I had to be in Edinburgh for business on Monday morning. Instead of flying there, I decided to have fun speeding along empty country roads. My first stop en route was to be the Palace Buxton.
From a distance, the grand façade was quite impressive, however, upon closer inspection, it was obvious that the hotel had spent little on it, e.g. the windows were surrounded by flaking paintwork, some of the wood cladding supporting drainpipes were rotting away. This essence of bygone (albeit very bygone) grandeur continued inside the reception. The reception itself was large with high ceilings, supported by faux marble columns. The staff were generally helpful, however, some a little too cocky.
The suite I had booked was worthy of that of a three star hotel, not a four star one. The furnishings were cheap, the carpet, along with everything else was in need of a jolly good clean. The view was quite attractive - I could see the parkland and town centre, however, it was marred by more rotting wood supporting drainpipes! The bathroom was not marble (or indeed any other stone) or mosaic tiled (the only two things I find acceptable in a hotel) Very standard white ceramic tiles decorated the walls, the basin did not have a monomix tap, nor did the bath, the thermostat on shower did not work, and the bath towels provided were not of deep enough pile and were too small. No mini-bar or safety deposit box was to be found in the room. The guest stationary consisted soley of an envelope and small piece of headed note paper.
The health club, like the bathroom, did not provide large enough towels, nor did it offer bathrobes. The changing rooms were large, with stained linoleum flooring. The swimming pool itself needed cleaning, as did the very small sauna and fishy smelling steam room. This health club was far from the luxurious one promised in the brochure.
I had decided to take dinner in the hotel restaurant, a very reasonable £18.50 from the three course table d'hôte menu. The service was at times a bit sloppy, however, the food made up for it. The menu is quite tradtional british with a very subtle, perhaps even too subtle hint of a French twist. The quality and taste of each course was very good, not reflecting the rather tired, shoddiness of the rest of the hotel. The cocktail bar served an extremely limited menu, all the bartender could cope with were drinks with no more than three ingredients, he was more suited to pulling pints.
At checkout, as with all British hotels, had made an error on the bill, charging me for two dinners. The receptionist that dealt with this query was overly efficious about it.
If the food had not been as good as it was, I would have struggled to find any positive aspects about my stay. The trouble is, as with many British hotels, the building is too old and too large to even begin to contemplate a full refurbishment. The health club, exterior, and interior need around £8 million spending to restore the Palace to its original Victorian splendour and luxury.
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Location. The Barceló Buxton Palace Hotel is located in Buxton, England, within 500 ... more
metres of the town centre and train station. Manchester and Sheffield are within 30 miles, and Derby is at a 35.5 mile distance. Hotel Features. Set amid lush gar...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
Location. The Barceló Buxton Palace Hotel is located in Buxton, England, within 500 ... more
metres of the town centre and train station. Manchester and Sheffield are within 30 miles, and Derby is at a 35.5 mile distance. Hotel Features. Set amid lush gar...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
The spa town of Buxton is in the heart of the Peak District one of Britain's most ... more
beautiful national parks Famed for the healthy properties of its mineral water the area offers stunning scenery with dramatic cliffs waterfalls and caves The hotel is ...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
Advantages: Front of the hotel, reception area and communal areas, friendly staff. Disadvantages: Rooms, dated decor, bathrooms, dusty artificial flowers.
Aug 14th, 2002
very helpful by (94%):
helpful by (6%):
