overall it was a positive experience with evidence that all staff were trying hard to be positive in the face of some difficulties with the upkeep of the hotel and it’s provisions.

The staff throughout the hotel were lovely and we enjoyed a visit to the spa. I can’t comment on treatments as it was New Year’s Day and so there wasn’t the option. The rooms and restaurant facilities however leave a lot to be desired, damaged and stained furniture isn’t what I’d expect from a Mercury hotel.

The accommodation was outstanding although one of our heaters was broken. The pool and spa were fantastic. The only down side was the evening meal. This was very poor. The portion sizes were extremely small and had no vegetables. Other than that we had a fab time.

Our room had no heating; breakfast in bed was cold when finally arrived; having to go back into the main house for meals and swimming was a bit of a pain, but the room was very quiet and peaceful

Great venue for a gathering really relaxed and comfortable. Bar prices a little scary. Food was lovely especially at breakfast.