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General Hotel Discussion

GaryH said:
How was the rest of your experience though? Rest of the room, cleanliness, entertainment, food etc?
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The room was great. Didn't eat due to fireworks, we all know entertainment is non-existant unless you are a child. Thankfully the sausages on the breakfast are no longer vile.

We enjoyed our stay and had a great time in the Spa yesterday!

:)
 
Rob said:
The room was great. Didn't eat due to fireworks, we all know entertainment is non-existant unless you are a child. Thankfully the sausages on the breakfast are no longer vile.

We enjoyed our stay and had a great time in the Spa yesterday!

:)
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Let's be honest though, the somewhat self-generated entertainment was more than sufficient.... ;)
 
F&B across resort generally seems poor... Stayed for the first time since 2016 this weekend and wasn't overly impressed at all with breakfast - particularly the burnt undrinkable coffee from the machines. Or the takeout service in Ma's (which had a 30 minute wait and got the order wrong twice)

Equally there's too much about that is a reminder of poor planning or inability to offer a full service. There's the fact that Splash's rooms are getting very tired now for a start. There's also the abandoned coffee outlet outside and next to Flambo's. There's the fact that if you were to eat at Flambo's it's been diluted to essentially be Explorer's Pizza Pasta from the park. There's the High Ropes course sat there SBNO and excluded from all maps as if to pretend it was never there originally. There's the ill-thought out refurb to the back part of Ma's that was (for a short while) a pizza restaurant. Oh and the fact that not all of the hotels stay open all season, let alone all year.

However, I did have a good stay - it just pains me to see so much half-assed stuff about...
 
Scott said:
F&B across resort generally seems poor... Stayed for the first time since 2016 this weekend and wasn't overly impressed at all with breakfast - particularly the burnt undrinkable coffee from the machines. Or the takeout service in Ma's (which had a 30 minute wait and got the order wrong twice)

Equally there's too much about that is a reminder of poor planning or inability to offer a full service. There's the fact that Splash's rooms are getting very tired now for a start. There's also the abandoned coffee outlet outside and next to Flambo's. There's the fact that if you were to eat at Flambo's it's been diluted to essentially be Explorer's Pizza Pasta from the park. There's the High Ropes course sat there SBNO and excluded from all maps as if to pretend it was never there originally. There's the ill-thought out refurb to the back part of Ma's that was (for a short while) a pizza restaurant. Oh and the fact that not all of the hotels stay open all season, let alone all year.

However, I did have a good stay - it just pains me to see so much half-assed stuff about...
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This is why we really struggle to stay anymore. I just can’t bring myself to spend the money when you're constantly reminded of all the decreases in quality compared to previous years. And every time we do go, there seems to be yet another disappointment or drop in service or cut in amenity or drop in quality.

We used to spend at least 7 nights a season for several years in the hotels. We’ve now stayed for just one night in four years. Remember when the entertainment used to be truly suitable for the whole family, with good all round entertainers, when you got table service in the atrium, when you got a pot of freshly made coffee on the table at breakfast, when there were gifts in the room and waterpark tickets included?

When we visit now, we’re constantly reminded of all these things which made your stay special and are no longer there - it just grates on you. The hotels are a shadow of their former glory and are only made special at all by their original design features (at least those Merlin haven’t gotten rid of).

It’s a real shame because the hotels could be great again if they were run properly. We’d then think about returning.
 
It's often been said that the Alton Towers hotels are essentially themed Travelodges. The rooms are on par with Travelodges (some would say the Travelodges are cleaner) and the less said about the catering offering in recent years the better. I don't personally see things improving much - the Crooked Spoon is nothing to write home about & the Stargazing Pods are a joke... pay premium campsite prices for a tiny pod with a central toiler & shower block. Expect these to attract the "wrong clientele" and any nearby bushes get used as more local "facilities".

If you want to see what a theme park can do hotel-wise without a Disney corporate budget then visit Europa Park. You will be blown away by even their budget hotels. As for the 4* Superior hotels, e.g. Colosseo - wow. Must be getting on for 15 years old now and is still as good as when it first opened... Merlin, take note!
 
I stayed in the Woodland Lodges for the first time on Sunday with Balsdon and Wooly-D. Gotta say, I was really impressed. The room was great, and in the morning a whole platoon of ducks turned up outside our front door. Magical indeed.
 
Jess and I love the Enchanted village, so quiet and peaceful.

If it wasn't for the fact of having to spend 20 mins to set up and put away Jess' wheelchair each time, we would stay at a travel lodge on the late night events.

Staying on resort during the scarefest/fireworks is just a matter of convenience for us. It really saves us all the faffing of loading and unloading the car at both ends if we stayed off site. Which would mean an extra late night and an extra early morning during our stay. Plus the closest travel lodge is at least 30 mins drive away.
 
The breakfast in Splash is very poor.

The coffee from those machines is also dreadful. I'm surprised it's even possible to serve such poor coffee in this day and age.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
 
Rob said:
Thankfully the sausages on the breakfast are no longer vile
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The sausages were the only really good part of breakfast at ATH for me. Premier Inn serves a better breakfast.
The Nescafé syrup coffee needs to go. The pancakes were dry and there were only ice cream syrups (strawberry and chocolate) available for them.

Food in Rollercoaster Restaurant wasn’t as good as two years ago too. Ingredients were a lot cheaper but prices higher.
 
jon81uk said:
Food in Rollercoaster Restaurant wasn’t as good as two years ago too. Ingredients were a lot cheaper but prices higher.
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This. So much this.

Was thoroughly impressed with RCR on my last visit in 2016. This time the atmosphere and staff were both still great but the food was clearly of a much lower quality. The curry I had was tasty but (rice and naan especially) seemed more of the quality of a supermarket ready meal than proper restaurant food. With the premium you pay you expect better than Spoons quality.

AstroDan said:
The breakfast in Splash is very poor.

The coffee from those machines is also dreadful. I'm surprised it's even possible to serve such poor coffee in this day and age.
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Seconded.

Distinct lack of pastries etc too. Whether that’s because it was end of season or because it’s the new standard of breakfast it’s poor.
 
jon81uk said:
The sausages were the only really good part of breakfast at ATH for me. Premier Inn serves a better breakfast.
The Nescafé syrup coffee needs to go. The pancakes were dry and there were only ice cream syrups (strawberry and chocolate) available for them.

Food in Rollercoaster Restaurant wasn’t as good as two years ago too. Ingredients were a lot cheaper but prices higher.
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Yeah both Premier and Travelodge's breakfasts are the dogs balls.
 
Scott said:
Seconded.

Distinct lack of pastries etc too. Whether that’s because it was end of season or because it’s the new standard of breakfast it’s poor.
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I've not stayed in Splash recently but I believe they now serve a limited 'economy' breakfast and only ATH and EV serve the full breakfast buffet. Rather poor.

:)
 
Rob said:
I've not stayed in Splash recently but I believe they now serve a limited 'economy' breakfast and only ATH and EV serve the full breakfast buffet. Rather poor.

:)
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Yes Splash breakfast as been a ‘five item hot breaksast’ plus toast, fruit and drinks all season.
 
Very poor. Yes Splash is the cheaper hotel but its still deserving of the same breakfast that they serve in ATH. Gives off a bad impression to guests.
 
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