Stunning

We had a fabulous 2 night stay in the wonderful Swinton Park. There are no superlatives that do this place justice. Just go. Special thanks to the Terrace Restaurant staff and manager Nicolai for making our evening meals such a special experience.

Troubles in paradise

The 20,000-plus acre Swinton Estate in North Yorkshire undoubtedly lives up to its claim to provide an incredible feeling of space and tranquility in a truly natural environment. Our visit was an anniversary treat, and we were delighted to find the setting as stunning as the publicity promised. Our room was the essence of comfort, with uninterrupted views of the rolling countryside, probably the most comfortable bed we ve ever slept in, a stunning bathroom (more of which later), wardrobes with internal lights, a Nespresso machine and cosy sitting area.

Unfortunately, however, the fantasy started to unravel almost immediately. The bottle of champagne which was supposed to be in our room to greet us was missing. The bathwater was at best lukewarm, we couldn t get a picture on the TV (though as technophobes we accept that was probably our fault but an instruction manual could have solved the problem) and to crown it all we couldn t ring down to reception to complain because the phone in the room was dead.

We called at reception on our way to dinner to explain the problems and a very helpful member of staff said he would go and fix them immediately. The champagne, though, would not be delivered until the next morning.

Our table in The Terrace restaurant was booked for 7.30pm, and we ordered almost immediately. An hour later, however, we were still waiting for our food. One member of staff claimed it was probably because my husband had ordered his steak medium to well-done, and as it was a huge piece of meat, it took a long time to cook! I don t know whether he was joking, but when the rib-eye arrived it was no more than half an inch thick and so small that the stack of onion rings on top almost covered it. My husband said it lacked flavour, and at a menu price of 58, we felt the joke was on us! The two small plates I d ordered came five minutes after the steaks. My barbecued cauliflower was virtually raw and tough to eat, while the lamb rump was nothing more than OK.

When the supervisor asked how our meals were, we explained and she offered us a free drink each a coffee for me and half a lager for my other half. When we paid the bill, the manager again asked about our experience and seemed surprised when we said it had fallen far short of expectations. In the end, he said he would look into refunding the cost of the steak, and we would have to check with reception in the morning.

Come the morning, we had more reasons to check in with reception the newspaper we had ordered had not materialised, and when we eventually found how to get hot water in the shower it kept reverting to cold like with the bath, we were told it was a boiler problem due to heavy demand at certain times!

We had a lovely breakfast in Samuel s restaurant, but by the time we were ready to leave our room at 11am, the champagne had still not materialised. It was there when we returned at 2.30pm, but the room had not been made up, and we were told the cleaners would not be round until after check-in started at 3pm. That meant our plans for a long and lazy bath followed by a celebratory glass of fizz had to be shelved. We ended up bringing the champagne home.

That evening we dined in Sir Samuel s and had a wonderful meal. Our delightful waitress said that in view of the problems we d had there was a complimentary glass of champagne to start with, which set the stage for a meal that was memorable for all the right reasons.

Despite everything, we enjoyed our stay at Swinton, but it could have been so much better. I sincerely hope the problems we experienced were the exception rather than the norm.

A Great Stay

We were expecting a very nice hotel and what we found exceeded our expectations. The hotel is set in a deer park alongside beautiful gardens filled with flowers and birdsong, These lead up to the rolling countryside beyond meaning walkers don't need to drive anywhere. The Spa was a great place to unwind after a days walking whilst the 2 restaurants were excellent. .

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Everything about our stay was very special. The hotel manages to be grand but homely. The Spa is wonderful and restaurants very good. The grounds are lovely. And we appreciated the taster sessions put on each day for free! Great cocktail making tutorial!! Excellent value for money through Off Peak Luxury! We ll be back

A wonderful place to stay

Staff are amazing, rooms elegant and the spa wonderful. We ate in Samuel's as The Terrace isn't to my taste, food and service were superb. Cant wait to return

Fabulous Hotel and Estate

One of our favourite UK hotels
The estate is amazing- fabulous walks and many activities
Two restaurants- Samuel s is Top Class
Excellent rooms all finesse to a high standard
Coats and boots supplied
No extra cost to use the fantastic spa
Highly recommended

Not as good as thought

Whilst pleasant enough reception were a bit casual. Perhaps someone in late 80s expects too much?! It was not reinforced to us that one Restuarant would be closed leaving quite a walk to the remaining one. Terrace far superior to Samuel s.
Would have preferred less esoteric menus. Chefs idea of a beef bourgeon not mine and I ve cooked a few. Super place for the younger end and active. Just in this case not for us. I m a blue badge holder the car park was a long way away for me.
The Devonshire chain will do for me now. Will not be returning to Swinton Park even if it provided me with a superb room

Posh but dull

Bedroom and restaurant too dark.
No reading lights in bedroom and small TV, so although large room, didn t feel like staying in it for long. Couldn t see to read. No main light or bright lamp.
Restaurant old and grand - could be romantic to justify the cost. But very limited menu and no tasters from the chef or even bread. Didn t feel like an occasion. Dark as in dingy. No candles, just low wattage lamp on table. Couldn t even read the menu. Staff said they were hired in from elsewhere and very busy. Little to nil atmosphere. Couples looking at phones. Disappointing experience for the price.