Cbh Donnington Manor Hotel

Friendly staff, very clean room with everything needed. Restaurant staff helpful and good quality breakfast.

My partner and I have just returned from a 3 night stay at Donnington Manor Hotel. It's location was absolutely perfect for us as we had planned to visit a number of National Trust Locations while we were in the area, none of which were any more than a 30 minute drive (most a lot less). The Hotel itself was a real eye opener for it's interior decor, perfectly cut grass lawn and the Statues of Indian Elephants welcoming us at the gates and a statue of the Buddha at the entrance to the car park which has a 7kwh Podpoint EV Charging Post and a Tesla Supercharger at the back of the car park. The Hotel was absolutely immaculate inside and from first impressions we could tell they have an extremely high standard of cleanliness which did put our minds at rest immediately. However we both felt the Check In Desk/Reception was not very welcoming with Perspex Panelling - I appreciate this served a purpose and was a necessity in lockdown but I've not seen this used in any other Hotel we've visited in more recent times. It looked cluttered with a Buddha Statue in a big glass box between the Computer Display Screens which meant we could barely see the lady on reception much less interact face to face. I did opt to check in On Line a couple of days prior to our stay but it appears this was a waste of time as I had to provide details again and card details to authorise payments from the Bar etc to our room. On this basis I opted not to use the Online Check Out Service. We were assigned a Room on the 1st floor but we had to ask to be moved almost Immediately due to a glass bathroom door dead opposite the bed which although slightly obscured was still completely see through when you put the light on and offered no privacy as it meant the person on the left hand side of the bed could see straight through the bathroom door at the person sat on the loo! The original room also had an unpleasant and lingering bio type smell. The change of room was effortless and we were really happy with the helpful and understanding manner in which the change was made. The alternative room was fantastically comfortable and we slept really well in a big comfy bed. The Restaurant however we found to be very inconsistent - we could smell Curry the first night and thought we were in for a treat by ordering from the Curry Menu. However despite ordering something basic - Chicken Korma with Pilau Rice and Garlic Naan Breads and obligatory Poppadoms to start with - we were both very disappointed with what was served. The Poppadoms although tasty were the greasyest we'd ever seen, the Chicken Korma Sauce was completely enemic although the Chicken was wonderfully tender and succulent; the Pilau Rice had a very green look to it like it had been cooked with Greens or Mint and The Garlic Naan was only like warm and soggy and we couldn't taste much garlic. If we didn't know any better we'd question the quality of the ingredients used or whether it was shop bought instead of home cook

Our stay was mostly comfortable in this good otel well situated with good parking. Herating the room took some while and had to be set at 30 degrees on advice when booking in. Our excutive room only had one armchair for 2 people but there was a hard sofa placed directly under a television which was unsuitable for viewing. The only way to get aproper view was being in bed. However we did not go there to watch television and had a great time at the Stag theatre. We slept well in a comfy king bed. Breakfast was a shambles we checked in and were told to select a table of our choice. Alas every table was taken and clearly it was tightly packed and accessing the buffet meant passing tables with hardly any room. The rush may have been influenced by the previous night dinner dance but even so the breakfast room is not big enough to cater for a full house. Fortunately we won first prize by being seated in the bar which was quiet and not crowded so we enjoyed our breakfast which was a vastly improved affair than being in the breakfast room. On leaving we found that reception was unmanned which was at a time that guests often check out. We had already paid so we just left our key and left. Do not get the wrong impression as we did enjoy our stay but it could have been better. We would stay again.