I was only going to give this hotel a 'very good' rating, but having read some of the unfounded reviews which made my blood boil, I am giving it an excellent rating and giving my views on a Hotel that for some reason or rather is being 'slated' maliciously.
Coming from Switzerland I am used to a high standard of service and accommodation. The Antrobus Arms Hotel did not disappoint. It is rather dated but that adds to the charm and the friendliness of the staff more than make up for this. It is being renovated at the moment, so I am sure it will only get better. Many locals use it as a wedding venue and that says something..
Being a Beatles fan I was absolutely delighted to find out that the Beatles actually stayed here whilst they were filming "Help", but not only that, The Hotel was also used in the filming of a BBC Miss Marple mystery. So not only is this hotel famous, but also with it being an old Coach Inn it oozes charm and character. Something you do not often get in the modern hotels in Switzerland.
I did have some problems with the hot water, but by letting the taps ran for a few minutes soon solved it. I find this problem very common in a lot of older hotels in England.. perseverance and a bit of patience always pays off. Breakfast was really good and despite only one waitress on duty, she was very attentive. No complaints there.. Now Dinner... what can I say.. It was absolutely wonderful. The chef was very accomodating and made me a lovely sea bass (as I am a pescatarian) which wasn't on the menu and the restaurant wasn't that busy as it was early. You cannot fault service like that!
I am astounded with some of the negative towards slanderous reviews on this hotel which I read before submitting mine. This is not a 5 star hotel but it is clean and tidy with generous sized rooms and priced accordingly. I take some of the criticism personally as I got to know many of the staff quite well (having stayed there 5 days) and cannot see any justification in the very personal and malicious attacks in a few reviews. Reviews should be constructive and helpful and not as mentioned earlier, malicious and personal! Trip Advisor is a good website that should be used with responsibleness and not as a 'vendetta' playground. (for want of a better word).

Arriving at the entrance to the hotel was disappointing and was a sign of things to come. By good fortune we had managed to park on the road but enquired about parking. One of the staff members explained that you have to drive into the High St. and between two shops, both called Miles of Value, you drive up a driveway ( a bit muddy) and low and behold, there's the Antrobus Arms parking lot. You can then exit via a pathway on the side of Lloyds Bank. However, as we were parked in the road, we decided to have lunch and then move the car. The barmaid who served us was very helpful and surprisingly enough, the baguetts were very good. We then got our key (room 10) and as we walked up the very attractive staircase with a lovely atrium (shame about the paint colour and carpet), there were dirty towels lying on a table in the hallway - this was about 1.30pm. Our room was a very good size overlooking the gardens and very clean which was great but what a strange set up! A four poster bed with a sagging fabric roof, mismatched furniture and the inevitable terrestrial tv bracketed onto the wall. The curtains looked new but were badly fitting and badly made. The bathroom was something else! Shutters that didn't fit well and it was freezing. A notice on the headless shower telling us not to use it but strangely enough, there was a jaccuzzi bath which squirted water all over the floor when operated and the tiniest bar of soap and no shampoo etc. The only heating was a towel rail, so we removed the towels and switched it on but this only gave out a mild heat - still, it took off the chill. Whilst the bedroom had a lovely old traditional radiator, this didn't work but a modern panel type radiator did and by the time we came back early evening, the room was nice and warm. As there was only one bedside lamp, I asked the receptionist whether we could have another. She said it had broken but grudgingly agreed to try and find us another but reminded us that it may not match!! (chance would be a fine thing)!! True to her word, there was another bedside lamp when we returned later.
As it was my husband's birthday, we decided to have dinner as the menu looked inviting. This took place in the orangery - again the decor was sadly lacking and could be a lovely dining room. The waitress however, was very friendly and helpful but the food left a lot to be desired - so disappointing.
Breakfast was served in a big soulless room and whilst the food was OK, except for taking our order, we didn't see a waitress until she brought our food and then disappeared again.
We are aware that the place is being refurbished which can't come too soon! What a shame that a lovely old building with so much potential and an obvious lack of management and sophistication is allowing this hotel to be sub-standard. This was a Groupon deal and according to them, the value of our stay was £156.00 - well, even deducting the light lunch, we would not pay £140 for the room. Having read the reviews on this hotel last year which weren't bad and quite mixed, I've noticed that since the beginning of this year, things seem to have gone down hill. Having stayed the night, I don't think the reviews are exaggerated although I think we were luckier than some.

We have just got back from a groupon night away in this hotel. The staff were very friendly and attentive. The room was ok and for the price i would not have expected anything better. They are in the process of renovating the hotel and from what we could see they are doing a really good job. The food was amazing and i would highly recommed to stop off and try the a la carte menu. I woudl definitetly stay again.

We arrived and parked on the pay and display car park opposite.The receptionist was dressed in a shabby jumper and her hair needed a good wash.She was installed in what I can only describe as a converted broom cupboard.
She gave us a room key and pointed to the staircase(may I add that my hubby is disabled but no offer to carry our bag was made)
We opened the door to the room and to our horror there was an unmade bed,dirty towels scattered on the floor and general disarray.
I returned to the broom cupboard and informed the receptionist she stated that she would check the room and I replied that there was no need as I wasn't lying.She gave me another key after I asked to speak to the Manager and she replied that he wasn't available.
We went to the room only to discover dried blood and some other undetectable stain on the bedcover.The room was also very dusty and when I drew back the sheets I was greeted by a large spider.
We went out almost immediately.
The next morning at "breakfast" if you can call it that, no offer of toast (you shouldn't have to ask but we would have had a job anyway as there was no one around) cold coffee dreadful

We would have mentioned this to the Manager but as we couldn't find anyone at all on our departure we just put the room key in the broom cupboard and left never to return!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We have taken photo's