The Cross Keys

Quirky comfortable room

Surprised to find we had a spiral staircase to climb to enter our accommodation

Good pub, nice room, friendly staff, good beer and pub food.

Location

No separate shower, no anti slip mat in bath.

Everything ok

We initially spent much time looking for parking The lady manager (Wendy )gave us a park next to their beer garden so very much ok

The room was attractive and comfortable, as was the ambience of the whole building. Friendly staff particularly at breakfast time.

In our room the bathroom would have benefited from a shower curtain for the bath. We could not understand why the inner glass door was required to be left open at (cooler!) breakfast time - the outer door being open is understandable.

Et gammelt hyggelig hotell

Location

Was in a annexe room very steep spiral stair to it ! Ok for me but may be difficult for some

Frokosten var ikke så mye å skryte av. Fet mat, ingen croissanter første morgenen og ingen frukt.

Rommet var veldig lite og forferdelig skittent. Det var støv alle steder, stygge merker på dører og vegger og luktet rett og slett skittent. Dessuten kunne man ikke åpne vinduene der. Bare ett like bak sengen. Det var også veldig lytt. Allergikere bør holde seg langt unna!

So location good, no parking at site, finished serving food at 5pm, 2 hours before we arrived. Facility closed at 8, no access to bar or facilities. Bedroom good, quirky in old barn rear outside courtyard. Shower very poor hardly any pressure trickle water. Very deep bath with shower in, no grab rails, no bath mat. No staff on site to ask.

See above.

Beautiful comfortable room, excellent food

Great character and location with a fantastic breakfast. Plentiful and reasonable parking located nearby.

Loud main road during the evening.

The bar area and food we had for dinner was very good. Friendly staff, a good selection of wines The location in the centre of town is very good. It's an OK stay for the money, we went because we were going to Audley End house and gardens the next day. Aircon worked albeit we had avoided the heat wave.

The car park is a 7 minute walk away, if staying overnight you either have to go to the car park at 08:00 and pay for the time required in that day or download the app and do it remotely. The bath, shower over and sink are exposed to the room. The toilet is in a separate room. Our room had a broken chair in it which added to the feeling that the rooms could do with a refresh. Only 2 plugs in the room, used by the tea and coffee making facilities. Lighting is a bit random. Breakfast was a little disappointing, the self serve area was small and underwhelming, the hot food was fine.

It was an authentic Elizabethan property with modern facilities

Location and historical quirkiness of the building

Bath in bedroom. Gave an initial wow factor but lacked privacy

Central location. Very friendly and helpful staff. Excellent food.

A good choice at breakfast, very efficient. All the staff so friendly. Dinner was excellent certainly recommend the fish and chips 10 out of 10. The hotel is old but cared for lots of character but with everything you need. We stayed two nights and would go back

No car park. There is a car park 4 minute walk.

Nice old pub and great breakfast

n/a

The location for onward travel.

Location

Do not trust their room descriptions or their billing.Paid for a room with a bath; was downgraded to a small room without one. Staff (Josh and Glenn) falsely claimed it was a Booking.com system error. To make matters worse, they double-charged my card an extra £50 instead of refunding me. Glenn Hopkins (Manager) promised to fix this face-to-face but has since ignored emails and failed to return the £100 overcharge. A formal bank chargeback has been launched. Unethical business practices.

Nice room, really goid size, great location. Nice breakfast

The shower wasn't very powerful, and was hard to use. The boiler cupboard on the landing, next to our room was loud at first, but thankfully the noise reduced

Friendly staff, lovely food, great location - quiet yet right in the town

The beds were ok but not the comfiest we’ve slept in. Ok for one night. The decor was a little shabby in places but tasteful and cosy.

Convenience .

Had booked a number of rooms under one booking and assigned names - hotel was unable to tell which room was for whom . Meant a bit of a mix up . Main complaint was the slowness of breakfast service , it took 2 hours to serve breakfast . Arrived at 10 and got incomplete order at 12 !

Room was comfy, my wife struggled with the light in the room when doing makeup. No full length mirror.

The lady doing breakfast on Friday was very rude. 20 mins to be asked what drinks we would like when there was only 2 other guests in there. Then left our meals on the hot plate for over 5 minutes and in the end I went and collected myself. When she did speak she just moaned about the night staff.

Good location

A little noisy with traffic outside. The breakfast was filling but could have been improved with adding a healthy option of fruit and yogurt. The pastries were not fresh

The property has been tastefully decorated encompassing the age of the building. It felt warm and welcoming

I liked everything about it

Aircon in room was great . Also it was a large room. Breakfast was good as were staff

Veldig sjarmerende og hyggelig m sentral beliggenhet

Kamer was goed.

Via buiten trap naar kamer. Niet handig. Ontbijt was te laat open. Daardoor buiten wachten.

Building lovely.

No seating area in the room. Glass door on toilet - no privacy. Cost of drinks and food very high. Bed very soft, not suitable to sit on in lieu of chairs. Breakfast okay, nothing special.

It was nice and quiet and clean

Locanda molto antica (XVI secolo) ma comunque bene arredata e accogliente. Molto tipica inglese medievale

Abendessen, singende Bedienung zum Frühstück

Schmales Bett, kleines Zimmer, Strassenlörm, Lichtschalter für Bad ist fast nicht aufffindbar

Lovely friendly staff, great location.

Toilet in the room wasn't very private. No chair in the room.

The shower was amazing, excellent pressure. Good breakfast, and we had dinner there too which was lovely. Great location.

Nothing really

Great location, friendly helpful staff, enjoyable dining and great breakfast. We were able to leave our luggage with them after checking out so we had time to shop in the local market and explore the lovely town.

Excellent brakfast, very good food! Liked my stay very much.

It was central, pub was nice and we had dinner there. Breakfast was excellent!

It is on the main road so bound to be noisy. Be aware if you’re a light sleeper.

Wendy and the staff were most welcoming and there was a lovely atmosphere. Wendy's playlist was enjoyable as we ate a very good breakfast.

Our room overlooked the street and was noisy, although the room was beautiful.

Buffet choices limited and not replenished

Great location. Lovely room. Good tea and coffee selection.

Sehr herzlicher Empfang, gutes Frühstück

Central location and nice pub with good food

Das Hotel hat richtig Flair. Es liegt nahe zur Stadt und der dazugehörige Pub ist sehr schön.

Die Parksituation. Man kann nur auf einem öffentlichen Parkplatz, der 15 Gehminuten entfernt ist, das Auto abstellen. Aufgrund des Alters des Gebäudes schließen die Fenster nicht richtig.

Lovely oldy worldy pub vibe!

Rooms were a tad small.

Central location. Staff lovely! Breakfasts excellent…..and huge portions!

It wasn’t the property’s fault we were there during a heatwave. Hence the bedroom was hot…….despite having a fan. Having the windows open obviously made it it noisy.

We really liked the friendly staff, very accommodating and polite. Loved her happy disposition. Very good location with long stay public parking very close by.

The food was disappointing. The sunday roast didn't cater for special requirements. Everything was cooked with garlic which I am unable to eat at the moment. Breakfast next morning, served from.7.30am til 11am. By 9.45 they had run out of berries, yoghurt, marmalade. Milk bottle was empty and they didnt offer to replenish it either. A builder working inside the building while we were having breakfast made the experience noisy and stressful. A loud speaker with unrequested music was only made better by the lovely singing of our waitress. She was the only rescuable item of our stay. The rooms on offer had some issues. Initially we were given a room with no window, just a small skylight. The blind was impossible to open. The alternative room had a very uncomfortable bed and some dangerous arrangement with bedside lamp chairs, the cables showing. Back to original room with a better mattress.There we found a broken chair and a broken light hanging above hand basin/vanity unit. We decided to stay here. The air-conditioning was a very welcome feature. Next morning we wanted to have a shower but the spray went everywhere outside the bath/shower making the wooden floor very wet even before we started. The actual bathroom is open plan, apart from the toilet. These rooms would benefit from a proper partition to divide the bathroom from the bedroom area. Both rooms we saw have plenty of space to do that. This improvement, new mattresses and fixing electrical issues, would make them lovely rooms to stay in. We'd rather pay more money and get better facilities. We looked in this central area but couldnt find anything better on paper. This is supposed to be amongst the better hotels/accommodation. Disappointing.

Historisch interieur, goed bed, lekker gegeten, vriendelijk personeel

Fabulous historic hotel in the heart of Saffron Walden. Staff excellent, food great, sumptuous breakfast. Audley End House, Saffron Grange vineyard, Bridge End Gardens all local.

There was nothing I didn't like.

good breakfast good location

we were charged more than we thought it would cost. Booking dot com stated the room price at £108 per night and we were charged at the property £120 for the first night and £161 for hr second night. I thought I had an understanding about the room rates with the hotel when I booked the second night by phone, but in the end we had to pay more.

Location and architecture

Check in okay but Slow and rather sullen service at breakfast . Level of cleanliness and excessive heat in the room ( to be expected this summer as no air conditioning). It’s a quaint place being so old and great that the building has been preserved since the 17c .

Food, location and comfortable bed

Hot at night and traffic noise outside. However this is a 16th century building

Ontbijt was prima !

De rest : NIET DOEN De charme van de buitenkant wordt volledig te niet gedaan door het interieur.

Wow what a find this place was. What a great place to stay at in the middle of a lovely market town. For a very old pub it was very well appointed and cosy. Staff were very accommodating and the food was superb as was the cask ales and wine list. Will definitely stay again next time in the area

Nothing

Character of building Hospitality of staff

Difficult parking Traffic noise

Final night of my UK visit. Had a great, one night stay. Proprietor was extremely courteous and helpful with my bags. Dinner was excellent. Chatted with a few local folks at dinner. Everyone was very nice. Great history and quaint village. Wish I had more time...

Nice room, nice food, nice beer and a great location.

Nothing.

Location was excellent. Couldn’t have been better placed for exploring the beautiful town of Saffron Walden. The staff at the Cross Keys really made our stay extra special. It was my husband’s birthday treat & Yasmin went above & beyond to ensure he had a memorable birthday. Even in so far as carrying drinks up to our room for us so my husband could watch the England match on the room TV on his birthday. Thank you so much Yasmin. Very much appreciated x

Nothing

Nice atmosphere, old house, original. Nice personel, great room… Bar!

Missing parking around, 5 minutes to walk. However in that old town, with old building it’s very fair!

The building is beautiful, the food was wonderful, the bed was very comfortable and the manager was really welcoming. I wish I had realised they had air conditioned rooms.

The room was stiflingly hot despite the fan that had been put in the room. The windows in the room barley opened and the one in the bathroom exposed you to the world if opened at a decent gap. The bed was comfortable but it was just so hot. Also the carpark was further away than I thought and in the heat it was a killer trek.

The staff were very helpful and the bedroom very comfortable. The breakfast was very good.

The property is in the town centre, which has its benefits but the noise of late night pedestrians and vehicles was very disruptive. The waste wagons were ridiculously noisy at 5am. There was very little water pressure so bathing/showering was not easy.

Central

Very hot rooms with no aircon on the hottest day of the year. But what can you expect from a 500 year old building. Otherwise it was very good.

Old property but with modern bathroom features. The staff were very friendly which made our stay extremely pleasant. Food was excellent dinner and breakfast

Was all good

Great quirky old pub

Centrally situated. Staff friendly and efficient especially Wendy.

Very little. We’re struggling to find anything we weren’t happy with.

Great room with comfy bed...air con...which was amazing on the super hot day I stayed and freestanding bath. Beautiful spacious room central.to town and ideal.to explore local.area. Lovely pub with great staff and food should you be peckish😊❤️

Loved all.of it.

We ate out in the evening owing to little choice at the hotel.

The location and the character

Nothing

The food was fantastic and the staff excellent

Seating in the bar was a little tired and in need of replacing

Breakfast was good.

TV did not work had to play with connection to get picture. WI-FI information incorrect.Prices in bar Vary from chalk board to menus. The people running the place never meet,so issues are not sorted, there is a complete lack of communication.

Everything

Nothing

Location, staff fri and sun mornin great.

Staff sat pm, was like we was an invonvieniance and they couldnt be bothered. If we hadnt of been out all day would have left and returned home early

Friendly staff, amazing food, fresh, hot, delicious. Great location, easy access to town and audley end about 20 minutes beautiful walk. Love the tea room attached, amazing addition. Great quirky outside area

Lovely staff, good location great selection at the bar and food

Food expensive, breakfast choice and quality was good, service slow

Ilmastoinnin puute Aamiaistarjoilun hitaus

Good location for market and local town trail. Not everyday you can stay in an Inn that is several hundred years old. Friendly staff. Good value for money.

Unfortunately our stay coincided with the record breaking heatwave. The Inn is not geared for hot weather so we did have a hot & sticky night.

Breakfast was excellent, and location was very Central for shopping, coffee, bars, & restaurants.

From our personal point of view we did not like the fact the shower cubicle was clear glass door and not enough privacy, shortage of shelving to put shower gel & shampoo etc on. A separate toilet but with frosted glass but also not very private.

Charming historical building in the heart of Saffron Walden, with a charming pub and restaurant area on the ground floor. The room and bed was comfortable and everything was clean. We appreciated the nespresso machine in the room. Breakfast was good. Easy to walk to the high street, the church and the large village green. The hotel does not have a parking area but the nearest local parking area is a 4-5 minute walk away, pulling our suitcases there was not a problem. Parking charges apply.

Great location. Clean and cosy. The staff were so friendly. Will be retuning.

Car park would be ideal

VERY FRIENDLY AND WELCOMING - A VERY PLEASANT STAY AND WILL VISIT AGAIN

BREAKFAST WAS OVERCOOKED TO OUR LIKING - EVERYTHING ELSE EXCEEDED EXPECTATIONS

we had dinner at night and it was indeed very good but was surpassed by breakfast which was superb. The room was nicely decorated and had everything you could want, coffee machine, tea, biscuits, good shower.

We had nothing to complain about. The loo seat was loose and that we mentioned to the staff.

Getting locked in by unfriendly staff

Lovely room. Very comfortable and a big bathroom and shower. Tea and coffee in the room. All excellent quality.

Lovely old building right in the centre of the beautiful village. Breakfast was fantastic with a very good choice and good service. Car park is a very short walk away and cheap! Dinner was limited as we stayed on a Sunday and it was a carvery.

We stayed on a Sunday and was looking forward to an evening meal and some drinks, however on arrival we were told they shut early on Sunday and the pub was shut, locked and done by 18.30. Only access was by a fire escape! This should be made clear when booking a Sunday night as it was very disappointing and if we had known we would have booked elsewhere.

Location and age ambiance was just what we wanted.

Nothing really

Food was generally good

The location is particularly noisy.

Nice room comfortable beds, staff were lovely, very helpful 😍. Best breakfast I've ever had in a hotel! Really well cooked , fresh produce. Great service, would definitely stay again..

There's no parking but we were able to drop off our bags a then park 5 mins away. No problem. It's a lovely interesting town.

A very comfortable room with excellent tea and coffee, also water and some biscuits. The breakfast was very good, plenty of choice and excellent portions. The staff were friendly and very helpful.

Very happy and smart staff. Felt welcome as soon as we arrived. Room was very big and quirky with a lovely comfortable bed and nice walk in shower + a lovely big bath..lots of tea and coffee and other necessities including a great krup coffee machine. The hotel is 500 years old and is beautifully presented. Breakfast was superb and the evening meal was the best we have had for a long time. We will definitely stay here again in the future.

Nothing

Great location lovely breakfast

Old English pub charm and very comfortable room. Breakfast was great, staff very friendly

Due to the building age the windows are exceptionally old and room was quite noisy! Traffic starts up early on the high street and some very late night (5am) ‘revellers’ sounded as though they were in the room with us!! Aside from that, a lovely room!

Location; quiet, friendly staff.

Little storage space, small bathroom.

Excellent value for money. Really good breakfast. The food and service beat expectations. Thanks Glen and co. Even the serenading at breakfast time was in tune!

Wine prices possibly on the high side?

Lovely old building, centrally located

Room a lot smaller than details indicated; bathroom dirty, floor and skirting, bottom of shower doors brown, needed a good clean; flimsy toilet seat lid kept coming off; casement widow which is only means of ventilation has no catch so window just swings or you just shut it; and two people for 3 night stay and only four coat hangers, come on! Sorry but overall very poor.

Easy to find, very central location

We did not manage to connect with the hotline wifi the whole time we were there (2 nights). Mentioned this to staff who appeared disinterested and said "it takes a long time" 2 days? Really. The equipment and system are not fit for purpose, and this is unacceptable in today's world On second day, staff on duty at breakfast were more interested in chatting and on the phone than serving and ensuring that all the food was laid out on the "buffet". No fresh fruit, and very very limited cerial choice.

La atención excelente y los desayunos buenísimos

Pedimos extender nuestra estancia y nos dieron una habitación (la 6)regular...la cama no era nada buena y el cuarto anterior (1), en general, mucho mejor.

das essen war sehr gut und die auswahl gross, vor allem das frühstücksangebot ging über das englische frühstück hinaus.

Charming old property well located in the town.

Our room was tiny. Overlooked the main road through town with a very noisy drain cover just outside our window which every vehicle had to drive over so we were disturbed all night and couldn’t see sleep. You could only open the wardrobe door 8 inches before it hit the bed. No mirror in the room only in the bathroom. Light over shower broken and looked dangerous.

Friendly staff and old world charm

The room was lovely and clean and the bed so comfortable

The noise from outside, a manhole cover! Everytime cars went over it, it made a loud banging noise that woke me up and kept me awake. Traffic noise is loud because there isn't double glazed windows.