Winchester Royal Hotel

Great location only a short walk to the cathedral. We came for the Christmas markets. Check in was easy, the lady was very nice and helpful. We booked 2 rooms but we were on separate floors so the lady tried to put us together but was not able to do so. We paid extra for a garden view, our room was right at the very end of the corridor as far as you can go so our view directly outside our window was just a tree, if you looked left you could see the garden but seeing as the windows barely opened because of safety locks we couldn't see properly. We reserved dinner for 8pm, we didn't get seated until 8.15 and our meals didn't come out until 9pm! All of our meals were very nice! No complaints on the meals, we also had dessert which again was lovely. Breakfast was really lovely, hot buffet and pastries with tea coffee machine, I was a bit disappointed there was no apple juice (other juices were available) but I made do with my coffee. Beds are super soft, comfy and rooms were clean although our friend's room smelt of damp. When checking out we we asked for longer parking which we were told was £10 for the day rate even though the signage states £8 and the lady the day before told us it would be £8. When we mentioned it the young man ignored us and then said that was the old prices, when we said they needed to be updated etc he just ignored us again. We ended up paying £22 for parking £12 for overnight (signage says £10) and then £10 for the extra 2 hours that we needed. Overall I would say this hotel doesn't cope well when it is full. I overheard a member of staff saying they were full. Lady at the check in desk was also working the bar in the evening and clearly didn't really know what she was doing but she was apologetic and tried her best.

I and an old friend enjoyed a very nice afternoon tea. It took a while to attract the attention of the waiting staff but, once things got rolling, I was it was very good. The range of sandwiches & petit fours was more than adequate, without overwhelming. Good value for money on the price. I refills of tea & coffee offered & delivered. My coffee was fine; the tea looked a bit on the weak side but my companion was happy with it so no worries. Bit of a hike from the car park for elderly legs but not far from the heart of the city. Pleasant, characterful building, a from what we could see.

Definitely NOT a 4 star hotel. the hotel had tried to "upgrade" my room. The "upgrade" consisted of a coffee machine and a room with no view, which was extremely disappointing as I had paid for a garden view room. After notifying staff that this wasn't acceptable me and my girlfriend moved to the room I had originally paid for. However, once there, and after using the shower once, the drainage hole appeared to be severely blocked as the water would take a very long time to drain away. The shower head itself was, quite frankly, disgusting. And the paint in the bathrooms peeling. The staff seemed to want to be some where else and appeared totally uninterested and one of the staff were rude to my girlfriend when she asked where the smoking area was, which is non existant as i would expect a smoking area to provide some shelter from the elements! And just to top it off, one side of the bed was like sleeping in a valley and terribly uncomfortable. So we had to move rooms, yet again. We were only staying for 2 nights, we couldn't sleep for 1, and had been in 3 different rooms! We were going to use the restaurant, but we had lost all faith in the hotel as the attention to detail didn't seem to be kept to the high standard as advertised on the website.

I stayed at the Winchester Royal Hotel for the weekend. As has been noted in other reviews the Hotel is right in the centre of town, just minutes walk from the Broadway. I had a garden view room in the new wing which in my opinion are the best rooms in the Hotel. I mainly had the Sandwiches in the bar which were delicious. I can't make any comment about the restaurant as I have just said I ate in the bar. I found that all the staff that I met were all so friendly and helpful. I am of course including all of the boys and girls that we do not see without whom the Hotel would not run so smoothly. I will definitely be staying back at the Royal Hotel again, but I won't be back this year as the Christmas Markets are starting next week.

Very solid 4... The royal is situated in the middle of Winchester, and an easy walk from the railway station, it has car parking, but this is limited and very much first come first served. The hotel is not on bad shape, but a little tired in places, the rooms are large, and good value, I chose to use the restaurant (despite there being lots of good local ones in walking distance including the Ivy), and had a good evening meal, which was not to expensive. The shower control was a bit hot or cold with no real mid point!! Rooms such as 146 (higher numbers) which are further away from reception have less corridor door noise..

This was our first stay at this conveniently located hotel. We stayed in a suite on the top floor of the hotel. The suite was fairly impressive but lacked the wow factor. The four poster bed, which I needed steps to climb into, was not so comfortable. The shower cubicle was small and the plug in the bath leaked water. There was an ancient rubber math mat in the corner of the bath. Definitely needs binning. Mirrors need cleaning. On a more positive note staff were all friendly and efficient, especially the receptionist at the breakfast room. Food and drinks were all good. We enjoyed both breakfast and dinner. There was no lift to get to the top floor and no offer of help with the suitcase for my 70 year old husband.