Sopwell House Reviews 42

Loved the lunch with family. Good service from Panda the waitress, and Franco got us a good table.

Carla was absolutely amazing. She was so helpful and attentive, taking the time to explain all the different packages clearly and patiently. From the moment we arrived, she made us feel so welcome with her warm and friendly manner. The service was exceptional, and we’ll definitely be coming back again because of her. Thank you, Carla!

For a luxury venue it needs to refine its service. On arrival at the spa was
Told to wait in the sitting room & they’d be back with our wrists bands, that took about half an hour then had to go ask eating in to spa time. We were given zero instructions or directions on were anything was nor that you had to keep your wrist bands on at all times. I had to go to reception after changing & wandering around for 15 mins to ask how do you get to the pool.

Then service in brasserie was slow. And also everything has added high service charge on even drinks in the bar.

Spa facilities are usual ones unless you upgrade to “club” for the outside pools, jacuzzi and the inside ultra relaxing rooms.

Lovely facilities, friendly team

My sister and I visited Sopwell House for afternoon tea. Great ambiance from the moment you walked in. Lovely welcoming, friendly staff, who catered to our dietary needs with no problem. Staff members Q and Joyun are great assets to the team there, both were very attentive and friendly. The afternoon tea was so yummy and plenty. Lovely selection of teas to choose from. Will definitely return.

Terrible Anniversary Stay – Food Poisoning & No Care Shown

I stayed at Sopwell House with my wife to celebrate our 11-year anniversary and was left bitterly disappointed.

On one of the evenings, after dining in their on-site restaurant Omboo, I suffered severe food poisoning. I spent the entire night and following morning violently sick and unable to sleep, stuck in the bathroom. It completely ruined our stay. I couldn’t eat any food at all (including the breakfast that was part of our package), and I was also too unwell to use the spa on the last morning – another experience we had paid for but were unable to enjoy.

I raised this directly with the hotel at the time, but the Deputy Manager was completely dismissive. I was told that because the restaurant is “outsourced,” Sopwell House takes no responsibility, and that I would need to chase it up myself. Not only is this shocking for a supposedly upmarket hotel and spa, but a week later I still haven’t received a single follow-up call, email, or even a gesture of goodwill.

In my view, any restaurant operating inside the hotel is part of the Sopwell House guest experience, and the hotel cannot simply wash its hands of responsibility. The dismissive attitude and lack of accountability have left a very sour taste. For a 4/5-star hotel that trades on luxury and service, the response has been scandalous.

Instead of a memorable anniversary, I left feeling unwell, disappointed, and badly treated. I would strongly warn anyone considering Sopwell House that if something goes wrong, you’ll get no support.

As a social media influencer and digital marketer, I've been in the customer service industry for a long time. On Wed 6th, my daughter and myself was gifted an afternoon tea in Sopwell House's main restaurant. I am delighted to report the most friendly, excellent service, attention to detail, and relaxed, beautiful members of staff who shared ideas and laughs with us. Stunning, perfect afternoon tea every. It was my daughters' first afternoon tea and they both enjoyed it thoroughly. If we could give out awards.. They would be my top prize. Would I come again.. Definitely yes..

I recently stayed at this spa hotel, and unfortunately, my experience was far from relaxing. One of the biggest issues was the noise outside the hotel late at night. Despite the fact that I was hoping for a peaceful atmosphere, there was constant noise, likely from cleaning crews or maintenance activities, that went on well into the early hours. It was incredibly disruptive and made it hard to unwind or get any restful sleep.
Additionally, I had afternoon tea during my stay, and I was shocked by the exorbitant service charge added to the bill. It seemed way out of proportion to the quality of service and food provided. Given the steep prices, I expected a much more elevated experience, but instead, I was left feeling like I had been taken advantage of.
All in all, I wouldn't recommend this spa if you're looking for a peaceful, relaxing getaway, and the over-the-top service charges certainly leave a bad taste.

Wonderful few days , for my wife’s birthday
All staff were fantastic , food was great thanks Mary
They really looked after us , great place to go , and spa is great
Thanks to all
Andrew and Cathy

After many years, we returned to this hotel for a one-night stay and were impressed by the beautiful renovations. The facilities were spotless and very comfortable, and we particularly enjoyed our time at the Cottonmill Spa.

However, while the setting was lovely, the service didn’t quite match the standard we expected. A hotel’s atmosphere is shaped by the warmth and attentiveness of its staff, and unfortunately, our experience was inconsistent. While some staff members were helpful and welcoming, others, particularly the more key staff members, came across as aloof and dismissive, which made us feel less valued as guests.

A few service issues also detracted from our stay. Our room was only set up for two people instead of three, requiring us to request an additional bed, towel, robe, water, and glass. These were provided promptly, but it would have been nice for everything to be ready upon arrival.

In the lounge, we ordered drinks and a light snack. While our waiter was friendly, he lacked knowledge about the menu, and our drinks were sent to the wrong table, so we ended up eating without them. We also weren’t given napkins. Small details like this make a difference, and with a little more attentiveness, the experience could have been much smoother. That said, my cocktail was excellent.

At the restaurant, we were asked during booking if we were celebrating a special occasion, so I mentioned our wedding anniversary. While the hostess kindly wished us a happy anniversary, there was no further acknowledgment, and we were seated at a large round table right by the entrance to both the kitchen and restaurant, which lacked intimacy. If special occasions are noted during reservations, it would be wonderful to see a more thoughtful approach, whether that’s a better table or a small gesture of acknowledgment.

Finally, at breakfast, our reservation was only noted for two people instead of three, requiring the waitress to check before seating us. While this was a minor inconvenience, it added to the overall impression of miscommunication during our stay.

The hotel itself is beautiful, and with more consistent attention to detail in service, it could truly offer a five-star experience. We hope this feedback is helpful in ensuring that future guests feel fully welcomed and looked after from start to finish.

Booked Thai restaurant for a birthday celebration, mentioning in reservation that one of party was allergic to sesame seeds. Arrived to be asked again about allergies only to be told that all of their food was marinated in sesame seed oil and that on the basis that only rice would be available for that person!! Given such a fundamental restriction, why aren’t they checking their reservations and warning people before the evening? And how lacking inclusivity to have such a black & white menu! We were recommended the brasserie instead where we were initially offered the only table available for 5 people which was near the entrance door and very cold. We were informed that the door couldn’t be closed because people would think the restaurant was closed! Eventually we persuaded the waiter to let us sit at a table for four. The goat croquettes and fish cakes were both massively over salted. Definitely not an experience worth repeating and very overpriced at £350+. Will not be going back. Such a shame because afternoon teas at Sopwell House are great,

Enquired about Christmas packages, female staff over the phone was not very helpful and didn't bother to follow up. I then called again the next day as hadn't heard back, got through to another female named Sarah who was more polite and helpful, their fees were way too high working out at 2k for two nights, if the customer service was much better then maybe you would attract the customers. No intentions of visiting the place.

Our stay at Sopwell House was simply world class. Their attention to detail was outstanding. It has to be the best hotel we have ever stayed at. From the moment we entered till the moment we left, the staff were extremely polite, friendly and helpful! We were greeted by Olivia when we arrived on the reception desk, she was amazing, informative and very kind to our little boy, making him feel at ease and welcome too. We stayed in the Mews, which is absolutely pristine inside with modern and stylish interior and furnishings. We went for the most amazing meal in the brasserie where Harry served us. I have particular allergies and Harry was very attentive and informative about what I could eat and what alternatives were available , his silver-service skill, knowledge on wines and his menu knowledge was very extensive. He is one of the most polite people we have ever been served by. We had the most delicious mackerel for starter, steak for mains and Black Forest gateaux for dessert. The chefs absolutely nailed it. Sopwell house had a superb reputation before we went, now I believe they are challenging the vote for one of the best in the UK and have entered the world stage in our humble opinions. Thank you so much and special thanks to Harris and Sean from reception! Vincent needs a particular mention too as our son was interested in the apples for breakfast, Vincent recommended a local apple picking location nearby that we could visit for an amazing day.
We will be returning very soon , we can’t wait!!
Lauren

It is daming that 31% of reviews here award the minimal 1 star. It seems virtually nothing has changed since our unforgettably abysmal visit afew years ago.
This hotel itself claims to be luxorious with 4 stars, and so we booked it for an indulgent Hen party. The hotel's guest rooms and the Spa were only average for their considerable rates. The Spa was overcrowded and relatively basic. They also failed to send our food to our hotel room as was promised, and then audaciously and unprofessionally blamed us, the Guests for allegedly not hearing them knock on our door. When we escalated this to Senior Management, their attitude and response was unprofessional, dismissive, defensive and rude, and they refused to mitigate our loss.
There are far more welcoming and better quality Spa hotels in the region for a similar price or less, and so I would avoid staying here again or recommending it to friends or family.

We had a fabulous stay at sopwell house and a wonderful meal.

Zoe was a fantastic host she really did make our stay that little bit more special

Where do I even begin....don't bother going! I arranged for an afternoon tea for a 60th birthday with 15 women. The table was ready late, the teapots, tea strainers and napkins were dirty, the staff were no where to be seen....except leaning on the walls and they got my reservation bill wrong as well as handing this to me at the table in front of all my guests. No customer service, no professional manner, highly embarrassing and not even one apology. We had to ASK to be served. If you're going to go anywhere, go to Pendley Manor....

We had a delightful meal at Omboo – Sopwell House. The entire staff was highly professional, and Josh and Tatiana, in particular, took exceptional care of us. Their attentive service made our dining experience truly enjoyable.

Afterwards, we moved to the bar, where Adam crafted some fantastic cocktails. His friendly and polite demeanour, combined with the bar's lovely ambiance, made us feel right at home.

The Shah Family :)

We stayed at Sopwell House in march for my fiancé’s 32nd birthday.
 
Unfortunately our stay was dampened by extremely rude members of staff and also the room we stayed in.

We booked a suite and stayed at ‘10 Ivy’. Whilst the room was lovely, we unfortunately had the worst nights sleep due to the noise from the adjacent road. Vehicles where driving past all night and it was so loud.

When we arrived at our room we changed into our robes and headed straight to the spa, on route to the spa we noticed a bar i think was called ‘octagon bar’. Me and my fiance literally poked our heads in to see the bar quickly. The barman abruptly stopped me and said i wasn’t allowed in with the robe on. I am completely fine with that rule which we wasn’t aware off but the way the barman said it was like we was stupid for not knowing and it was abrupt and not polite.

We also had a negative interaction with a second staff member.

Whilst using the spa we were feeling hungry and wanted a snack, it was 15:00 and dinner was booked at 18:45 so we didn’t want a full lunch.

We went to the sitting room bar asked the barman for 2 cookies which were in a jar on the worktop of the bar.

The barman replied that it would be 20 minutes as he had drinks to pour. We where confused because there was no one in the bar other then me and my fiance, he was pouring drinks for people at sunbeds. He could of gave us the cookies within a minute and we could of been on our way.

After he said it would take 20 minutes we stood for a minute and discussed whether it was worth the wait because we only had a couple of hours of spa use before we needed to leave to get ready for dinner. We decided that we wouldnt be happy to waste 20 minutes waiting for a cookie that was on the bartop and we would rather use that time in the spa. We discussed all of this together infront of the barman.

We told him we didnt want to wait 20 minutes for the cookies and was going to go back to the spa. Surprisingly the barman said ‘ok’ and watched us leave the bar. We was kind of shocked by how oblivious the barman was to basic customer service. We didn’t mention anything to him and just carried on to the spa.

At this point we where in the pool and it was the only thing we could talk about for a few hours because we was in shock that someone could be so oblivious to basic customer service skills. It really dampened this part of our day.

Unfortunately, we had a second negative interaction with the same member of staff that evening.

After dinner we went back to our room to get back into our gowns and go back to the spa for the rest of the evening.

On arrival to the spa it was 19:40 and we asked the spa reception if the sunbed service was still running because we wanted a hot chocolate. 

The spa reception staff kindly replied saying the sunbed service is finished but the sitting room bar is open until 20:00 and the barman would be able to serve us the hot chocolate.
 
We went into the sitting room bar and the same barman was there who was there before. We asked him if we could have 2 hot chocolates. He replied to say that we couldn’t because he just switched the hot chocolate machine off and it was impossible to turn it back on. I looked at the machine and it was the same one I had used in a previous bar job so I knew it wouldn’t have taken much effort to make the hot chocolates. 
 
We could tell from his mannerism that the barman was in ‘home’ mode and genuinely couldn’t be bothered to turn the machine back on to make us the drinks.
 
It seemed to me the barman just done the bare minimum when it came to customer service and would happily disappoint customers if it makes his life easier.
 
At this point i was frustrated because of what happened earlier at the octagon bar, then with the cookies, and now this. I told the barman his level of customer service would not be acceptable in a pub, let alone a ‘premium’ spa and hotel like sopwell house where people save for a long time to be able to afford to visit.
 
What made it worse is the barman then replied, ‘okay, if you really really really really want one then go to the conservatory they will Give you one’.
 
I was in complete shock by how rude this was and told him the earlier situation and this was not acceptable. He realised he had been found out, but instead of apologising and trying to help he replied saying ‘I couldn’t just put my hands in the tin’, as in to justify that earlier situation.
 
By this point, a lot of our day and evening where now ruined by these incidents at the sitting room bar. It was so frustrating.

Sopwell House is extremely expensive.

If you are happy for staff to be rude to you, then this is the place for you lol

Unfortunately I had to save for a few months to be able to afford to stay here and the experience was awful.

Sam

I went to the brassiere restaurant last night to catch up with family
Had a wonderful meal staff members Harri and Holly were excellent hosts They knew exactly when to attend to us without encroaching on our privacy. Food was excellent even children enjoyed it
A wonderful evening all around
I would highly recommend and will be booking again

Had 'Afternoon Tea' here yesterday for my birthday! Omg it was 'so'nice! We were greeted by the beautiful 'Quinton'!
Omg his energy just was so lovely!
Thank you Quinton for making us so welcome! The whole staff team here made our experience so lovely! They were all so professional, welcoming and gentle! It really was a lovely experience!
I highly recommend it!