i stayed here on a recommendation but had problems from the outset. i booked by phone and when i turned up ( even after speaking to the owners 4 hours previously) was told that they were not expecting me and werent sure they had a room! all my details had been entered into the incorrect week.
the room was very clean and i cannot fault the hotel from that point of view.
i found that they were just a bit unhelpful and i felt that if i asked for something that i was putting them out!
on my second night i had someone drunk attempt to get into my room at 3am which wasnt very nice - and granted wasnt the fault of the owners but it just added to my overall feelings towards the place. i didnt even see the point of telling the owners as i felt that it wouldnt achieve anything. i have to concur with a previous posting that it was a bit similar to faulty towers......
decor wise the whole place was stuck in a timw warp and im afraid the attitudes of the owners where the same...

We stayed at the channings hotel for 2 weeks as a family of four in August 2011. The service was excellent and Shirley and Dave couldn't do enough to make our stay as enjoyable as possible. The breakfast was superb with a wide choice. The accomadation was of good quality and very clean. There was sufficient parking arrangements which met our needs. This is a very friendly hotel and we would not hesitate in stopping there again.

St Ives has a vast arrange of accomodation and the Channings Hotel falls into the catagory of a traditional seaside B&B although it is catagorised as a hotel.
The hotel is located a 5 min walk from Porthminster Beach but as this is St Ives there are some steep hills / steps involved but unless you are staying near to the harbour this will always be the case.
The hotel has a carpark which is a massive plus point - the cars need to be parked behind each other so you need to leave your keys at the hotel but this caused no problems at all.
As mentioned before this is a traditional B&B and the decor reflects this - don't expect boutique styling but do expect large, clean rooms. We had an en-suite family room which had a very large double bed, a full sized single and a camp bed with a proper matress. All the beds were extremely comfortable, infact we have recently stayed at a new Premier Inn and the beds at the Channings were definitely more comfortable. The en-suite looked newly decorated with a double sized shower cubicle and new electric shower.
Breakfasts were taken in the dining room between 8.30 & 9ish and even if everyone arrived at the same time you were always served quickly. The food was plentiful with cereal. fruit, yoghurts & full english etc on offer. Infact the full english was excellent and you could have whatever combination you wanted and it was always freshly cooked and served hot.
The hosts David and Shirley are extremely friendly and approachable and always had time to talk even over the Bank Holiday weekend when guests are frequently coming and going.
The hotel has a lounge and bar which will open whenever you want it to open and every night it was a pleasant way to end the day to have a drink in the bar with David, Shirley and the other guests. What else is great about the bar is that they charge very reasonable prices and do not look to take advantage of a captive audience.
As for St Ives it never disappoints and we enjoyed some great meals in Peppers, Coast (don't forget to print off your free bottle of wine voucher from their website!!) and our favourite the Firehouse where the food, service and atmosphere are excellent.
I think the reason why the Channings is not higher in the Trip Advisor ratings is because no one seems to write a review but don't be put off by that and give it a try.

We spent our honeymoon here and I/we have nothing but praise for the place, the room was spotless the hotel in general was clean and the proprietors would go out of their way to help. The breakfasts were plentiful and very appetising. Some residents didn't quite get the gist of the car park protocol at the back but it wasn't a problem to us as we travelled there by train with stunning views en route. I/we would definitely stay at this hotel in the future.