Lovely old building with plenty of character, the staff are really lovely and welcoming. The rooms and building is old so there is a few oddities such as tiny steps and low ceilings but that's part of the quirkiness and nostalgia of the place. Reasonably priced rooms and a lovely bar/restaurant. Definitely worth a stay. En suite rooms and you can come and go as you please at any time of the evening.
Cheryl Gordon256 days ago
I’ve rated 5 stars because for a 2 star hotel it deserves it. OK, there was a little damp/mould patch on the bathroom ceiling but it’s an old building and that’s basically the only negative I have as far as cleanliness is concerned. Our room was very clean. The building is old and has narrow, steep, crooked stairs and low beams but this all gives it character and charm. Quite creaky floorboards in our room that made us want to tiptoe in case we were heard downstairs and our window didn’t close properly. I raised the window issue with a member of staff and he came to look at it straight away, explained that something had fallen out and lost when the window had been opened, unable to be resolved during our stay, apologised profusely, however there was a glazed inner sliding window so didn’t really matter too much, that kept out noise, cold and bugs. That said, we were at the front of the hotel and I was expecting noise from the road and from customers as there were tables right under our window outside and it was a warm night, but it was so quiet….even the trains were not that bad.
My daughter and I stayed for a night while visiting the Harry Potter studio tour and the Kings Lodge is in the perfect location for it. They’ve also dotted around some HP bits here and there to add some fun to the theme.
Sufficient tea/coffee etc supplied in room. Huge dressing table (felt like some lighting was needed over here though as in an alcove so quite dark) and full length mirror. Lots of storage space (no wardrobe but hanging space and hangers). No headboards, my daughter’s bed had a slight beam on the wall behind her’s, nothing too drastic, and mine was bare brick wall so to sit up I had to prop up one of my pillows for comfort, but the beds themselves were so comfortable, had a really good sleep. Shower good pressure and good size bathroom, cold sink tap a little dodgy (moved around). WIFI signal good (need to ask staff for the details though as not provided in room).
We didn’t have our evening meal in the hotel as we ate at the Warner Bros studios due to our tour being late in the day, but we had a bit of food envy as the food smelled and looked delicious as it was coming out for other customers when we walked in. However we did have breakfast, which was lovely. My daughter didn’t want what was on the menu and just wanted individual items and this was no problem at all. The only negative for breakfast was just how loud the music was being played for that time of the morning, (or maybe I’m just getting old!!!)
The thing that really made our stay fab was the staff. Every single person we encountered were friendly, helpful and and nothing seemed too much trouble. We arrived early, our room was ready for us and we were shown right to our door with a smile, no problems giving us the WiFi password and at breakfast our server helped us rescue a butterfly that was stuck inside and also filled our water bottles for our train journey home.
The negatives I’ve mentioned, like no lighting by the dressing table (there was good lighting by the full length mirror by the way), the window, creaky floorboards, dodgy tap and no headboards, are just worth a mention and were just shrugged off seeing as it’s a 2 star hotel and did not deflect from the fact that we had a gorgeous stay. I honestly would recommend this gem of a place and would definitely stay again.
Karen Brown256 days ago
Great place ,, I went 17th to 19th July with my daughter and granddaughter, we had a decent size family room , greatvalue £60/per night WoW. food amazing the owner and staff were lovely , it's 5min drive to Harry Potter world, would definitely recommend and would stay here again
Another Label287 days ago
Amazing ! Shout out to Amy & Jackie the bar staff they made our visit amazing. Had a lovely chat with the local Shaun who was so welcoming and couldn’t wait to tell us all about the local area
Ash Hampson317 days ago
This place outshines its stars. It is cheap as chips and the rooms kind of reflect that. That said the staff are amazing friendly, accommodating and go out of their way. They clean to a high standard and offer far more than expected. Food is 5 star pub grub top notch and huge portions (im a big eater) i would definitely recommend
Helen Jolly317 days ago
Stayed on Saturday night as we had booked an early start at Harry Potter world on Sunday. Two adults. Two kids (5 & 8). We arrived at 6pm ish and took the last space on the car park, a bit of a squeeze. There isn’t a reception to the hotel, you just stand in the bar restaurant until the staff are free to come and help you. They had a function on and they were busy. The staff were all really nice. Earlier that day I’d called about eating with them and was told it was best to book but I wasn’t sure what time we would be arriving, so I was told not to worry as they would “always squeeze in hotel guests”. That turned out not to be the case, as they were full and couldn’t accommodate us, so we had to go elsewhere for food. I feel they could have been more clear on this point as they had said they “always” make room for hotel guests but didn’t. They should not say this to people, and instead should have insisted on a booking. 🙄 We couldn’t eat breakfast with them either as it doesn’t start until 9am, and we had to leave before then to get to Harry Potter world.
The room had three single beds and a camp bed (which kept collapsing). So this made sleeping tricky for my 5 year old. The bathroom has a toilet and bath. The sink is in the room right next to the bed, so the bed got splashed with water. The flooring in the bathroom is like one of those crazy haunted house things at a fair. Very uneven and quite trippy. I expect that’s due to the age of the building but I wonder if it could have been levelled out at all? The beds were old and the mattresses uncomfortable. But it did seem clean. The noise from the bar is clearly audible in the room we were in. So the music and talking went on for hours after we tried to get the kids to sleep and kept them (and us) awake. Again, probably not a lot they can do about this as they’re not going to close their bar/restaurant and probably can’t do anything to soundproof the room.
Oh, and the milk cartons in the room had gone mouldy. Actual green mould. My husband thought some of them were ok and tried some. Some weren’t green you see. I did not try any as it put me off. He is being sick today, and I’m wondering if that’s why! I told the staff and they did seem quite mortified. It does make you wonder what else they are not changing though, if they aren’t changing the milk. Though I suppose they might have had a bad batch delivered?
The stairs would stop it being accessible to anyone with walking difficulties as they are extremely steep and uneven.
All in all, it was maybe the worse place I’ve ever stayed (I’ve literally stayed in nicer hostels).
I did not complain to the staff because they were really very nice, and (with the exception of the milk) these things are not really their fault. The hotel just is what it is.
I know a few people who would have just left. But we try to be fairly easy going. I would suggest staying if you are ok with all of the above and want the convenience of being 6 minutes from Harry Potter world. Otherwise, stay elsewhere. I wouldn’t return personally.
Darrell Hughes348 days ago
The Kings lodge is a lovely hotel/pub with lots of historic features. The room we stayed in overnight was lovely, clean and spacious with lots of historic features. The food is also lovely, good quality homemade food. Staff were nice and plesent. Overall we'd highly recommend this place for either food/drinks or staying overnight. Value for money too .
Hannah Canning1 year ago
Old pub with lots of character, staff were lovely, friendly and helpfull. Room was clean, well equipt with tea/coffee making facilities, hairdryer, lovely and warm, bed was really comfy. We had both dinner and breakfast, good portions, lovely and hot, yummy food! Would def reccommend. Thankyou
The rooms and building is old so there is a few oddities such as tiny steps and low ceilings but that's part of the quirkiness and nostalgia of the place.
Reasonably priced rooms and a lovely bar/restaurant. Definitely worth a stay.
En suite rooms and you can come and go as you please at any time of the evening.
My daughter and I stayed for a night while visiting the Harry Potter studio tour and the Kings Lodge is in the perfect location for it. They’ve also dotted around some HP bits here and there to add some fun to the theme.
Sufficient tea/coffee etc supplied in room. Huge dressing table (felt like some lighting was needed over here though as in an alcove so quite dark) and full length mirror. Lots of storage space (no wardrobe but hanging space and hangers). No headboards, my daughter’s bed had a slight beam on the wall behind her’s, nothing too drastic, and mine was bare brick wall so to sit up I had to prop up one of my pillows for comfort, but the beds themselves were so comfortable, had a really good sleep. Shower good pressure and good size bathroom, cold sink tap a little dodgy (moved around). WIFI signal good (need to ask staff for the details though as not provided in room).
We didn’t have our evening meal in the hotel as we ate at the Warner Bros studios due to our tour being late in the day, but we had a bit of food envy as the food smelled and looked delicious as it was coming out for other customers when we walked in. However we did have breakfast, which was lovely. My daughter didn’t want what was on the menu and just wanted individual items and this was no problem at all. The only negative for breakfast was just how loud the music was being played for that time of the morning, (or maybe I’m just getting old!!!)
The thing that really made our stay fab was the staff. Every single person we encountered were friendly, helpful and and nothing seemed too much trouble. We arrived early, our room was ready for us and we were shown right to our door with a smile, no problems giving us the WiFi password and at breakfast our server helped us rescue a butterfly that was stuck inside and also filled our water bottles for our train journey home.
The negatives I’ve mentioned, like no lighting by the dressing table (there was good lighting by the full length mirror by the way), the window, creaky floorboards, dodgy tap and no headboards, are just worth a mention and were just shrugged off seeing as it’s a 2 star hotel and did not deflect from the fact that we had a gorgeous stay. I honestly would recommend this gem of a place and would definitely stay again.
That said the staff are amazing friendly, accommodating and go out of their way.
They clean to a high standard and offer far more than expected.
Food is 5 star pub grub top notch and huge portions (im a big eater) i would definitely recommend
We arrived at 6pm ish and took the last space on the car park, a bit of a squeeze.
There isn’t a reception to the hotel, you just stand in the bar restaurant until the staff are free to come and help you. They had a function on and they were busy.
The staff were all really nice.
Earlier that day I’d called about eating with them and was told it was best to book but I wasn’t sure what time we would be arriving, so I was told not to worry as they would “always squeeze in hotel guests”. That turned out not to be the case, as they were full and couldn’t accommodate us, so we had to go elsewhere for food. I feel they could have been more clear on this point as they had said they “always” make room for hotel guests but didn’t. They should not say this to people, and instead should have insisted on a booking. 🙄
We couldn’t eat breakfast with them either as it doesn’t start until 9am, and we had to leave before then to get to Harry Potter world.
The room had three single beds and a camp bed (which kept collapsing). So this made sleeping tricky for my 5 year old.
The bathroom has a toilet and bath. The sink is in the room right next to the bed, so the bed got splashed with water. The flooring in the bathroom is like one of those crazy haunted house things at a fair. Very uneven and quite trippy. I expect that’s due to the age of the building but I wonder if it could have been levelled out at all?
The beds were old and the mattresses uncomfortable. But it did seem clean.
The noise from the bar is clearly audible in the room we were in. So the music and talking went on for hours after we tried to get the kids to sleep and kept them (and us) awake. Again, probably not a lot they can do about this as they’re not going to close their bar/restaurant and probably can’t do anything to soundproof the room.
Oh, and the milk cartons in the room had gone mouldy. Actual green mould. My husband thought some of them were ok and tried some. Some weren’t green you see. I did not try any as it put me off. He is being sick today, and I’m wondering if that’s why!
I told the staff and they did seem quite mortified. It does make you wonder what else they are not changing though, if they aren’t changing the milk. Though I suppose they might have had a bad batch delivered?
The stairs would stop it being accessible to anyone with walking difficulties as they are extremely steep and uneven.
All in all, it was maybe the worse place I’ve ever stayed (I’ve literally stayed in nicer hostels).
I did not complain to the staff because they were really very nice, and (with the exception of the milk) these things are not really their fault. The hotel just is what it is.
I know a few people who would have just left. But we try to be fairly easy going. I would suggest staying if you are ok with all of the above and want the convenience of being 6 minutes from Harry Potter world. Otherwise, stay elsewhere. I wouldn’t return personally.
The food is also lovely, good quality homemade food.
Staff were nice and plesent.
Overall we'd highly recommend this place for either food/drinks or staying overnight.
Value for money too
.