Southernhay House Hotel

Stayed for one night to attend an event in the city. Our room was compact but thoughtfully designed incorporating an ensuite that was light and airy with clever use of a stud wall, glass tops and doors. As with any period property you'd hope for period features like the shuttered signle glazed sash windows, but small downside was some occasional late night revellers on their way home interrupting sleep (not the hotels issue).

Other than that, we couldn't fault the service of the hotel, friendliness of the staff on reception, the bar and for breakfast. The breakfast was nice too, with many adaptations available and naturally gluten free options for my coeliac wife.

All in all, a lovely stay. If you are a lighter sleeper maybe request a room at the back of the property. But all in all, a lovely hotel in a lovely location.

Southernhay House Hotel is a beautiful hotel. Very attentive and professional staff. The Ivory Room is beautiful and feels more like a bedroom than a hotel room. The hotel is nice and quiet at night. The only noise was from crows squawking at dawn.
The hotel is perfectly placed to enjoy Exeter City Centre, although is not cheap. We stayed for two nights.
One night we dined in the hotel restaurant and had steak which was perfectly cooked.
The evening before we had (many) cocktails which were delicious.
I only have two complaints 1) although there was tea/coffee making facilities in the room they didn't supply milk; and 2) although there are large mirrors in the room and bathroom there are large units in front of them so it is impossible to use them to do make up when you are short sighted like me.
A nice stay for a treat.

Where do I begin ?
Some friends of mine visited the place a while ago with a view to hiring out a number of room (min 6) for a function . They met on site to discuss options and speak to management ! They ordered coffee and drinks and before they even had a chance to put forward a proposal were asked to leave if they were only having drinks ?! They were so dumbstruck they left .
I popped in today for a coffee as I could not believe what I was told .
I ordered a coffee ( the place was empty with the exception of 5 others ) . Before my coffee arrived I was told that unless I was eating I’d have to leave ?!
Deborah ( owner ) was present and I asked why I could not have a coffee ?!
Deborah ( a self confessed know it all ) did not furnish me with any reasonable explanation or at least one that made any business sense ?!
As one former lawyer to another she must understand that it is BAD practise to encourage her staff to behave that way ( ask people to leave ) but more importantly you can lose thousands in potential contracts / business as a result .
Running a business with such arrogance will end in failure .
I have stayed there on numerous occasions but will not be staying again nor will I advise anyone to stay or do any business with an establishment that has such a poor business acumen .
Whilst a certain arrogance and aloofness might work in law it is a certain failure in business .
There are much more welcoming venues and hotels that one should focus on in the future .

The location could not have been better - a 10 minute walk to the cathedral, and an easy walk through the heart of town. It is a lovely building and our room (Spice) was large and the bed comfortable. All, and I mean all, of the staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming. To top it off, the food was outstanding! We had dinner there every night of our stay - we thought why do we have to go somewhere else when this is so good! I highly recommend it!

Visited for a business event. Staff extremely welcoming and drinks interesting! Gluten free canapé availability was also very welcome. Thanks, Team 👍

We had dinner here for my wife's birthday but didn't stay in the hotel.

There is a really nice cocktail bar for pre dinner drinks and the food was excellent. The wine list is varied and reasonably priced.

Really helpful and friendly staff.

A beautiful building and interesting furniture and pictures up in the main bar which was a good conversation piece. The bar staff were friendly and the service excellent. We didn't eat but enjoyed a couple of cocktails in the well kept garden after a day spent at the quay . So pleased that you don't have to be a resident to enjoy this experience. Will definitely be returning.

This hotel is very comfortable, with excellent breakfasts, and welcoming and accommodating staff. This was especially evident on our last day when Jack and another member of staff went above and beyond to find us a taxi when we were in danger of missing our train. We would certainly stay here again if we came back to Exeter.