Willingham House Hotel

Stayed in the Queen Suite. Initial impressions of the room were positive. The space was good and the outlook to the garden from our window was nice. All appeared as expected apart from the room temp (details below), but that quickly changed.

It's unfortunate, but there were so many things that did not meet our expectations. Below are the main ones: - Bins had not been emptied. We had the joy of past occupants opened Prosecco bottles and other rubbish smells to enjoy. - Heating had been on high it seemed all day before we arrived. It was unbearable, and even with all windows open it wouldn't cool. There was no option to control temp from our room so escalated this to "Reception", which is a 3rd party out of hours contact centre based off site, who said they'd "escalate my query and send someone up"....No one arrived during our entire stay and we did not see a single member of staff. It made the stay even more uncomfortable. - No instruction manuals or welcome information whatsoever, so spent time having to work out what different remote controls were used for (one of which we still don't know what it was), how to use coffee machine, find appliances or things for use during our stay, along with any info on local shops, restaurants, etc. The latter would have been a nice touch had it been available. - Coffee and Tea available in the kitchen was limited/not stocked. No mugs in room so had to search around for some in the shared kitchen area, and only 1 or 2 coffee pods so not much coffee was consumed. - No bin in the bathroom, sanitary or otherwise.

Big spacious apartment and comfortable bed. We liked the lounge area and seating and it was lovely and quiet. Having a microwave, fridge and kitchenette was really welcome and makes your stay more flexible. Although a sink in that area would be a very useful addition. We had a problem with the TV but a gentleman came up immediately and solved it for us. Great service.

Our room was not serviced during our stay, which was fine for us but nowhere on the website could I find this detailed. I think it would be useful to let guests know that rooms are not serviced for stays of 2 nights or more (or whatever the policy is) so that there is no misunderstanding

The stay was quiet and comfortable in an excellent location.

The room had been refurbished recently but the process was NOT FINISHED. We should have been warned about that. The things left unfinished were: no radiator in bathroom, no sink for washing up, the main electric radiator was only on or off. I understand that the room was for a disabled person so the location of some of the items was interestingly awkward! The fridge was in the same room as the bed and was very noisy.

Very quiet

Great location, you could walk to a food shop, bakery, pub and restaurant but you still felt like you were in a village. Beautiful house and gardens. Great kitchen facilities and lounge with telly in the house you could use.

Nothing

Big bathroom

While watching tele the controller died and the alarms kept going off so woke me and the boyfriend up.

Ideal for visiting family in the village

All great

Lovely setting. Very quiet.

Room was clean and comfortable. Nice having microwave and fridge in the room. Handy having availability of kitchen.

Not enough clothes storage, would be helpful for longer stays if maybe had chest of drawers. No towel hanging hooks in bathroom. No shelf in shower cubicle. Toilet seemed quite close to the wall.

Lovely setting, relaxed atmosphere, very helpful manager

Very small sink in shower room

Nicely done room, spacious and well furnished. Quiet location.

Couldn’t get into the room as the code was wrong. No staff on site to assist - have never come across this at any other apart-hotels we have stayed at. No staff answered phone - did not respond to voicemail message or email. Staff answered phone on second call. Gave an emergency code, said code would be changed next day. Had to call TWICE the next day to verify code - which was kept the same. The booking information provided by the venue and repeated by booking.com (I’m sure in good faith) was wildly incorrect and full of the most basic errors. Completely inexcusable. I am interested to know whether the refund for being locked out, with no assistance and no response to requests for assistance will be 50 or 60% of the full prepaid fee. This is a nice venue and has been refurbished to a decent standard. The appalling communication for checking in and the complete absence of anyone on-site lets this venue down badly. Both need immediate attention and a complete change of policy.

Beautiful location, close to Oxford. The room is is big enough and the bed is very good.

The sink was very small and placed low. It felt like everything could need a bit more maintenance.

Location good for us. Lovely village.

Mattress not that comfortable, bit of a lump going down the middle of bed.

Big open garden of which we had access to from our room

My side of the bed was not very comfortable (two separate mattresses making a double bed).

Well equipped room and comfortable beds. Lovely surroundings and terraced area to sit with a glass of ( your own) wine. Very friendly and attractive village area with a great pub and amazing Indian restaurant nearby.

Outside area around accommodation entrance could be made to feel a little more inviting. Main grounds are delightful. The main house is undergoing renovation and is understandably a little untidy in places but will be an attractive building when updating completed. The work didn't interfere with our stay at all, purely only from an appearance point of view.

It’s a beautiful site with lots of green area to explore and use. It was clean and had lots trees and greenery around it. Very quiet and peaceful. Pet was free with no restrictions. I loved that.

Bed was not very comfortable and room was too small. I was bumping into everything. If I had known, would have booked a bigger room. Still it was worth it, I will say in the end.

The location was excellent.

The loo hadn't been flushed, the mirror in the bathroom was too high to see in and was smeared, the carpet was unhoovered and the bed uncomfortable.

Free parking.

The Willingham House photos look great, but we never met ANY staff or felt free to spend ANY time in that nice part of the house. Instead, we had to help ourselves to a room key in a lockbox outside their "annex" which lead to a series of stairs and fire doors to the first floor rooms along a hall of flat plain doors with no resemblance to the photos seen on Booking.com. We imagined staying in some nicely decorated "old style" rooms with character and interacting with staff for local knowledge; we got none of that. Our room overlooked some run-down structures containing ... junk? Maybe Booking.com should consider letting future guests know that they will NOT be greeted by anyone ... will NOT have any help getting luggage to and from their rooms ... and will NOT be staying in the part of the house shown in the listing?

Easy access to our location and really nice grounds

Needed more accessible showers.

Willingham House and grounds are absolutely lovely. The grounds behind the house are perfect for eating out at the table in the evening, and there is plenty of space for the children to play. The bats and birdsong made for an enchanting stay. Our accommodation was in the Lodge, which is separate from the main house, and this was entirely peaceful. The rooms were good with comfortable beds (we all slept very well), smart decor, a kitchenette area and interconnecting rooms for families. Adam went to a great deal of trouble to make sure our family group had the right combination of twin, single and double beds - I changed this twice, and he was very kind and accommodating each time. A large kitchen, dining room and sitting room within the house itself are available to all guests, offering flexibility. On the last day of our stay Adam took us on a tour of the main house, which is still being lovingly and skilfully refurbished, and the rooms are going to gorgeous! Highly recommended! Thanks, Adam, for helping us feel welcome and comfortable.

A small detail that could be taken care of easily would be the addition of a grab rail to one of the bathrooms we used, so that those who are less steady on their feet can feel more supported.

The bed was so very comfortable and big. We had no communication with the staff except to ask a few questions before we arrived and that was helpful and friendly. The idea of a very small studio with fridge microwave etc would be useful for anyone on a business trip. It was very good value.

We felt that there was little room to hang or store clothes. We were rather sad to see how run down the garden areas were but it is possible this is being worked on. A real shame there were no communal facilities like a bar or restaurant although I gather there were kitchen areas. As a business woman, I felt they were missing a trick in not providing a bar with some food but I suppose it depends on how busy it gets. It is certainly big enough to host a function such as a wedding if the facilities were improved. Not really criticism just, hopefully, helpful comments The only really good restaurant in the town was as recommended Lot 29

That we didn’t stay

I arrived at the property today and found it very different from what I had expected based on the photos and description. The house felt quite run-down, and the interior was more like a basic bedsit rather than the “superior room” I had booked. The photos give a much more polished impression than what you actually get – with plastic plates, no milk or water for refreshments, a very squeaky floor, and an overall basic setup. If you’re looking for simple and very basic accommodation, then this would suit. However, the exterior of the house and the garden don’t reflect the “lodge” interior, and even the name is misleading. This is no lodge – it’s more like a student bedsit inside of a tired house. I went inside, got changed, and left shortly after as it wasn’t what I had anticipated. Unfortunately, I didn’t stay.

We were assigned a room of significantly lower quality than the one we had originally booked and paid for. The condition, size, and overall standard of the room did not match the description or the photos presented at the time of reservation. When we raised our concerns with the staff, we were told that there were no other rooms available and if we were not satisfied, we were free to cancel the reservation and find alternative accommodation elsewhere. Such treatment is unacceptable. Unfortunately, this experience left us feeling disappointed and unwelcome. We do not recommend this accommodation.

Due to a sudden change in our travel plans, I contacted the property the night before our stay to ask about the possibility of early check-in and late check-out. Despite the late hour, I received a prompt and accommodating response, which was incredibly helpful and much appreciated. The property had a charming, quintessentially British atmosphere, and the shared kitchen, living room, and garden made our stay all the more relaxing. Thank you very much for your hospitality.

NA

A magnificent building in magnificent grounds. A quiet venue with grounds to explore and enjoy a relaxing glass of wine on a warm summer evening. Work is in progress to make this house into a 24 room aparthotel. Our room was well equipped for preparing and serving light meals, with a microwave, kettle, crockery and cutlery. The village has two pubs, one serving food, an Indian Restaurant/take away. Two mini markets. The venue was a good location to drive to Bury St. Edmunds and Norwich for us Paddington searchers.

We had a large bathroom. A soft closing toilet seat would have been a good replacement to the existing one.

What a beautiful place. Host Adam was very accommodating. Our good size room was so stylish and very airy with having 2 huge windows looking out on the beautiful well maintained garden watching the squirrels playing. The room was so comfortable with everything you need. Cambridge is only 20 mins drive and Bury St Edmonds 30 min drive. There are a couple of great pubs with good food 5 -10min walk. There is a microbrewery also 5 mins walk. You have local shop, and a bakery. Lot 25 is a must for breakfast 10 mins walk. Great Indian restaurant and Takeaway just across the road. Definitely recommend Willingham House 100 % 10/10

Everything was superb 👌

Lovely setting with surrounding garden. Very friendly and welcoming owner and staff.

It’s in a good location, a quiet Cambridgeshire village with local amenities, great host, room had some nice touches, fan, coffee machine etc, fast, reliable internet, on site parking, it’s a good stay and value for money. We would stay again.

Nothing really, good value for money.

Awful ! Empty and stank !!

It’s was a shed Behind and 10 Indian takeaway

The location was great, pretty grounds, parking handy, room was small but nice with good facilities and attention to detail

bathroom door wouldn't close and the loo seat lid was defective , room was hot and the doors to the all rooms slammed loudly

Garden View room. Lovely big garden. It did have a fridge and microwave.

Expected what we paid for which was "Delux Apartment". It's not an apartment. It's an small/average sized room. Little room for the carry-on sized suitcases. Absolute minimum sized bathroom. The new electronic doors required a unique 6 digit pin number that is not easy to remember. Needs a rubbish bin. And bedside tables with larger tops.