The Raven Hotel - Hook, United Kingdom 

I stayed in the Raven for one night, at a cost of ?85.00 bed and breakfast. I have to say I was quite disappointed, the room was dingy with several plaster repair marks on the wall and the bathroom had a grubby feel about it. In balance the bed and linen were clean. From a sleep point, the room was very noisy, I could hear the neighbouring guest clearly snoring through the night and there were several instances of water pipes not just coming on, but sounding like they were gushing. The building was also close to the railway line and there was the noise of commerce going about its business in the morning. Breakfast was in the main restaurant and was ample and service was good. However in summary I would expect more for my money and wouldn't recommend it again. Should have consulted trip advisor first!

On being booked into this hotel by my employer, I read the Trip Advisor reports and was somewhat concerned as to what I might be letting myself into - I’m pleased to report it wasn’t that bad! The Raven is located in the centre of Hook about 2 minutes walk from the railway station. I was dismayed to find the large hotel car park was ‘pay and display’, but this is deter rail travellers from using it and guests are issued with a complimentary free parking voucher from Reception. I was allocated a pleasant and comfortable double room in the newer part of hotel with all the usual extras such as TV, Internet access and tea making facilities. The presence of an electric radiator indicated that the central heating was not working, but in fact the weather was mild enough not to need it. The en-suite bathroom was ok, but some tiling around the bath was in need of repair (see photo) and, most annoyingly of all, was the fact that the shower ran hot and cold every time I used it (something which could easily have been cured by fitment of a thermostatic valve). One serious negative point was the fact that the storeroom outside my bedroom door marked as a fire door had no lock. The hotel has an a-la-carte restaurant and pizza bar – food was generally good, although the quality of breakfasts was variable. I stayed for 6 nights including a Friday and Saturday. During the week the hotel is reasonably quite, but on weekend evenings the bar is extremely busy with very loud live music – recommend you request room in newer part of hotel to avoid this, it will also get you the best rooms and those in the older original part are much smaller and not so well appointed. Previous correspondents will be pleased to note that the hotel is being redecorated. Staff were generally friendly and competent. Room rates are expensive during the week (the Hook area is expensive for accommodation due to its location close to M3 and local Business Parks), but prices drop to virtually half price at weekends. I probably would not bring my wife and family to this hotel, but it was fine for a mid-week business visit.