Mercure Shrewsbury Albrighton Hall Hotel and Spa

What People are saying

Let down

Milton12A on 20/11/2017 21:45

We didn’t actually get to stay in this hotel as the hotel overbooked (or wowcher did according to them) but they didn’t email us until 11am on the day so we were half way there anyway. Not very helpful, they said they couldn’t find us an alternative (I specifically asked if the mercure hotel in Telford was available) they said it was unavailable but I managed to book a room online so what was that all that about? But wish we didn’t because we ended up going home anyway as the Telford hotel was ridiculously cold. What a let down this hotel group is, booked 2 different hotels, ended up going home anyway and still no apology from head office or refunds...sort it out mercure!!!!

Great location, beautiful building, lovely food :) .. poor organisation :(

Sally B on 20/11/2017 10:01

An easy place to find, with ample free parking, gorgeous grounds and a charming listed building with surrounding annexes. As I was travelling with a close friend for a special birthday treat, I had communicated with staff prior to arrival, that a ground floor twin room was required and this was ‘noted’. Check in was a little uncomfortable, as there are two small desks and other guests were complaining at the time, with little privacy. We were allocated our room which was in the main building on the second floor and when I asked for the lift, there wasn’t one. We were offered a different room and when we arrived it hadn’t been cleaned. The lovely manageress who was with us promptly sorted an adjacent clean room and went out of her way to ensure key cards worked and we were settled (also gave us a drinks voucher).. very kind. The room itself was basic, but comfortable, however, the carpet throughout was worn, stained and uneven.
We used the pool which was quite cold, as were the changing rooms and showers to begin with, some heating would be good there. We were unable to use the jacuzzi as two couples hogged it for the duration and it would only comfortably sit four or five.
We booked dinner and decided to have a drink prior to eating. The bar was very busy as a wedding party were there and whilst this shouldn’t have hindered service, it was clear that the poor bar staff were new and flustered. This proved chaotic, with the wrong drink being served, a long wait for the replacement and so we swiftly moved to the restaurant.
Staff should be trained prior to being ‘thrown in�� to a busy night, I felt sorry for the young bar team.
Our dinner I must say was really lovely, great table, great service and excellent food - well done all! A good nights sleep had and then breakfast, which was plentiful, tasty and hot. Serve yourself buffet style was great. Check out was quick and easy.
Overall a lovely place, with an excellent restaurant experience. Some investment required in staff training and decor perhaps, but otherwise an enjoyable stay.

3 Night Break in Quiet Hotel.

David A on 19/11/2017 19:36

Saw this break on Groupon and decided to go ahead for 3 night break. Paid £99 for bed breakfast and 2 course dinner with wine. Check in ok and we were given a nice clean room in the annex. The bed was huge and very comfortable. We also had the normal TV [ could do with setting up] + tea / coffee etc. Ensuite bathroom and toilet, shower.

The hotel is set in private grounds with lake approx 3 miles north of Shrewsbury. A real bonus is the place is lovely and quiet. No traffic passing outside.

Meals.
The breakfast here is very nice and is buffet style help yourself. Dinner on our deal was 2 course and a glass of wine. However, on our 1st night, the wine was not offered and to be honest by the time I realised it was too late. We then added 2 sweets at extra cost and was charged £15. At the time I did not question this. We had been given the main menu where it should have been the set. It was on the 2nd nights meal we were told the sweets are £5 from the set menu. This wasn't advised on the 1st night. Then on the 2nd night the menu was the same (albeit i've read it changes daily). I ordered a portion of vegetables. Sadly they never arrived which was lack of concentration on their behalf. However, what we did have was tasty but not large in portion size. But there again, I wasn't surprised.

We would like to thank Linda the waitress. She was great showing interest in us a customers and serving our meals to perfection.

Spa and Pool.
Got to say the pool is small and cold. Please warm it up. Jacuzzi fantastic and lovely and warm. Sadly, I could not use the sauna and steam room as they were having work done. However, we were advised before booking.

The Building and Grounds especially for Older or Disabled Persons.
It is a nice hotel, however, I was not keen on the entrance to reception. Up a small set of steps which have carpet laid. It was damp and if they get a frost in the mornings I would imagine they would become slippy. A proper cork type mat would be better. The path to our room in the lakeside annex is made of patterned slabs and in places is uneven. We had to go outside and walk along it to get to our room. No problem for us but maybe if customers are less mobile or disabled.
Make sure you check when booking and I am sure they will help you by offering a room in the main building.

Summary
A nice quiet hotel, Polite and helpful staff. Would we stay again. I think so.

Beautiful hotel and location spoilt by mistakes and poor service

PJGray on 19/11/2017 18:13

Immediate impressions of the hotel were very positive, a beautiful location, stately home and a gorgeous lake. We were staying on a Spa break, evening stay, full use of facilities, dinner and breakfast with a 30 minute treatment included. We had rung a few days previously to book a specific time for the dinner and were told "just do it on the day". Reception book in was fine, although the staff queried why we were booking the time for dinner on the same day?!! Our room was beautiful, we had the Thomas Ireland suite and couldn't fault the room or the beautiful lake view.
We went to use the spa facilities before dinner. The spa advised us we could "only have one robe during our stay" and as the treatments weren't until the day after, we could have the robe Saturday or Sunday, but not both!! Bizarre. The spa was disappointing, the steam and sauna were closed for refurbishment. This is on the website when viewed on a phone, but not very clear unless you keep scrolling all the way down to the bottom of the page (past the booking section). The pool is tiny and is also used by local gym goers. It needs refurbishment, a worn and faded pool cover hangs over one end of the pool, there are a lot of laminated A4 notices on the wall and 'Decleor' adverts stacked against the wall. The Jacuzzi can only seat 5 people comfortably and we had to wait 45 minutes to get into it. The general tiled décor is a hotch potch of styles. The showers in the female section were low pressure and took 3 or so minutes to heat up. Black mould in the tile grouting. Overall my local municipal pool has better facilities and is cleaner. On the evening we went to the bar prior to dinner. There was a wedding party in the bar. It was clear that new staff were being trained on the job. My husband was served the first of 2 drinks. The staff member wandered off to carry on training a new staff member and forgot the second drink. Eventually his attention was caught and he remembered he still had another drink to provide. Altogether the service took 20 minutes for one pint and one cocktail. It was disorganised chaos. Staff should be trained prior to being in a live environment, never mind one with a wedding in process. We went into dinner next. Although the package deal menu only had 6 options per course, it was a nice menu. We chose to upgrade to rump steak and pay the extra £6.50 each. The steaks were both ordered medium rare but one was medium. The waiting staff forgot to bring condiments after being asked, and we were asked if we wanted dessert, then the menu never appeared. Our server apologised and said "no-one told her we wanted dessert". On checking the bill at the end of the night we realised we had been charged for 3 steaks in total at the wrong cost. We asked them to adjust this. The general air was of plenty of staff about, but a lack of cohesion (possibly another training session?). We had a really good nights sleep. Breakfast next morning was a nice buffet and the morning waiting staff were very nice. I mentioned to the gentleman behind the hot food counter that the food signs were all the wrong way round and he laughed and said "that's not my responsibility" and walked off. The coffee plunger malfunctioned and the female waiter promptly brought another with a fresh cup, very helpfully. Later in the morning we had our treatments which went well and the therapists were very professional. We couldn't get back into our rooms as the card had 'expired'. On going back to reception, and standing in front of the young man on reception, he promptly stood up and walked off, leaving us with a young lady. She advised she "couldn't work the card thing" and we would have to wait for the young man to return. Which took another 10 minutes of waiting. On returning, he seemed unconcerned that were had been stood 10 minutes, laughed and said "oh that's always happening". On checking out, there was a charge for the morning paper which we had been told was complimentary. The general air of the staff we encountered is 'shrugged shoulders' and a lack of concern that customers may be inconvenienced, topped with disorganisation and errors. A shame because this is a beautiful location that I would love to come back to, but I get friendlier more efficient service in McDonalds.

End of week stay

_tsimcock on 19/11/2017 10:40

The hotel is set in lovely grounds, the lady on reception was really accommodating as the booking was for several rooms, and with some additional requests. Everything that was requested was delivered. Breakfasts were very good, the evening service was a little slow between courses given that the restaurant wasn't busy, however the food was very nice and well presented. Rooms were to a good standard and bed very comfortable. Heating was easy to adjust. Iron, trouser press and fridge all included in the room.