The review applies to July 2010. High season - everything else was fully booked. When we arrived, there was no sign of our booking, but a room materalized anyway when we paid our stay in full to get the suspicious expression off the manager's face. Then we were given a lecture on what not to do in the room, including cooking and laundry, as if that would be the normal behaviour for hotel guests ... We were treated like shifty blackguards until we decided to sign in with another title than Mr and Mrs, which changed the behaviour to creepily subservient.

The place was worn, difficult to keep clean, TV reception poor, breakfast sparse and unfresh, etc. The list could be longer. Two days in a row we had to ask for a second towel, as housekeeping had decided that only one person was living in the room. This was a place where we just slept. It was not a place to relax and 'stay' in.

In summary, this is not good value for your money. We travel a lot and this is the worst place ever. Keep away.

Ok let's get things in perspective, if you want a cheap stay just a short stroll from Oxford city centre then you have to lower your expectations. Yes this hotel is a bit dated, the decor is not the most tasteful, but at £70 a night for a double room with breakfast included, you can't go wrong!

We chose this hotel for location and price mainly. It was easy to find and had ample private parking. We entered the lobby and were greeted by a very friendly receptionist who immediately gave us loads of tips on where to eat and drink. He gave us a map and even told us he would book taxis for us if we wished to arrange them. My partner had to drag me away because we ended up chatting for so long! We were given a choice of room on either floor and we chose upstairs.

On going up the stairs I noticed a sign saying "refurbishment had started here, sorry for the unfinished look" which was quite amusing. Our room was at the top of the stairs, first impressions very clean and tidy, simple TV, tea-making facilities, clean en-suite with shower, two clean towels each, soap, shampoo and body wash. Our window looked out on to the car park and it was away from the road so very quiet.

Our first night was very comfortable, luckily I bought my own pillows as I'm allergic to feathered ones. We did notice that the walls were quite thin as we heard the woman next door having a shower and saying 'oh my god the water is freezing!' Fortunately with that warning I just let the shower run a while and found it to be ample.

We went down to breakfast and were greated by a very polite gentleman who showed us to our table. I was a bit worried at first because they were playing Classic FM on the radio and the theme from Damien was playing. There was a choice of fresh orange or tea, quassants and cerial. We had chose a fry-up which was very nice! The decor of the dining room was quite funny with large garish pictures of the queen, kitsch fake flowers and ornaments etc. Most notably everything was clean.

Upon spending the day in this marvelous city we returned to find fresh bed-sheets and clean towels.

So all in all I couldn't really complain, you can get more for your money in other cities but come on, this is Oxford! So don't be put off by all the negative snooty comments, give it a try :)

Basically average.

Plus points:
Comfy bed
Breakfast was nice
Waiter at breakfast was friendly

Minus points:
Bathroom small in bedroom
Reception staff could have been more friendly/welcoming.

Overall 6.5/10

This was booked as the last part of a ten day tour of the country and as a surprise for me by my partner. What a shock he got upon arrival. Having looked at glowing reviews from other websites only to get there and find hotel in desperate need of refurbishment and staff in need of manners. Having since found the recent reviews on this website the comment made by another that they will counter-act negative feedback with positive ones appears to have an element of truth considering they all have pretty much the same key words in them.

Upon entering the car park the hotel appears ok for the two star rating it allegedly has with the AA (check the AA website it appears nowhere that I can find). You then go into the reception area and it is dark, dank and quite depressing. We should've turned around and walked away when the young lady on reception told us that not only was smoking not allowed in your room but also no washing lines???! We also wished we had kept our mouth shut as they only had us booked in for one night not two.

We went up to our room and again upon entering the theme didn't change, unclean and in need of refreshing the decor considering it did not look like it had been decorated since the no smoking ban had come in and had that lovely smokey unclean feeling. There was damp throughout the room and when going into the bathroom, the toilet seat was broken at the hinge, with black mould around the sealant in the shower and other persons pubic hair on the mat to surround the toilet which was rolled up on the cistern. The 'white' towels were greying in colour and fraying and the shower mat appears to have not been cleaned for a considerable amount of time.

We sat on the bed propped against the pillows as the chairs in the room appeared to only fit someone who is size zero, only to find a materess that felt like a plank of wood. There were wires around a metre long hanging from the wall for the television and other electrics which I would think in todays age are a serious cause for concern. The television reception was poor and as I could see my partner was clearly disappointed we decided to take a 10 minute walk to decide whether we dared stay or just head home two days earlier than planned.

We decided on the later and commenced placing our bags in the car, only to be met by who I believe to be the manageress demanding the room key back and that we go into the room with her to see what we had done to the room. I was shocked and appalled by the rude and ignorant manner the lady continued to talk to me in. Not alot makes my blood boil but she really did. She initially demanded that we pay for the two nights we had booked but when I stated I would only pay the cancellation fee she started throwing room rates around like they were going out of fashion, all varying between £70 and £89.
When we got into our room she told me I was rude for insulting her home, which I had not yet had the chance to say anything about. She acussed us of using the bed, having only been there for around an hour even I couldn't have slept on the bed. I then had a chance to show her my concerns and explain that a basic level of cleanliness would be ok only to be told that the mould was only on the sealant, to which I suggested she replace it.

We were then frog marched downstairs and then back up again. She tried to take the old packet of biscuits which had been left on the hall windowsill away and as I pointed out to her the layer of dust on said still, I also had the opportunity to show her the recent rodent faeces there aswell. To which I was told not to be so stupid as they cannot get inside. So again I was marched downstairs and not wanting to leave giving them free rein to pick a price they wished to charge us whilst not there, I stayed in order to make a payment.
The lady proceeded to tell me I was the first person to complain which I challenged having found this site on my phone whilst there. I was then told I had the right to complain, so I asked to speak to the manager to which she told me she did not know who the manager was, only to be told afterwards he was not there and eventually got a name off her which I suspect is false. She then continued to blame me for the way things were and that there was nothing wrong before being highly ignorant and ignoring anything I tried to say in response.

Having paid £89 (£5 higher than the double on their website) just to 'get out of jail' I felt relieved to be getting away from what very nearly ruined our break. Had we not had such a good time at the other hotels and B&Bs, which were charging a lesser price and 100 times better accomodation and service by far compaired to this place, our break would've been spoilt.

All in all had the room been priced at the rate it should've been and the cleanliness improved a little it could've been a place to sleep and spend the majority of time away from the hotel. I would advise you to avoid the place at all costs if you want to relax and spend a few pounds extra to get yourself into better accomodation.

The sad thing is this place only helps in giving a bad name to hotels and B&Bs but fortunately most that care can clearly be seen from the instant you walk in.