The Barnsdale, Rutland

A lovely hotel with lovely outdoor spa facilities

Location to Rutland Water was good, however, constant traffic noise from adjacent main road meant couldn’t have the windows open at night. Staff were excellent. Breakfast very good. Food in the restaurant is expensive.

We informed the hotel of a bad water leak at the shower screen where it meets the bath. Poor repair job carried out with mastic meant leak returned the following day. As we were in a 1st floor room, the accumulation of water would begin to show in the room below fairly soon.

Location

Too noisy above restaurant until 11 pm rooms too small for 2 people not enough space for luggage , wall too thin could hear next room guests and above

Location, staff, food

Bit of tlc on paint work on doors required

Nice environment, room was a decent size and clean.

There were some damp patches in the ceiling of the room, some remedial work is required before it gets worse. The staff at breakfast were far from attentive. They had run out of plates and bowls, and it seemed to be a huge effort for someone to fetch replacements from the kitchen. Labels were missing from which milk was which so everyone was smelling them to figure out which to have. Asking for more cutlery seemed to be a debate about what was and wasn’t on the table (or what should or shouldn’t have been on them).

Fantastic location, surrounded by beautiful countryside with plenty of places to visit. Food was excellent as was the bar! All the staff were exceptionally helpful + friendly. Our room was a good size and opened into the courtyard garden which was very helpful as we are getting on in years. The pool, hot tubs and sauna were great for when we had down time. We will definitely be back! Thankyou

Room was a little dark and was woken up with some road noise but did not detract from our enjoyable stay

It was so relaxing

Nothing

The staff were excellent and the food was also very good and the location perfect for us.

One of our party was gluten free and the gluten free bread wasn't very good

Breakfast was excellent, dinner could have done with a bit more choice and was quite expensive. The room was good, pillows were a bit too soft though. could have done with a full length mirror. The grounds and facilities were excellent.

Read above!

Lovely relaxing place

Could change evening menu was there 3 nights and same menu every evening

Location

Time waiting to be served

I loved how friendly and accommodating the staff were, they all made me feel very welcome. The breakfast was really well organised and tasted great and the restaurant was nice in the evening with a great wine selection. The room was comfortable and generally clean and it was easy to use the spa on site. The location is beautiful and easy to get to both Stamford and Oakham.

I thought that there were a few areas that were a bit grubby in both my room and the spa. The shower in my room needed a bit of de-moulding and there were a few areas in the spa that needed thorough cleaning like the shower and edges of the pool. The doors in the corridor I was in are also very loud. I know they are fire doors which is perfectly understandable, but they slammed so loudly and it was about every 1-2 minutes that someone would slam a door, which isn't very peaceful when you're trying to relax. I wonder if investing in something to go around the door frames to make them soft-closing would help. Finally, the lamps in my room were a bit dodgy - both lamps had loose connections so I had to mess around with it quite a bit to get the bulb to stay on.

Staff

Price of the water

Clean rooms and quiet

We were informed we could not use the pool and spa because we booked through booking.com. And would need to pay a further £25 each to use the pool. However if we had booked directly with the hotel there would be no extra fee. So we felt punished for booking with booking.CON ( Freudian slip ) . Also Booking.com provided the wrong address for the hotel ( The Avenue Oakham rather than Barnesdale Avenue) which meant we wasted half an hour trying to find the place and only found it after ringing the hotel for directions

Very friendly staff. Restaurant was lovely and the food was delicious.

The bed was very uncomfortable, the room and bathroom were very small. The telephone didn’t work. The shower was tiny with poor water pressure. You could hear everything in the hall including doors banging all evening and morning. It was not super clean.

Perfect for visiting the water and Barnsdale gardens.

The bar prices were ridiculously high.

Love the location, the grounds and spa.

Stuffy room with very small fan - it was a warm night although thankfully not as hot as it has been recently. Very limited space to use the toilet due to its position against a wall in our bathroom. Kitchen very busy and wasn’t sure they could accept our food order for 4 starters in the evening - we just wanted a snack and hadn’t booked - thank fully they agreed to. Food portion size small but tasty. One of our rooms had a very stiff firedoor due to issue with frame, my elderly parent struggled to open it.

Location. Good quality meals. Friendly, helpful service.

The room was slightly dated.

Lovely courtyard and very good restaurant.

Dinner was delicious, as well as great service

The window didn't open as on ground floor and no air conditioning so the room was a little stuffy.

Lovely location close to Rutland water. Great food

Woken in the night by someone coming into our room. It was the night porter allegedly looking for a suitcase. Clearly an upsetting and disturbing night that we didn't stay for our second night. Wedding was on that weekend and it was very noisy in the courtyard and with people up and down stairs late at night. No privacy in the room and stains on chair and carpet

Fabulous setting, with lovely outside spaces including the courtyard and pool area

Heated towel rail permanently on in the bathroom even in hot weather. This made the bedroom hotter

Country location, rooms lovely and beautiful courtyard

Restaurant was expensive and outdoor spa wasn’t all open to cater for amount of guests

Lovely

dinner, breakfast, all good. Couldn't use the spa, swimming-pool and hot tubs because we had booked with booking.com

use of the swimming pool and spa

Excellent location and a really relaxing setting with beautiful gardens

N/A

I loved the place, peaceful and compact The breakfast was amazing - one of the best ones I have ever had

Nothing

Fantastic place, fantastic staff - nothing too much trouble, An overall pleasant stay and will most definitely return with Doggies. Absolutely smashed the breakfast!

Great location. Attractive building and restaurant. Friendly staff.

More vegetarian options would have been good.

The breakfast was delicious and the location was spot on.

A walk in shower instead of a bath would better.

Good location. Comfortable beds.

Room had dead flies in it. The room was hot and only had a thick quilt. If you book via third party you don't get the use ofcthe spa.

Good location Lovely courtyard

good value proposition. large scale meals, well trained staff. kids and families not to everyone's taste did not use SPA facilities

Relaxed atmosphere. Nothing too much trouble for the staff. Food delicious.

Not applicable as all was lovely.

Great spot to stay,good breakfast and evening meal.

The courtyard space is lovely, rooms are clean, dog bed and treats for our dog upon arrival and lovely greeting upon arrival. The staff were delightful!

The corporate event was loud until late

Dinner and breakfast were good, menu choice was ample.

not sure of seating arrangements, indoors or outside?

Stunning location and facilities. Attentive staff.

The ambience , the surrounding country, the wwather

The dinner was great for some ordinary for me

Courtyard. Excellent main rooms.

Out attic room too hot

Beautiful setting and really relaxed

Outside of their control really but it was really quite hot and as the windows were small hard to fully open. Fan was provided but not sufficient. Consider not allocating rooms ok top floor where possible when hot (we stayed on a Monday night) . Bar closed quite early (10pm), with it being so hot it would have been nice to have been able to enjoy a drink outside a bit longer. However we had a wonderful stay and it’s only the reason why I haven’t rated it a 10 otherwise I would have done.

Food and staff great.

Had to climb so many stairs to reach room .. No lift and food quite expensive

The hotel was lovely plenty of lovely grounds and great inside and outside space. Staff were very cheerful and attentive

Some parts of the room were a little tired

All round nice stay

Very good breakfast and dinner in the restaurant. Lovely swimming pool.

The room was incredibly hot and airless. A small fan was provided but really for heatwaves larger fans should be considered. The window would not open vey much at all. Last year we stayed and it was the same - very hot rooms. The bar also ran out of ice!

Lovely breakfast

Clean and lovely gardens

Unfortunately it was so hot and the rooms only have a tiny window that only opens on one side so it was sweltering

We chose this hotel due to the star rating and was near our destination

No air conditioning. Basic rooms, no room service

The room, courtyard and breakfast were all good.

Slight damage to the bath in room and no “welcome drink” offered on arrival!

Lovely charming property with nice courtyard area, restaurant and a delicious breakfast.

The room was extremely damp/humid and full of spiders/bugs. Ground floor room so couldn’t open the windows in fear of someone peering in from outside. Mattress was sunken in and uncomfortable, bedding was cheap and thin. Definitely not worth £500 for two nights!

Friendly staff, excellent facilities, great food.

Nothing

Very friendly staff who remember you

Excellent location for many areas of Rutland County and great value for money

Terrific staff. Beautiful gardens and relaxed welcoming atmosphere

The only criticism I have is that rooms should have a small fridge. Especially if paid extra for a dog. I had no where to store their food .

The ambience and character of the hotel.

A loose loo seat!

Beautiful stone hotel converted barns very professional and efficient service second to none. The hotel itself was of a very high standard, nothing was too much trouble. Lovely two night stay

Our bath plug was slightly stuck but not a big issue Rm 6

Everything! The venue, the staff, the facilities, the food and the beverages were all incredible! We were allowed to bring our Maine Coon cat, Odin with us (we travel with him everywhere) and the staff were incredibly accommodating! Not only did they take care of our needs, they spoilt our fur baby which just made our trip. Highly recommend the restaurant at the hotel, the food is to die for. The Highland cows by the swimming pool just tops off our stay 😍

Nothing to dislike! Our room could have just done with a ceiling light over the bedroom itself.

We stayed at The Barnsdale and honestly, it’s a fantastic little bougie gem. From the moment we arrived, everything felt spot on — check-in came with a complimentary glass of wine, which was such a lovely touch and set the tone straight away. We even had lunch in the beautiful courtyard, and the food throughout was genuinely delicious. Our room was gorgeous: very quaint, beautifully styled, and the bed was incredibly comfortable. The shower deserves a special mention too — seriously powerful and refreshing. Dinner was equally impressive — truly exquisite food — and the staff and management were consistently polite, friendly, and attentive. We were even treated to a complimentary nightcap with our meal, which was a really nice finishing touch. Breakfast was simple but made with good-quality produce and did the job perfectly. There’s also a lovely spa on site, which we didn’t get time to use this visit, but it’s definitely on the list for next time because we’ll absolutely be returning to this hidden gem.

N/A

Everything about the stay was perfect. Room was lovely, staff were amazing and the location was perfect.

Lunch menu a little limited

Beautiful grounds. We were guests at a wedding here. The staff were incredibly attentive.

We stayed during a heatwave, and there is no air con at the property.

Excellent

Excellent

Lovely hotel in a beautiful area.

Nothing

De rustige ligging, de gezellige sfeer, het lekkere eten en het personeel.

Lovely setting, great restaurant and friendly staff.

Friendly comfortable atmosphere staff very friendly and experienced help us feel relaxed . Outdoor spa added extra

Shower in room 5 very low pressure ( might need a descale ) impossible to get shower temperature correct either too hot or cool

The room was well-sized, with a lovely view. The restaurant and spa were both excellent and the staff were friendly and helpful.

Location

No hot water! So we didn't have a shower or bath!

The restaurant is very good but make sure to book (even as a guest) because it’s small and lots of local use it. The rooms themselves are very spacious and comfortable

I was disappointed by the lack of social or relaxation rooms, apart from the bar area of the restaurant we had to relax in our room. The spa is good for summer but only has a small sauna (max 3 people) and 3 hots tubs.

The dinner menu was lovely can’t complain too food Also The grounds are lovely an the rooms are nice

Did not no before booking about a weeding on the Saturday I get you do weedings there but should of been told as wanted a relaxing weekend An also the builders this morning out side my window with diggers an dumpers lovely end to are stay We got a £30 pound refund from the charges to the room Also the breakfast was no better then a 5/10 high street cafe let down

Great location. Beautiful setting. Very friendly and helpful staff. Good breakfast.

The room could do with better blinds or curtains in order to ensure that the room remains darker in the morning. We were surprised by the additional charge for the use of the Spa facilities for guests who booked through a third party like booking.com. The booking.com page clearly did not properly explain this. It mentions under facilities: "Great for your stay: Spa and wellness center". Nor did the hotel's website: it specifically mentioned that ALL guests had complementary access to the spa facilities.

Just wonderful as always

Friendly staff. Lovely grounds.

Didn’t like dogs in dinning room. Meals were only acceptable.

Breakfast was good, but a little slow in arriving. Variety of items good.

More staff who were attentive to guests needs.

Everything - particularly the staff who were all brilliant! Very happy to pay the service charge added to the bill for dinner - not something I've experienced in a hotel before.

The breakfast menu is confusing. It suggests you need to pay for a hot breakfast but we weren't charged?

Location; good with dogs

Rooms were little dated - and no heating in shower room; breakfast ok but coffee machine not working

Lovely hotel and staff. Cooked breakfast was good. Coffee bags in the room were great, so much better than instant.

There was nothing to dislike

Lovely location nice atmosphere good parking nice staff comfortable room and bed nice and clean

No bath robes room. Was offered complimentary glass of wine on my arrival but only could offer red and I drink white only. When I asked if I could have a glass of white I was told sorry no and that was it! I would have expected both could have been offered and perhaps not the best thing to Happen on my first visit to the hotel.

Breakfast was outstanding and the heated pool was nice and the hot tubs.

Food was excellent. Restaurant staff very attentive. Outdoor pool a treat but had to pay extra. Small gifts for the kids- a lovely touch. Late check out useful.

Issue with the bath taps - some kind of specs of dirt coming out of them. Receptionist not very apologetic about this.

Great location and rooms. Restaurant menu and staff fist rate.

Parking for hotel very busy due to event in adjacent property.

Lovely hotel in a beautiful setting, ideally placed for Rutland Water & the surrounding water

The waiting/bar staff were lovely & exceptionally helpful but I felt they lacked guidance/training. The bar service & evening meal service was slow.

I enjoyed a very comfortable 1 night stay at Barnsdale, every was excellent.

Staff couldn’t have been more helpful, every single person gave us really excellent customer service

Nothing at all

Beautiful location , loved the Highland cows

Seat cushions in restaurant were grubby and bottom bases of tables need a good clean

Staff friendly, efficient and welcoming. Room so comfortable - bar area just right

Bar prices top end! Understandable but pricey!

Cost feel as old building. Nice grounds!

Main road nearby (not too noisy but aware it was there from my room)

It is a fabulous hotel and gardens in a great location. The staff were all very friendly and helpful, the facilities perfect, and all the little extras were a very nice surprise. We had lunch and breakfast during our stay, and we were very impressed with the quality of food. The room and bed were very comfortable and clean. Overall, The Barnsdale exceeded our expectations, and we look forward to returning.

Breakfast excellent, rooms airy and bed very comfortable lovely room to sleep ad stay

Nothing

Breakfast was nice, no tea pot available so had coffee from a machine instead…

The staff need training in how to serve tables. Ordered a drink, and then the meal, meal was cooked and had arrived before my water! Ordered a pudding, table was not relaid. Pudding arrived. Nothing to eat with. Disappointing. Took more time making the empty tables look nice than actually dealing with visitors. Also no biscuits in the room, nothing. Not even when asked at reception!

Very friendly staff, comfortable room & a good breakfast.

Nothing

Restaurant staff was great Location is good

Our room was not very clean You pay extra for baby cot

Breakfast tasty, plenty of choice of most things. Well labelled and staff helpful if anything extra needed. Dinner delicious. Lovely ambiance, views and gardens.

Service rather slow as staff struggled on very busy Saturday eve but they remained helpful and did their best. Stairs to bedrooms would not suit folk with mobility issues.

Great location, lovely food and friendly staff

All good

Wonderful location Good food We loved the Highland cattle!

Little niggles in the bathroom Leaking shower