The Swan at Grasmere

My family enjoyed a wonderful stay at The Swan. We stayed in a spacious family room that comfortably accommodated us and our two children (bunk beds were a hit!) The room was spotless, comfortable and inviting. The restaurant included kid-friendly options, and everything was delicious. Our only regret is that we couldn't stay longer to enjoy the beautiful setting and garden. Be sure to check out the public footpath off the lane above the hotel!

The location is great, just outside the village of Grasmere. The gardens were lovely and we had a family gathering there. Our room was a bit small for the two of us and we had to carry suitcases up the stairs. The service was good and the staff was friendly, however it took us two days to get some room maintenance even after reporting each day. The meals were quite good but the special last night of a stir fry with duck was not. Sadly the duck was over cooked; breakfast were okay although they mixed up the servings. Fortunately we caught the problem before my husband ate something that would have caused a serious reaction. It was very busy so perhaps the staff was overwhelmed.

Unfortunately we had a very disappointing stay at The Swan. Firstly, I booked this as it shows on Hotels.com as four star but it is in fact 3 star. I would not usually chose to stay in 3 star accommodation as experience tells me it's usually hit and miss. This was miss. We stayed 2 nights, on the first night we stayed in room 16, our room had an issue with the drains in the bathroom. It smelt of sewerage after we took showers. This was so bad by morning that we couldn't clean our teeth in there. After housekeeping confirming it smelt we were told we could move rooms and it would be available later that day. Our night in room 5 made us wish we were back in the room that smelt of sewerage. Firstly it was an adjoining room so we could hear the next room clearly, not good for a family room as we were trying to get our daughter to sleep while she could hear the voices of strangers. Secondly, it was at the top of the stairs from the bar with a three inch gap under the door. We had to wait for everyone to return to their rooms after the bar closed and our neighbour to go to bed before we could sleep. Thirdly, it was on the main road and the internal double glazing by the children's bed was broken so it was noisy. Then it got worse...at 2:30am we were woken by banging above us and someone walking round continuously for over an hour while on the phone. This was in the staff sleeping area. The building is very old and creaky so we could hear everything unfortunately.

Check in was easy. We had a family room, which was large and spacious. Very clean and well maintained. Dinner menu isn't extensive but there's enough to keep everyone happy, and what we had was delicious! Breakfast was very good too. Would definitely stay again!

Was in the Swan at Grassmere for a family birthday group booking. Was disappointed to see that the option of a deal of staying 2 nights with free dinner on the first night wasn’t offered through Hotels.com as it was offered at the Swan Hotel. Our rooms weren’t cleaned, bins not emptied or tea/coffee replenished during the stay and when I queried this the duty manager said that they should have been done but they must’ve been short staffed and gave me towels etc to do it myself. Food isn’t cheap and I ordered mussels in a sauce that was full of broken shells and what I would call barnacles still attached to the shells which were falling off into the sauce. It was sent back to the kitchen and replaced with a fresh dish of mussels which were clean and much better than the first time. Staff were pleasant enough but told us that it was more of a pub with rooms than a hotel. Some of my family had been at the Swan some years ago and loved it - but unfortunately none of us will be returning.