Winchester Royal Hotel


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Winchester Royal Hotel descritpion


Having recently undergone a multi-million pound renovation, this charming 81-bedroom hotel is in the heart of historic Winchester. It features on-site parking (charges apply), elegant rooms with remote control TV, and is a 5-minute walk from the cathedral.
The Winchester Royal dates back to the 1300s, and has been a hotel for the past two centuries. The spacious bedrooms have a cozy sitting area, a private bathroom and facilities for making tea and coffee.
Overlooking the beautiful walled garden, the award-winning Conservatory Restaurant serves a modern European menu throughout the day. Full English and continental breakfasts are available each morning.
Winchester train station is a 10-minute walk away, and Royal Winchester Golf Club is a 10-minute drive from the property. A selection of shops and museums are within walking distance of the hotel.

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Facilities of Winchester Royal Hotel

Outdoors :Grounds

Pets :Pets are not allowed.

Food & Drink :Restaurant | Bar

Internet :Free!WiFi is available in all areas and is free of charge.

Parking :Private parking is available on site (reservation is not needed) and costs GBP 10 per day. | Public parking is available at a location nearby (reservation is not possible) and costs GBP 8 per day.

Services :24-Hour Front Desk | Currency Exchange | Dry Cleaning | Meeting/Banquet Facilities | Fax/Photocopying

General :All Spaces Non-Smoking (public and private)

Reviews for Winchester Royal Hotel

Review 1:Lots of steps-I use a wheely suitcase with my briefcase, computer and coat hanging off it. As I checked in the receptionist took a call from a prospective guest who negotiated a rate of £50 for the night. I paid £79!!!

Review 2:The room was comfortable, for a centre of town location remarkably quiet and overlooking a garden. Car parking was on the premesis and convenient. Staff were helpful. Breakfast was unlimited quantity, buffet style with plenty of choice.

Review 3:Not easy to find, Winchester is a warren of one-way streets circling one side of the city centre and we got lost several times. The entrance lobby could use a makeover. Word of warning if you have lots of luggage: no lift and no help taking your bags upstairs. We didn't eat the breakfast so can't comment on it.

Review 4:Great location in the center of town, near the busy pedestrian high street and the Cathedral. Good bathroom and a comfortable bed. Car park right with the hotel.

Review 5:The room smelt of chemicals. Room could do with the window is open to give it an airing

Review 6:Very welcoming, clean and comfortable combined with a hearty breakfast set me up for the day

Review 7:Minor picky bits. Bright green emergency light in bedroom, too bright for us and being picky water in shower didn't drain quickly enough so ended up standing ankle deep in water.

Review 8:Great central location but not noisey as off Main Street. Great shower and water pressure, bed really comfy. Staff friendly and helpful, especially Debbie on Reception. Good, well cooked breakfast which is great value if you book when check in.

Review 9:They advertise parking at £10 which is very expensive for the area. On arrival I had to go through electric gates on the premises to find there was no parking and then try to find a local car park - wasn't ideal after a long journey!

Review 10:Nice quiet, friendly hotel. Good location in heart of Winchester.

Review 11:Staff were amazing, so courteous, knowledgeable and went out of their way to help us. Beautiful bedroom in a unique hotel, cannot recommend highly enough.

Review 12:Had to pay £10 extra to park overnight in the hotel's car park.

Review 13:Excellent room, very quiet, very comfortable beds, immaculately clean. Reception staff very friendly. Would definitely go back.

Review 14:Heated towel rail in bathroom was not fixed properly to wall and came away. Reported first morning (of 5) - No action taken. Reported again and wiring was disconnected leaving item not working and possibly dangerous wire ends just lightly taped. Then saw house keeper last morning. Pointed out problem. She was rather dismissive and not polite.

Review 15:Location with free parking in centre of Winchester. Excellent food quality Very friendly and helpful staff except one House keeping member.

Review 16:car parking not satisfactory £10 per night but not guaranteed if you turn up there may not be a space. money will be refunded. awkward one-way travel system if you have to look around. loose TV connection which receptionist fiddled with but needs attention. not many progs available.

Review 17:good comfy nights sleep and good hot shower. handy for centre (on foot)

Review 18:The bathroom could have done with some attention, there was some damage to the door, and some of the paint was flaking; however, I get the feeling that the décor wasn't that old. This could have been because there did not seem to be any steam extraction system.

Review 19:The location was excellent, the room very nice, and the staff really friendly and helpful. And the water pressure for the shower was awesome!

Review 20:No-one to show us to our room Very expensive for the room we were allocated Very basic accommodation Lack of attentive staff although lady on desk was pleasant enough

Review 21:Location

Review 22:Parking. Premium rate at £10 per night but unable to park in either car park. Parked elsewhere and walked. Lady at reception was very helpful and friendly during the course of my stay but at initial contact she did not even look up before she said 'Be with you in a minute'. Not good first impression. Arrived for pre-booked dinner at 6.30 pm but staff were rushed and dismissive, although there was only one table of 4 and me on my own. Also did not like the lighting and mirrors!

Review 23:Location. Cleanliness. Quality of food. Refurbished room. Friendly and helpful staff.

Review 24:The slowness of the hotel when we first arrived to have the room ready It wasn't available until after 3.30 pm

Review 25:It was ideal as we had come to go to the Christmas market and the Cathedral

Review 26:Staffing levels on very busy night and lack of customer service but Hotel Manager rectified Asap. Would revisit at quieter time, lounge a bit gloomy

Review 27:Location is excellent for shops and restaurants. Garden view rooms lovely and immaculately clean. Market excellent

Review 28:Breakfast was not up to the standard of the rest of the hotel.

Review 29:Position and parking. Staff at the reception were outstanding. The room was large with seating and the bed was enormous and comfortable. Bathroom good.

Review 30:The room wasn't ready when we arrived at check in time and we were asked to wait. The staff member did not deal with this very well.

Review 31:Great location. Very comfortable large bed snd clean room with good facilities.

Review 32:There was no available parking despite being promised there would be. There were constant queues at reception. There was loud noise and shouting from downstairs until the early hours. We couldn't check in until after 4pm despite check in beginning at 2pm. Very disappointed and would not recommend.

Review 33:The room was nice

Review 34:On the first night I was woken at 5 am by a banging radiator. I went down for breakfast at 7 (having been told the night before that I could do this on a Saturday) and the staff there told me I was too early. One of them looked at his watch and repeatedly told me they didn't serve breakfast at this time. It bordered on rude and not a hint of an apology. I took my complaint to reception. They a. changed my room b. offered muted apology. I had to ask for no breakfast charge and car parking charge as an apology. But the lack of a good night's sleep compounded by poor breakfast service made for an unhappy stay. No follow up after my stay did not help.

Review 35:location

Review 36:Room in modern annexe, would have preferred to be in old house. Despite opening a window at night, our room was very hot.

Review 37:Location in city centre On site parking Comfy bar area Friendly and welcoming staff

Review 38:Staff rude when we arrived and said hello they continued private conversation wifi off most of time and no parking places they charge you 10.00 gbp daily for

Review 39:Slow check in and out. Bar very rarely staffed. Very expensive for few facilities and bar snacks.

Review 40:Very handy for shops and restaurants. 10 minute walk from the station.

Review 41:The room was a little cold, however when I worked out how to use the heating (of which I couldn't find any instructions for) it was great. There was also no blankets or room service menu.

Review 42:Room was lovely. Modern, clean and comfortable. East to find, staff were very friendly and helpful. Breakfast was great!

Review 43:Did think for the price, breakfast should be included. Drinks from the bar were very expensive.

Review 44:Room was lovely and spacious with a nice view overlooking the garden. Very clean and extremely comfortable bed. Breakfast was excellent.

Review 45:My only grievance is that the bedroom, and the hotel itself in fact, was far too hot. It was December and we had the window wide open in our room overnight as we couldn't turn off the radiator as the thermostat valve wasn't attached and we were sweltering.

Review 46:The location of this hotel was perfect, only a short stroll from all the shops and the cathedral. The room was clean and the shower was really powerful which was great.

Review 47:said only premier rooms available when booking so had to pay extra; room we got only difference had a disabled bathroom which we did not need ,so given this plus extra for breakfast thought bit expensive also cake or pastries not available with afternoon tea .room décor bit tired

Review 48:central location excellent breakfast very good

Review 49:Although the staff were all brilliant, I would liken it to a ship without a captain... They needed guidance as it was very disorgnised (ie: there was a queue down the hall at breakfast as no-one was there to greet people, I went to get breakfast and there was no eggs - they bought eggs, I got to the end of the buffet an there was no bacon!)

Review 50:Superb location, just a short walk into the city. Individually, the staff were all fantastic. Big comfortable room

Review 51:Hotel car park was full when we arrived and could not pre book this x

Review 52:Lovely clean hotel, in the centre of Winchester. Upgraded to a suite which was fantastic.

Review 53:The breakfast was over cooked buffet. We had too ask staff 4 times for tea & had nearly finished our breakfast by the time it arrived

Review 54:Rooms very clean & comfortable.

Review 55:Quite expensive especially having to pay extra for breakfast and parking. I've stayed in better hotels in Winchester for less money that includes both, unfortunately though I could not get a reservation anywhere else.

Review 56:The location was good, room was lovely and clean with a lovely view over the gardens.

Review 57:Checked in under wrong name so allocated a twin room, not the double booked. Staff could not then change this. Newspaper order not recorded. Unable to cope with guest numbers at breakfast so queued with about 14 others. Gave up and ate in town.

Review 58:Very friendly & polite staff Good bed Outstanding location

Review 59:Not really a bad experience but the check in / out staff are a little miserable and could have been more cheerful but perhaps they are over busy?

Review 60:Lovely atmosphere, excellent room and bathroom. Very good breakfast.

Review 61:An error meant we walked into an occupied room (thankfully they weren't in the room!). It was a little expensive for a room with no breakfast.

Review 62:Central location which made this very convenient. Staff were attentive and pleasantly helpful.

Review 63:The room was on practically 45 degree slope as the building is very old. We didn't sleep well as we kept rolling to one side, very uncomfortable. Shower cubicle was far too small and the complimentary toiletries weren't worth putting in the bathroom. Overall very poor.

Review 64:Locality

Review 65:Check-in staff weren't particularly helpful or friendly in assisting us finding a car park as the hotel car park was full.

Review 66:Room was clean and comfortable

Review 67:The parking was tricky but it is a city centre hotel, the rooms weren't ready at 2pm as advised and one particular bar personnel was quite curt and actually rolled her eyes at me when I asked for some milk to take up to the room which I didn't think was very professional.

Review 68:The Location was brilliant, the rooms quiet and beds comfy. I would definitely recommend this hotel.

Review 69:Incredibly offhand receptionist, thin flat pillows, water pressure so high in the bathroom that I got drenched when I turned on the tap in the sink.

Review 70:Very central, lots of nice restaurants nearby, good value for money.

Review 71:Parking - or lack thereof. After a long tiring, drive to Winchester and then having to park in a public car park some 10 minutes walk away, was not much appreciated.

Review 72:Patient staff on reception, in spite of the pressure they were under. Clean, tidy room. Pleasant outlook over garden.

Review 73:Only real gripe was the car parking. I thought £10 a night for residents was excessive....and that was IF you could get a space

Review 74:Fantastic location. Lovely room, very clean an comfortable. Nice Bar and Lounge area.

Review 75:2nd nights stay noise from car park at 2.30am woke me up. Musty smell coming from bathroom needed to keep door shut. No Wifi access until 2nd evening of my stay.

Review 76:Fabulous central location to shops and train station. Friendly, helpful staff with good spoken English language. Well prepared food and fab breakfasts. Comfortable, clean room.

Review 77:I paid slightly more for a 'feature' room. It was large and traditionally furnished with a view of the car park... Since when has a car park been a 'feature'?? Needless to say I requested to be moved to a more modern garden room with a view of the pretty walled garden.

Review 78:Centrally located for the sight seeing and shops this hotel offers a quintessential English oasis of calm. The gardens are lovely and the hotel is a quirky blend of old and new.

Review 79:Shower control was broken but it did work, just bit tricky. Bar staff took a long time to come & serve at bar & then did not know how to pour a pint of beer, half of my pint was head and not beer.

Review 80:The location of the Hotel is perfect for seeing the sites of Winchester & the Christmas Markets

Review 81:There a seemed to be a staff shortage and trying to ring reception later in the evening was almost impossible to get an answer. My husband needed the internet which was down for the two days we stayed there. The bathroom smelled damp and the walls had flaking paint. Breakfast nothing special.

Review 82:A wonderful location and position in Winchester.

Review 83:The receptionist was unhelpful and unattentive. My wife and I we're stay as she had an operation the next day, yet he did not offer to get help with bags or parking. Not being able to have breakfast (even just toast) before 6 am also not good service.

Review 84:One of the bar staff was really helpful, and saw that my wife (who arrived first) could not carry her suitcase, so willing offer to help. He also saw there was space in the car park too.

Review 85:Room looked out onto garden so very quiet, and an attractive vision. Very helpful staff, and excellent food in restaurant. Very central location, easy to walk to main attractions of the city.

Review 86:Poor check in. We arrived one hour early and were told to come back later. No offer of dropping our bags and waiting in the hotel lounge. Also when we finally checked in our booking could not be found.

Review 87:Perfect location in centre of town. Good size rooms and modern fit out. Secure parking at the hotel.

Review 88:Ambiance of the restaurant could be better. We prefer linen napkins for dinner. Good hanging space in Room 101, however, there was insufficient drawer space.

Review 89:Very convenient for the city centre. Good car parking. Very friendly and helpful staff.

Review 90:Reception staff had a poor attitude. Not looking up when anyone went up to the desk. Off hand and not particularly helpful

Review 91:Hotel room was clean and attractive and the hotel is in a good location

Review 92:Receptionists seemed pre occupied and didn't relate where breakfast would be etc. and didn't give full attention Our relatives were put in a ground floor room with disabled bathroom facilities and had to request a change

Review 93:The historical building itself with period features. Close to shops and sightseeing. We pre requested to get early access to our room as we were going to a wedding at 2 pm. They did oblige but were quite reluctant

Review 94:No choice of pillows, we found them too firm. The soft close function on the Corridor door directly outside our room was broken causing door to bang shut all evening until early hours and from 6am. This was not fixed on complaint so we had 2 sleepless nights. A simple sign on the door would have sufficed. However on a second complaint on checking out the staff did waive our parking fees.

Review 95:Very nice room with lovely view overlooking the garden. Perfect location for a visit to Winchester, walking distance to town centre. Friendly staff on check in & out.

Review 96:breakfast poor regarding the overall hotel level. Wifi not very efficient. No business center

Review 97:location very good at the city center. typical old style English hotel

Review 98:Staff seemed scarce in the bar/lounge - drinks took ages hotel feltcold in the reception areas

Review 99:Nice big room overlooking the garden good housekeeping

Review 100:When we booked I asked for twin beds for my sister and myself but whenwe arrived we had to wait to go to another room where the twin beds wereto be made up.

Review 101:The people at the desk were excellent!

Review 102:The location makes this a premium price eg four or five star hotel. 139 for one night - small double overlooking a car park and kitchen bins (bottles for recycling tossed in them throughout stay) noise from a wedding party to beyond midnight. Add breakfast 20 if you book it the night before or 33 if you turn up on the day. Add parking 10. So potentially 180 Bed and Breakfast. Nice, comfortable and central but expect to pay for it.

Review 103:Central location - minutes from city centre. Room was comfortable, light and clean. Older parts of hotel and garden.

Review 104:Surprised at the introduction of car parking charge. Dismayed at one of the meals (mine) being the served cold. Amazed to gave someone else's drinks added to our bill. I don't think we'll be coming back to this hotel again

Review 105:We have stayed in this hotel several times. Really good location. The staff nice and friendly.

Review 106:When checking out out bill stated two breakfasts at £16 rather than the £10 we'd expected (if you book the night before, which we had done, you get the better rate than just turning up in the morning). However when we pointed this out it was instantly rectified with apologies so no complaints there.

Review 107:Lovely hotel, very well situated in the Centre and only ten minutes walk from the railway station. Helpful, friendly staff and a good breakfast selection. Beds were very confortable and rooms quiet. We were able to leave our luggage in their boardroom by Reception after we checked out but still wanted to look around the town. Couldn't really ask for more!

Review 108:Booked our room on the spur of the moment. Lovely receptionist, very helpful and cheery. Lovely room overlooking the garden, will certainly book again next time we're in Winchester.

Review 109:The only negative is the size of the shower room. A cupboard would be a more appropriate description with hardly enough room for one person.

Review 110:Excellent location and helpful staff. We didn't eat at the hotel but the restaurant was busy both evenings.

Review 111:Night porter didn't collect my wife's breakfast room service order so it didn't arrive!

Review 112:Location was excellent. Staff were generally friendly and helpful. Rooms were good size

Review 113:The room was let down by a few small details. Bath tap wobbled, blinds hadn't been dusted, peeling paint in bathroom. Nothing that really affected the stay but just let down the overall quality of the room. Also, not enough on site parking which was a little frustrating.

Review 114:Overall the hotel was very nice and the room a good size with a large bathroom. The staff were very friendly, helpful and approachable. The hotel was in a convenient location for shopping, restaurants and tourist spots.

Review 115:It was in a very convenient place for the town centre and easy walking distance for all the places of interest. The Hotel was very nice with a lovely garden as we were only staying for one night we didnt get the full benefit of the hotel

Review 116:On arrival they had no record of our booking, though you had sent me the booking details. Luckily they had a room empty.

Review 117:Centrally located in the town.

Review 118:Shame the glass in the windows was not changed when the refurb was undertaken, Condensation in the mornings is noticeable.

Review 119:Good location, handy for shopping, comfy beds after the refub, [have had many stays there]. Fairly quiet considering its in the middle of a city!

Review 120:Just one issue at the bar, due to staff shortages presumably. I felt that the only member around at the time ( the receptionist) could have been slightly more helpful.

Review 121:The location was perfect. The parking was really convenient. The room was comfortable.

Review 122:Breakfast was poor kept warm under hot plates notcfresh

Review 123:Lovely hotel very conveniently located for the city centre shops restaurants and places of interest.

Review 124:Reception staff on arrival were a bit "not bothered". Bedroom window looked right out onto the garden so did not feel overly private.

Review 125:Good location in Winchester, room was a good size (we were in the modern garden wing). Pretty walled garden which was nice to sit in on a summer's morning. Overall feel of hotel was good.

Review 126:The view from our window into a kitchen of a family in the flats opposite. There were no blinds at our window in order to give some privacy. Those particular rooms should be discounted.

Review 127:The location, helpful staff, big bed and architecture of the building.

Review 128:bed was 2 singles not a double bed was too soft window was overlooked from several other properties but didn't have net curtain. housekeeping woke us up twice before 9 despite it being our check out day

Review 129:Mattress a bit hard and room double booked with no immediate resolution that evening and no alternative rooms available,but hotel are now dealing with the complaint.

Review 130:Good breakfast, location good and nice gardens to relax in.

Review 131:Restaurant evening meal menu limited and very pricey.

Review 132:An excellent full English breakfast served in a lovely setting looking out at the beautiful garden.

Review 133:A little bit fiddly to find, you need to be vigilant on the one way system. It was only on arrival that the additional £10 per night parking charge was made known to us. Not sure if that's something that needs to be made clearer on the booking site. I have never before had to pay extra to use a hotel's own car park!

Review 134:Great city centre location and yet quiet. Spacious rooms.

Review 135:I had to book the room on the day and so I expected to pay a lot. But even so, the price was very high. The WiFi could have been slightly faster.

Review 136:A very comfortable stay. Fantastic central location in Winchester. Being able to attach my computer with the HDMI cable to the TV was an excellent feature. The breakfast was very nice.

Review 137:The rooms are very nice and bed was really really very confortable. Shower are spacious and clean. Restaurant is excelent, haven't had such a nice dinner for a very long time!

Review 138:One of the towels had black marks on it, there was a used, half empty shower container left in the shower from a previous occupant, one bedside lamp bulb was not working and we felt that the high price we paid for the room should have included a breakfast of some sort.

Review 139:Location was great for shopping in the city.

Review 140:One way system in Winchester had us beaten, not the fault of the hotel, whose staff were most helpful in locating the car park

Review 141:Great location for exploring Winchester; lovely outlook from dining room; very comfortable room

Review 142:Noting but there was a water leak coming from the ceiling/room above. This happened just before we checked out so we reported it to Reception. I assume it has now been fixed.

Review 143:Excellent location close to railway station, shops and University. Lovely decor and garden. Quiet location.