My partner and I booked this hotel as we were seeing Bryan Adams at the Widnes Stadium. From their pictures on the website this looked like a reasonable and even ‘nice’ hotel. Little did we know that the photos were taken before the ‘war’….and if you are wondering which war ….I would say the 1st World War!!!!!! We were given room 15 ….as we ventured through the first door, the managers office was open…we think this is where they were attempting to be the Wombles of Widnes….this was based upon the huge amount of RUBBISH within the office ….it was awful!! So…….we ventured down the corridor to the first door on our left….we were very reluctant to open the door…..YES you guessed it….it just got worse!!! The aroma was one of sweaty socks and a Jock Strap that had been worn for 3 week!!!! The wonderful decor represented post war apocalypse…upon entering the Danger Zone (our room) we thought we had a jet engine running the portable air con unit…so we simply decided to be 🥵. It’s gets better…… The partition to the ….yes…..’Partition’ ….bathroom was louvred doors….delightful. Luckily the lights were not working…we decided this was a deliberate move from the hotel to prevent cardiac arrests being experienced. The bed ….or shall we say the concrete mattress was a form of torture…my partner sprayed her tee shirt with perfume and used this to lay on as the pillow cases had a unpleasant aroma. If you you would like a house of horror experience this is the hotel for you!!!! In all seriousness this hotel needs major refurbishment…the images that they show you are NOT true…….good luck 🥴🥴🥴🥴…
This is our local, every time we go either for drinks or lovely food. Staff are lovely especially Cath who goes above and beyond to make our visit special. Cath is a great asset to the Hotel and makes everyone welcome and she accommodates everyone.
Booking ref 3593433222 Awful experience. I have worked in customer service my entire life and never experienced such a poor attitude. I have stayed here before but now will never stay here again. As other reviews state, the place is run down but I’ve never minded that. It’s the customer service on this occasion that was unforgivable.
We felt unsafe. Our car was broken into and when we asked for simple help we were refused. The door to the hotel room would not lock properly!!! My children were crying the whole time and we didn’t get any sleep. My babies were so frightened. We asked to move rooms and got laughed at!!!!
At the bottom of this review I'll get to the real compassionless problem with this hotel - but first, it was quite an adventure. Well, what a horrifying experience. At first The Hillcrest Hotel (in Widnes) seems to be ok. Good prices, OK rooms (from the photos). But once inside it's genuinely like something from a horror film. Firstly there are the undead zombies who are waiting for you, just out of reach of reception which means you spend 5 minutes just standing there waiting for someone to show up. True to character, they move at true zombie pace meaning you 'can' outrun them should you decide to forfeit your non-returnable booking charge. As there is a cost of living crisis on our hands, I decided to fend them off - Walking Dead style - and collect my room key after them trying to charge me for a room I'd already paid for. Up the stairs I go with a chill in the air, fully expecting Norman Bates as I turn the corner. The door to my room was slightly open on arrival, which again added to mystery. I didn't have the courage to check behind the shower curtain, in fact I didn't enter the bathroom for the entirety of my stay due to the fear of someone being in the shower... waiting... For those who like a bit of 4ft x 8ft ply sheets (the wood, not cotton), then you're in luck. They appear to have made the beds from them. I deduced this through 2 methods. 1, I lay on the 'bed' and it was uncomfortable. 2, the amount of banging I heard from next door (both physical banging and...well... the other type) I was sure it was a ply board frame slapping against a wafer thin plasterboard wall. Throughout my stay, it's the customer service where the REAL money is spent. It was nothing short of superb (after the zombie apocalypse start). The staff would always go out of their way to make life difficult for you. Like they REALLY seemed to enjoy it for a company who'd replace them in a heartbeat. That's real commitment. This started from prior to our visit, and then all the way through until the end when they attempted to add additional charges to my bill. A personal highlight to show just how bad the service was, is when we booked. We had an issue with our booking as we booked it in a bit of a rush. It was the wrong date. We got the wrong Monday - so 7 days. A really easy thing to do when your personal life has taken a huge knock by a sudden death in the family. The room was booked so we could travel from down south for the funeral. Tried to email them through their advertised address. It bounced. So we went via booking.com. Rather than have an ounce of compassion - we merely got a response akin to Carol from Little Britain... "Computer says no" - not from Booking.com (a giant company), but they passed this message onto us from the hotel through them. We asked politely but still no. I understand fully that people must try it on. However, The Hillcrest Hotel on this occasion showed a complete lack of compassion and understanding. They were unreasonable, as we didn't even want anything refunded, and it was an extreme circumstance. So, The Hillcrest Hotel have made their bed (metaphorically only)... However, if your reading this as a potential customer, please book somewhere else. They kept the £60 or so for the room. If we can put a few people off staying it'll cost them much more than it would have done just to move our booking to 1 week later, to help us look after our family and attend a funeral. Remember, we didn't even want the refund. Just a bit of empathy.…
We booked a table early evening, we were told we could not have 6 pm as the restaurant had a large table. We arrived at 6:15 to find very little tables occupied. The service was poor, drinks arrived one by one, the food was lovely but understand the chef was on his own and doing a sterling job, even having to deliver some food himself, as a lack of support from the front of house. The real downfall in the whole evening was the attitude and behaviour of the front of house manager who seems to think that it is wholly acceptable to substitute inferior spirits to advertised premier spirits to cocktails without consulting the customer. He asked if the food was okay and we confirmed it was to which he replied …..you could be more convincing!!!! When we explained how awful he had been he spent so much time arguing!!!! Really?? We were celebrating a 79th birthday? He then complained to me that he only had 1 chef on and 2 waiters….how is that my fault and why would you not prepare for the night before a long bank holiday weekend? It was shocking….…
Stayed here for business purposes as was working in the local area. Hotel was nice, parts appear to be having a refurbishment but other areas could also do with some money being spent on updating them. My room itself was great, and overall i enjoyed my stay. Evening meal was really nice, just a shame the gentleman at the bar got a bit high-rate when i asked him to take the £5 service charge off that he added to my bill by himself. (He had also cheekily charged me for a pint of alcohol when i had actually ordered a coke too, so was already not impressed). The company i work for only give us a small allowance and will not allow us to pay a tip on our company card so i had to have it removed, which he did not like. He was the only let down from my stay. Breakfast was superb, wait staff lovely on a morning and friendly too. Would stop at again if working in the local area.…
Stayed here as we were going to a wedding nearby. The staff are friendly and helpful, but the hotel itself is quite dated and needs an update. The bar and outside area is newer though and very nice. The walls are also very thin and we were woken up constantly by slamming doors and people in neighbouring rooms. If you stay here, use the tablet in the reception to get free parking, we accidentally paid for parking as we didn't realise.
We booked this hotel last minute and couldn’t believe the rate we managed to secure! On arrival the staff were really friendly and approachable, the room was basic but comfortable and had everything we needed (including tea/coffee making facilities), the breakfast was cooked to order and delicious and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. Excellent value for money.
The food is amazing. The staff is amazing. The atmosphere is comfortable and calm. Nice outdoor and inside area. Best new find in Widnes! Completely upgraded inside out. My food was so good, had to pass on my compliments. Came here with my mum, it’s a great lunch or dinner spot next to the fire outside or with the music inside. I’ll be coming back here ASAP
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