Me, my husband and our two little girls have just spent three nights staying at the Passage House Hotel, which is in Kingsteignton a few miles from the coastal resort of Teignmouth. This is the third time we have stayed at the hotel, and each time has been a very good stay. I am not going to attempt to describe everything about the hotel - only the facilities we used and how we found them! One thing I would say is that although this hotel is in a holiday area, it is just as much geared towards business people as it is towards holiday makers but the two seem to mix in very well. Also, I wouldn't say that the hotel is really geared towards children, although having said that, my four year old and two year old were made to feel very welcome.
BOOKING When I went to book our room I found the details from the hotel's website
www.passagehousehotel.co.uk
You can book on line but I preferred to discuss our requirements over the phone because I needed to make sure that the children would be catered for. I spoke to a very helpful receptionist who discussed various options. We chose a family room
which would have a double and a single bed, and also a put up bed for my youngest. The cost per night for the room was £95 which was also to include breakfast, but we had to pay extra for the girls' breakfasts.
HOW TO GET THERE There is a map on the website and also instructions telling you how to get there by air, train or car which is alll very helpful. By car, the journey is very easy because it is not much further than the end of the M5 motorway which ends at Exeter. You then travel about eight miles on the A380 and only the last half a mile is down a narrow country lane. On the website directions it tells you that it is about a three hour drive from London and apparently there are no traffic lights the whole journey! The hotel is situated in a beautiful position on the River Teign. Some of the hotel rooms have wonderful river views although unfortunately this time we were overlooking the car park!
ACCOMODATION Our hotel room was very comfortable although with three beds it was a bit on the crowded side. We had a nice clean bathroom (complete with shower gel and shampoo dispenser in one) and tea and coffee making facilities - all the usual things you would expect to find in a hotel bedroom! We also had a TV, and although we didn't use it much it was handy that it had the Cbeebies channel because this helped to keep the girls entertained while we were getting ready to go out. We didn't really explore the other channels but I do believe that there was the opportunity to order films to watch. You could also pay foran internet connection at a cost of £5 for twenty four hours.
The room was very clean on arrival and there was a good cleaning service each day. On returning to the room everything was very tidy and all my daughters' cuddly toys were even placed very cosily in their beds.
EATING We ate breakfast in the hotel every morning and this was always very tasty and with a quick service. When we are staying away, we do always like to indulge in a cooked English breakfast and this was available every day. To start with there was a self service area with cereals, fruit juices, yoghurts and fruit - always a very nice selection. As my daughters weren't likely to eat the full breakfast, the waitress was always happyto take what they wanted off the order - normally just sausages and hash browns!
There was the option of eating in the hotel in the evening but the restaurant seemed a bit posh and probably not quite suitable for my two girls! However, on the same site is the Passage House Inn which serves food from half past six in the evening, and with a children's menu on offer, this was ideal. All the food served here was lovely - I was particularly keen on the carvary and very reasonably priced too.
SWIMMING One of the reasons we like to stay at the Passage House is because it has an indoor heated swimming pool. It is not ever so large and is an interesting circular shape, but is probably about 10 meteres at it's widest. The great thing about this pool is that it hardly ever gets busy and we have had times when we have been the only people in it. It is also not too deep - at the most 1.1m which means that we can always be in our depth to help our children. There is also a lovely jacussi area in part of the pool, as well as a small sauna and steam room in the changing rooms. The swimming pool is part of a leisure club which has a small gym and also offers beauty treatments but I can't comment on these as we didn't try them out. The gym and the pool are both free to guests staying in the hotel.
OVERALL So overall, I think that this is a very good hotel to stay in if you are visiting the area. All the accomodation is good and clean and the position of the hotel is lovely. The staff are very friendly and were particularly lovely towards our children. At night the sleeping area was very quiet which again was very good for our girls. the only downside was that on our first morning there was a fire alarm at 7.30 which was definitely a bit of a rude awakening! The tariff for the room is slightly expensive, but there are many similar hotels charging more. If you are interested I strongly recommend having a look at the website which will fill you in on all the details.
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Positioned on the northern bank of the River Teign, this hotel with spa facilities has ... more
commanding panoramic views of the mouth of the estuary. Passage House Hotel was built on the site of a tidal ford where long ago villagers would wait to cross the river. Established for over 50 years, the hotel has a reputation unsurpassed in the area. Staff at the hotel aim to make your stay truly memorable. The hotel is an ideal base for exploring the wild and rugged terrain of Dartmoor or Devon's towering red sandstone cliffs and sheltered, sandy coves. Enjoy the views and fresh air before returning to the hotel to experience the beauty salon, swim in the indoor pool or use the spa facilities.
Information: :Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked......
exceptional by (2%):
very helpful by (98%):
