The Volunteer Inn

I booked a 'deluxe room' it was tiny and shoddy. There was damage to the plasterwork, a rusty radiator with the paint peeling and the shower/toilet was tiny. I decided to check out within an hour even though it meant I lost my money as it was non-refundable.

Friendly staff and clean

Unfortunately, the accommodation did not live up to the description on The Volunteer Inn's website. "The Volunteer Inn is a recently re-opened lively Public House based in the lovely village of Grove found within Wantage in Oxfordshire. With 5 en-suite Double Guest Rooms all freshly redecorated and modern facilities installed, this lovely Inn is a wonderful treat for business users, couples, and much more." As you can see from the photos, these statements are misleading. The corridors leading to the rooms are grubby and in need of repair (holes in walls and ceilings). The stairway is steep and has low ceilings (I feel this should be outlined in case people have access requirements). The room itself was adequate but with a very old, very thin quilt, with no additional blankets, meaning I was cold all night. There was a fan just outside the room which made an intermittent noise which made for interrupted nights sleep. The shower over the bath did not have any grab rails and this meant that I was unable to have a shower. The carpark was dark, with no lighting. We tried to explain our concerns and give the manager an opportunity to address our concerns. After some back and forth we refused to stay for the full duration of our stay and found alternative accommodation in Wantage for the same price, which included breakfast and surpassed expectations.

Kitchen was closed so no food available at all

We arrived just after 2pm after searching for somewhere to have lunch to be told that food is served until 4pm daily which was fantastic! Huge choice of menu including an all day breakfast as well as a gorgeous Roasted duck choice. We had the Roasted duck and fish and chips which were himecooked chips and definitely a belly warmer on this cold Novembers day. The lady behind the bar was attentive and her local knowledge was fab, we were I formed about the towns history and about the market that runs on a Wednesday and Saturday. The local brewary used is a lovely pint. Abingdon Bridge was on offer and we sampled this as well as the Abk they sell. We will most certainly be back on our return home.

Quiet & very clean room. Perfectly adequate breakfast. Definitely tired in places, some redecoration required & a rather pokey entrance area to the rooms with vacuum cleaner “decoration”. I ‘d like to suggest that the bar floor is not cleaned whilst guests are having breakfast!!

All staff were very friendly welcoming and helpful.The pub was cosy and the food was excellent.The room was clean warm and nicely decorated.The shower was brilliant.If we are in the area we would definitely stay again

Having phoned to check latest check in time we arrived at 2045, having been told latest was 2100, no problem we thought, then we were told that we’d have to wait, no reason given, so we waited and we’re taken to the room that smelt of musk and damp, there were holes in the walls and damp on the walls, the bed creaked, bathroom was clean , and the carpet was damp, no actually sodden, I raised these points in the morning and apparently the roof had leaked, it was an old building etcetera etcetera, none of this information was passed to us, we were pushed for time as we were attending a funeral so I left my number and asked them to call after 1400, they said they would and of course didn’t, Young inattentive staff more interested in playing darts

Staff (Vicci) was really welcoming and helpful. For example I was leaving before breakfast we served and Vicci made sure I could help myself to cereal. The room overlooked the main road and the night I stopped was it was a tad noisy. The shower is compact and little tight for larger people like myself.