Ickworth Hotel

Just returned with our teenage daughters more than 15 years since our last visit. This hotel is, just as we remember, a superb base for a weekend escape. Don’t be put off by any of the unenthusiastic reviews. The setting is magnificent, its friendly relaxed staff will bend over backwards to ensure your stay is pleasant and lounge areas, formal gardens, parkland and pool make for relaxing hang outs. The food is pretty good - breakfast in particular is delicious - and overall the hotel is clean and stylis. There may be the odd tiny rough edge - we had a broken blind in our apartment for example - but who cares? Where else can you see badgers, deer, buzzards on your doorstep before wondering around a Italianate National Trust palacs next door. Brilliant!

We enjoyed our visit to the hotel but the restaurant was well over priced and the service was bad so we couldn't give it any more than 3 stars. Our son stayed there with his family for half term and we joined them staying for 1 night. We had a dinner bed and breakfast deal - it included £20 per person for dinner but when we went into the restaurant there was only one pasta dish that was less than £20 on the menu so we could even get a one course dinner on our "dinner" deal without paying extra. Toad in the hole £21, chicken pie £25 were two examples of the prices plus meals came with only a few veg and it was extra charge to get more. Plus 12.5% service charge is automatically added to the bill even though service is poor - it took over an hour to get our one course. And our bill was wrong - I ordered a glass of the house white wine at £8 but was charged for a more upmarket glass at £12. It is a shame as we loved our room and the pool and activities for children are great plus we found the staff really friendly and helpful but we couldn't recommend it because of the restaurant. There are nice places to was nearby but you will have to drive get to them.

The hotel was very dirty and in desperate need of a facelift. Swimming & spa area had an unpleasant smell. Bath plug did not drain but sucked up other soil drainage. Bed was extremely uncomfortable. This was advertised on their website as a luxury hotel !!

The Ickworth gave us the ‘Ick’! It was such a disappointment, a real Halloween halfterm horror. This is the fourth FLH hotel we have visited and was definitely the poorest. Our first disappointment was being housed in an outhouse, a drive away from the main house. It was shabby and uncared for, right from the outside which didn’t inspire confidence. Both house and room had broken doors which didn’t start the stay well. The family room reminded me of student digs. They were nothing like the website. They were dirty, smelly and dated. No hot water on the first morning. Beds and windows were broken. Daily room service was terrible, no hoovering and dusting. By day 3 with of the four of us sharing it was gross but the in-house bugs liked it. Restaurant was chaotic, hot, poor and expensive. It is spread over three rooms so difficult to get any table service. Breakfast buffet was often empty and dimly lit so it was hard to see the food on offer. The staff were very young and untrained. Nothing arrived at the table together and we were always waiting 30-60mins for food. Windows were filthy and the one vase I saw of fresh foliage was full of dead leaves in dirty water. Chairs were faded and covered in food stains, as was the carpet. We stuck it out for half our stay then left. The senior management were very attentive when we complained. They seemed unsurprised and resigned to our comments about the poor state of the hotel. They said it is due a refurb soon but management needs a refresh too. Left feeling robbed, disappointed and sorry for all the families get to get through halfterm there. We were refunded some of our bill at least:(

The beds were hard and uncomfortable with weird animal eggs growing in the corner and we had to wait for 45 minutes before getting seated for breakfast. The cooked breakfast had nearly run out and the food was all cold. The rooms were all dirty and smelly and way to hot at night and the pillows looked yellow and felt like you were resting your head on a brick