The Retreat Elcot Park

We stayed for just one night after our wedding weekend but are planning to come back! Gorgeous interiors, lovely & helpful staff and a beautiful setting. Lots of fab little touches (like a pantry of complimentary drinks/snacks at the end of each corridor) and we had a pretty room with a very comfy bed. We adored making use of the spa and outdoor heated pool…especially in the sunshine! The only thing I would say is that the pool was a little dirty in the corners and tiles had gone a bit weird? Other than that we thought it was great value and was the perfect mini moon!

Having seen a lot of this place on social media - including 'influencers' raving about their (no doubt free) time at the hotel - we thought we'd give it a try for a weekend break. What a disappoin**ent! The room was basic. Seaside B&B chic, if you like that sort of thing. One chair, old bedside tables and one desk; that's that. Outside, a very nice larder offered free things like soft drinks and snacks. But one evening we noticed a spillage on the carpet floor in the corridor, the next morning it was still there. I think this sums up our experience! The staff are probably busy 'DM'ing' social media types to hype up their hotel even more, rather than satisfy paying guests. If I were in charge, I would be embarrassed to get all this positive media coverage knowing full well how much room for improvement there is. To that extent, I think there is lots of potential. The setting is stunning and the main house amazing. Now it's about how much do they care about hospitality - not just sales and marketing?

Finally a hotel which offers a lovely environment, excellent food and great service but which is rationally priced. Beaverbrook or Estelle Manor are indeed amazing but are absurdly expensive. Elcot is half the price and as a family we had just as much fun and ate very well. The staff were universally charming and the kids loved it. The room and bed were very comfortable. The only thing I would question is the limited children’s times at the pool. The grounds are reasonably compact but there are longer walks to do in the beautiful countryside around the hotel, it’s a lovely part of the world. I might put a croquet lawn in the walled garden. I might also put a bigger gravel turning circle at the front door so you can drop your bags at reception and check in without worrying about cars arriving behind you. Many thanks to the staff who were all brilliant.

For a hotel that classes itself as a leading boutique hotel, we found it very disappointing. The service at breakfast was poor and verged on rudeness, Day 1 my breakfast order got 'lost' so it took half an hour to get an egg , and I had to chase several times. On day 2 it was my cup of tea order that went missing. The quality of the food was also very underwhelming.

Had a birthday treat with my Daughter. 3 hour spa break . Very disappointed and was expecting a lot more . Pools are very small and you have to walk through the gym to get to the outside pool . The staff were not very welcoming . We ordered a coffee which was served to us in cardboard cups . Not worth the money

Both my friend and I have eaten at this lovely hotel quite a few times and the food and service has always been very good. We decided to have coffee here on this lovely sunny day especially knowing there is a lovely courtyard seating. Coffee was good but to our surprise we were not expecting paper cups! When did this change? We have been here few times before and coffee was served in proper cups It would be ok if it was a coffee stall in a market but we were not expecting it from a four star hotel. It just felt very cheap! On the plus side the cinnamon bun I had was very good even though it was £4.95. Please bring back proper cups!

Update to my visit in Feb (original review below). The hotel management responses are a scam as they never respond to your email. For the sake of reassuring potential customers they will respond on TripAdvisor indicating their concern but when you do get in touch h with them they are totally useless. Not had a response for 3 months! Feb24 Had read a lot of rave reviews and it was also voted as Sunday Times small hotel of the year. So booked Sunday lunch as a birthday treat. Spent 10 mins waiting in the lounge for someone to attend to us. In the end went into restaurant to let them know I had been waiting. We had the fixed Sunday menu. In general my beef was good , vegetables fine but sp****, just 2 roast potatoes not the best. In general service was very poor. Looked like the staff has just been recruited from the local school and had none of the refinements of a classy hotel. Our starter nearly ended in our lap as we had a jittery server. Table was never wiped between courses . Had to tell them to wipe it. Also rather revealing was that one of the customers had dropped their outer garment on the floor. The servers skirted around it whilst serving and in between courses with not one of them picking it up. The Assistant restaurant manager was very apologetic and removed the service charge. Seemed they were overwhelmed with a small crowd! Would I go back. NO WAY! Really need to up their game.

What a lovely evening! I took a friend to the Taste of Italy evening - she's Italian and too fabulous for words, so expectations were high. We both thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Specifically: - What makes all the difference is service and it was wonderful - there were plenty of staff on hand constantly, so anything we asked for was provided really quickly. - One of my favourite dishes is butternut squash ravioli, I've lost count of the restaurants and brands I've sampled, this one was the best. The accompaniments made it, unique and spot on. - Each course was drizzled with something at the table, loved that extra personal touch. - The wine pairings were fantastic. - The ragu was amazing, I had a pescetarian version (I'd have been happy with veggie, but they provided fish - unusual but it worked). My Italian friend was raving about her beef ragu. - The limoncello was fantastic. All too often it tastes like dish liquid, even good brands and even in Italy - this was good stuff! - The setting was lovely, a private room with loads of sunlight as we sat down that became cosy as the light turned. Such a great setting. - The chef had a serving table set up in the room so we could see the meals being put together, with about 5 of them working together. The attention to detail was impressive and it showed. - Overall, what a fantastic evening! We both loved it and will definitely be back for another special event. Well worth it for a special night out, or in our case, just to spoil ourselves because we work bloody hard and appreciate great food, service, setting and ambience. Thanks guys, we appreciate the effort every single one of you made tonight to make our evening special!