Hillbark Hotel & Spa

We had our wedding and reception at Hillbark and the experience was perfect. The team at Hillbark were so supportive - nothing was too much for them, especially our planner Charlotte and colleague Sherrie. We were made to feel so welcome at every planning session and on the day any possible stress was taken away by the team. The food was sublime - every dish was perfect and they even made a bespoke starter for my wife who wasn’t able to eat her favourite starter owing to pregnancy. The space was a dream - such a beautiful location in a cosy building. In the cold weather there’s always a fire in the hearth. Unlike other venues, the spaces need minimal decoration and the tables look the part because they are. A fantastic experience with fantastic people… we’ve found where we’re going for every anniversary!

Absolutely Beautiful Place to stay. We went for my 50th Birthday and I have never experienced anything like it. Room Perfect, Food & Service incredible. Ever member of staff that we had the pleasure of meeting were so welcoming and nothing was to much trouble. Highly Recommend. We will definetly be going back.

We had the pleasure of having Hillbark as our wedding venue on the 7th September. The whole day from beginning to end was fantastic. The staff can’t do enough for you, believe me! Special shout outs to Craig the owner and our driver, Charlotte our amazing coordinator, John on reception, Luigi for his excellent service and Sherry. I apologies if I’ve spelt names wrong! From getting picked up in the Rolls Royce in the morning to settling down to sleep in the bridal suite in the early hours of the next morning, amazing. My wife Chloe, loved getting ready in the morning in the Spa! The food at the wedding breakfast was amazing and we have been getting compliments about it since. The evening food was also very delicious and our guests loved these too! Ignore the negative comments about the bar, the bar is fine. We put money behind the bar and this tab wasn’t exceeded. Fireworks of an evening are awesome and highly recommended. We both could not thank the staff enough for their efforts on the day and we would highly, highly recommend Hillbark if you are considering it for your wedding. An amazing place!

Myself and my partner stayed here Friday 15th and Saturday 16th, as a belated Valentines. We have stayed in multiple 5* hotels and consider ourselves to be quite fussy but fair with reviews! Arrived at this extremely grand setting and were quickly greeted by a pleasant young girl who took us to our room, a suite. The room itself was very pretty, great views and a Jacuzzi bath. Have no idea what the standard rooms were like but the suite was okay. I'm going to summarise the problems rather than waffle on! 1. No minibar whatsoever, no complimentary snacks, nothing. 2. Every time we opened our door we were immediately greeted with a member of the reception team asking if they could help and what were we doing, found it quite invasive and a bit 'much' as felt like I couldn't even have a wander or take pics of the place 3. I ordered salmon and eggs for breakfast on the Saturday, the eggs were clearly cooked using the microwave method which was disgusting for a '5* £28 breakfast'. Also, the cold platter they served us had soft/stale pastries on it. (Hillbark, what were you thinking?!) 5. I woke up with a headache, my boyfriend went down to 'reception' to find someone, ended up roaming around the entire hotel for about 20 minutes looking for somebody 4. The 'spa' is not a spa. It is a treatment led space where you must book treatments, and that's it. So do not take a bikini etc. as there is no swimming pool, no sauna, no steam room etc. All in all I'd give this hotel a 4*. They need to tone down the over familiarity and concentrate on the facilities of this place. Do not go to this hotel if you are looking for a spa break style trip. We came away a bit deflated to be honest! The phrase 'style over substance' springs to mind.

Having been to this hotel in the past, I was looking forward to a premium event. Unfortunately the only real premium was courteous staff and decent food. The hotel is tired and undeserving of a 5 star rating. Indeed online rating lists this as four star, which begs the question, has the Hillbark themselves decided on past glory and historical ratings to continue advertising themselves as 5 star. To example this, was several broken doors and one door with 5ply wood cut to resemble the old world shape of the door and which was a clear attempt to satisfy either security or reference as a bad fire escape. Tiles are loose on the floor, the carpet was old and worn. The atmosphere within the building is definitely rustic. To justify high drinks costs (including a £19 charge for three cokes and a bottle of cider) because the hotel is 5 star tells me that the customer is a cash cow and not a guest. No hand pull beers meaning a monopoly charge for what was a decent choice of bottled beers but very average budget pub still table wine.

As you turn the corner and see Hillbark Hotel for the first time, you experience the magic and splendour of this marvellous building. The interior architecture is exquisite, with delicately carved wooden sculptures and stained glass windows. The rooms are comfortable, with bathroom facilities that include a jacuzzi. The food at Hillbark is exceptional. The croissants are the best I’ve had outside of Paris. Everything is made fresh onsite and this is reflected in the taste and presentation. The staff are also very friendly and greet you warmly when driving into the car park. I haven’t used the spa facilities but this has been recently refurbished and I’m sure is as high standard as the rest of the building.