Macdonald Bath Spa Hotel - Bath, United Kingdom     

Had problems from the word go! First of all the Reception Staff couldnt speak good english and kept telling us that we had not paid for our room and even called me after clearing the situation whilst i was having dinner. I then recieved a further 3 calls one of which was when i returned home telling me that i hadnt paid when i paid when i booked the Hotel back in May. Then we where invoiced for things that we didnt even have. Are breakfast came out incorrect, the toast come out cold the first time and burnt the next and our drinks didnt come at all. For a 5 star hotel the service was really bad. The Hotel was beautiful but i dont think the stay was worth what we paid for it. The Spa was exellent and the staff there were brilliant shame about the staff ever where else!

We have recently returned from a two night stay at the MacDonald Spa Hotel, where we chose to spend our 12th wedding anniversary. The hotel and its grounds were very pleasant and met our expectations from visitor reviews and photos. The service was warm and friendly and the executive double room that overlooked the front of the hotel was clean and met our requirements but was more what you might have expected for a standard double. Although at the time of booking we thought the hotel was overly expensive (?309 for a Saturday stay and ?259 for a Sunday stay – including continental breakfast), we nevertheless decided to treat ourselves as our wedding anniversary is a special occasion. One of the key attractions in choosing this hotel was its spa which had recently been refurbished. On arrival we were unable to book any spa treatments as we were led to believe the spa was fully booked on both Saturday and Sunday, so we suggested that our names were put on a list for any cancellations. On the evening of our first stay we visited the spa for a swim, Jacuzzi and to sample the various spa steam and sauna rooms. Unfortunately the swimming pool was very busy with young, mostly unsupervised children, who along with their parents ignored all the signs that indicated that jumping and diving were not allowed and that children under 14 were not to use the Jacuzzi. Equally, parents ignored the ‘No Outdoor Shoes’ sign. The area was littered with used towels and generally unappealing – consequently we made a hasty retreat to the steam rooms. The rooms appeared fairly new and therefore clean and very pleasant, although again the area around the rooms were littered with towels and slippers – there was no attendant, that we could see, on duty throughout our visit to the spa – so a very disappointing experience. We found the walk into Bath a little too far for us to undertake, so we used the local taxi service. This was very good, friendly and cost ?4.50 per trip. We may have made the walk down the hill but walking back uphill could have been a struggle. Breakfast was available until 10:30 in the main restaurant, and when we arrived at 10:00 the restaurant was very busy with families and large groups, nevertheless we were seated and attended to promptly and courteously. Unfortunately the buffet breakfast was not as inviting, as cereals littered the table and there were only remnants of fresh cheese and salami left, although their was a fair selection of pastries and yoghurts. We therefore decided to opt for a cooked breakfast (at ?6/head extra) – this was very good. As the restaurant was busy, especially with children, it was a little noisy and very messy – disappointing. We assumed the Sunday breakfast experience was due to a busy week-end. The hotel seems to cater for weddings , family celebrations and girly- group bookings – something not made overly clear in the hotel info - so we assumed our experience on Monday might be to a higher standard. Unfortunately, the breakfast table was not, although the restaurant was much quieter. As continental breakfast was ?15 per head we felt the experience should have been significantly better. The hotel bar was located inside the hotel and therefore dark having no windows and access was through a second, more casual restaurant. Two whiskies with ginger cost ?17 – which was too expensive in our opinion. We did not use the bar again. We decided to have our anniversary dinner in the hotel, as the main restaurant, although quite old fashioned, had an ambience on Saturday night that was quite appealing. Unfortunately, the hotel decided that the restaurant would be closed on Sunday, even thought it is advertised as being open. We were assured that the second restaurant (which was more of a corridor with small tables set either side of the aisle) could fulfil our requirements and the restaurant manager would arrange a special table (with tablecloth!) to meet our needs. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the restaurant, the staff seemed unaware of these arrangements, and it looked like another couple had already been seated at our table. So we spent our 12th anniversary dinner in a very average setting and disappointed at the obvious lack of communication. The staff were eventually apologetic and offered us a free glass of champagne(!!!). Equally disappointing was the emphasis the reservation staff had made on ‘dressing for dinner’ – it appeared we were the only ones who had heard that message! On Monday morning we were due to depart for home (11:00 am check out – rather early we thought), and were woken at 8:15am by the Spa Manager who asked us if we were still interested in a spa treatment! Needless to say, we were ready to leave at 11:00 through frustration. Overall, great place, good service, too expensive and probably geared more towards families, large celebrations and groups than to a quiet discerning couple, who like a bit of style!.