Best Western Bury Ramsbottom Old Mill Hotel

Apologies to readers in advance for the long review but there were a number of “interesting” aspects to our stay which I think are worth recording. 1) Booking / pre-arrival I had been gifted a two night B&B stay with dinner on one night. As we were travelling to celebrate our wedding anniversary we decided to make a long weekend of it and stay for an extra night. I booked the extra night ( the same room as the other nights ) through hotels.com on a “pay when you stay” rate so could cancel at any time up to the day before arrival at no charge. A few days before we arrived I rang the hotel and asked, if I were to cancel the extra night booked online and instead book with them directly would they offer any discount or at least match the hotels.com rate. I was met with a stiff refusal, and told that if I booked direct it would be more expensive? Bearing in mind the 3rd party site will be taking a commission it seems strange that a hotel would rather that than incentivise customers to book directly with them. 2) Finding the hotel The hotel is well signposted from Ramsbottom and we had no difficulties finding it. Parking is plentiful ( and free ) too. 3) Our bedroom As we were celebrating our anniversary, we had opted to upgrade ( in advance ) to the “Bridal Suite” however on reflection it clearly wasn’t worth the money. As my wife commented to me, if I’d booked the room for our actual wedding night she’d be pretty non-plussed. When you book a suite you expect a bit of the “wow” factor which was severely lacking; - The four poster bed was very creaky, if it had been our wedding night and were celebrating in the traditional fashion, and there’d been guests next door, I don’t think they would be impressed with the noise! Honestly nearly every time you moved it seemed to creak. - The bathroom was nothing special, no bath mat and no soap provided for washing hands other than the shower gel. For a bridal suite you’d expect something a bit more elaborate. - There was a lot of dust in the room, particularly on the walls and there was a smell of damp in the room. Maybe I’m being hyper-critical here but it just didn’t feel different to any other hotel room really, save for the four poster bed. 3) Leisure facilities These felt tired and in need of a deep clean, the changing areas in particular felt very run down and dirty, likewise there was quite a bit of dirt in the pool. 4) The restaurant This was the most disappointing experience of our weekend and made me wish we hadn’t bothered. We booked a table for 7pm on Saturday evening only to find we were the only people eating which should have been a warning in itself. We ordered vegetable soup as our starters which had a bit of a “kick” to it. After we’d finished I asked the waitress if she could find out what vegetables were in it.. she came back a few minute later saying that the chef “didn’t know” as he wasn’t the one who made it! Which begs the question who did make it and more importantly, when? For the mains we ordered steaks which according to the table d^hote menu should have been served with spring onion mash and seasonal vegetables but arrived with chips and mushrooms. We were hungry so didn’t want to make a fuss but then proceed to try and eat the steaks, which were almost stone cold in the middle! We sent these back only to see the waitress grab her handbag and leave! After sitting, alone, in the restaurant for 15 minutes, a manager came over and apologised. She explained that the waitress had decided to go home, but assured us our steaks were definitely being prepared. When they finally arrived they did taste pretty good and the rest of the meal passed without incident. Bearing in mind the experience and the spoiling of what was supposed to have been a special evening, it was a little disappointing not to have any kind of small gesture in recompense. Even an offer of a free drink would have been a nice touch. 5) Summary This is a hotel in a lovely location and clearly has a lot of potential, it just needs some TLC and lacks attention to detail in some areas. Note: Access to all bedrooms and dining area / bar involves climbing some steep stairs so isn’t really a hotel suited to those with mobility issues. Would we stay again? Yes for sure, but without high expectations next time. less

Stayed here for one night with my boyfriend for a friend's birthday held elsewhere in Ramsbottom. Check-in was good and the lady on reception explained everything and was polite. The same lady was there for check out the following day and again, very polite. The room was clean and welcoming but smelt a bit of chlorine, but opening the window sorted that. We had a bit of time to kill, so took advantage of the leisure facilities and headed to the pool. We were given lockers and towels to use and the changing rooms were adequate and having shower gel/shampoo in the showers meant that we didn't have to shower again before going out that evening. The pool is small; 3 strokes of breaststroke and I was across the pool, but it was adequate to relax in. The steam room and jacuzzi were excellent - I didn't want to leave either! On returning to the room to get ready, we availed ourselves of the tea and coffee and both had a coffee, which was quite good. The TV was also good which we watched before going out. On further unpacking, my partner went to hang his toilet bag up, but the hook behind the door had broken and was very sharp; the other hook meant the bathroom door couldn't be shut. I also noticed that there was no bath mat and no hand towels and no rubber mat for inside the bath to use whilst showering. We went out for the evening and returned with two other guests (who were also at the same party as us) at around 1135 but had to be let in as the hotel was locked and were told that the bar was closed (we wanted a nightcap with our new found friends). It is a little disappointing that as hotel residents we couldn't get a drink before retiring to bed before midnight (not particularly late). On getting into bed (I know it is a double, but being used to a super king-size, it felt very small and hotels should offer larger beds in standard rooms, it would be so much better), I was disappointed to find that the pillows were lumpy and the bed was a bit soft. Our night's sleep wasn't great. On showering the following morning, I found that the water pressure wasn't great and the bath was slippy without a rubber map and I feared slipping. There were no handles to assist with getting in or out of the shower and with no bath mat, had to use a towel for the floor. There also wasn't sufficient storage space for toiletries with only the small shelf over the sink, so most of my toiletries had to live on the floor. The only other small irritation is the lack of sockets near the bed, so my mobile had to charge on the desk when I like to have it next to me. Overall, a reasonable stay at a fair price. By the way, I held my wedding reception at this hotel 26 years ago. It isn't the hotel I remember. less

Spent one night here in early April. Spacious double room with ensuite overlooking garden at front of hotel with sunrise. Good swim in the pool. Tasty breakfast again overlooking garden. Short walk into town for the chocolate festival. less

It's a great place for me and my wife as her son lives within walking distance from here and gives us chance to see our grandson.the rooms are a little basic but the staff are welcoming and it's clean which is all we need less

This hotel failed to check relevant details of a customer with the same name as my husband. The receptionist who was clearly poorly trained (or lazy) clicked on my husband's name and failed to clarify with the person checking in, resulting in my husband receiving an email stated he had stayed over night. As you can imagine with such circumstances this could of resulted in a break down of a relationship/marriage. I am absolutely appalled at the neglect of the staff on duty. Not only did they miss use personal information but have stored my husband's details from 2004 not following the GDPR. I would highly recommend you book into a different hotel. less