Top 10 Long Drive Hotels

Myself and husband have just returned from a wonderful one nights stay at The Grove. Firstly huge thanks to Alex Bowman, Monika and Mia for arranging our great stay for my birthday, and post celebration after tying the knot late last year after 33 yrs. There’s a very grand approach to the hotel complex through the prestigious golf course, and on arrival we received a warm welcome at reception, and congrats from Ioan ( apologies for spelling) who checked us in and explained where everything was. Beautiful hotel with tasteful decor. Our room was also fabulously furnished with views over the splendid gardens . After unpacking, we steamed and bubbled our cares away at the steam room and jacuzzi in the stylish Sequoia Spa located in the hotel grounds. Feeling chilled we returned to our room to prepare for an exciting dinner in The Glasshouse. (I’ve reviewed that experience on The Glasshouse page) There was a little treat of yummy happy birthday chocolates and card in our room, thoughtfully left for me which was a lovely gesture. After an excellent dinner, we returned to our room to snuggle down, only to find the turn down fairy had been, and tided and refreshed our room ready for our return. After enjoying a really restful nights sleep, we awoke to the joys of knowing we had breakfast to look forward to in The Glasshouse again. After another delicious meal, we sadly had to prepare for return home. We again had a warm goodbye at checkout from Kiri and Nishat. We live nearly three hours away, but my goodness it was worth the journey to visit this place. We felt so relaxed, and chilled after our stay. Thanks so much to all of the very hard working team at The Grove, who make sure their guests have a really quality stay. Until the next time. Take care all. Karen and Steve x Jan 2024

We had a really enjoyable 2 night stay having booked a good offer directly with the hotel and our review reflects this. Amazing location, directly across the road from Hampton Court Palace. Parking is limited, but a super helpful, friendly, calm and welcoming gentleman manages the parking area with precision – a bonus is free parking for hotel guests. Our Heritage Room was nice, spacious and opened onto a shared courtyard. Most rooms do not have air-con and even in early May our room was too warm at night, even with all windows open. We were located on the floor below Reception and did have footsteps / creaking floorboards above us all through the night, so would choose a different room if we stayed again. Food was really good and nicely presented. Service was mixed – friendly, but our wine didn’t arrive and when queried, were asked if we wanted this after our meal was finished – not really. We had a few simple questions in the restaurant but staff had to check each time as didn’t know the answers. There isn’t the feeling of refined service of long-time staff. However, the front of house gentleman at breakfast was superb – super efficient, welcoming and professional. The outside river terraces were closed for private functions on the one sunny day of our stay. We appreciate the hotel needs the business, but many hotel guests were really disappointed and feel the hotel should have a small area / few tables for hotel guests, especially as there is no other dedicated bar area for drinks / food. Everyone therefore had to go to other venues for drinks. Not sure where you would sit in Winter – there is a very small ‘Library’ but seating only for a handful of people. Would we go back? Yes, but only if we could get another offer – we will be keeping a look out!

Stayed here for 5 nights (Sep 17-22). Check in was the better part: easy and friendly front desk although no acknowledgment of being a Bonvoy member (not big deal). However, I forgot to ask, and they did not give me the WiFi code; more on that later. Room was fine upon entering. But then started to notice things: dead light bulb, dust on the nightstands, top of the desk with peeled skin (wear and tear), and of course the TV. Now that is something from the 1990s: a 30 inch old TV, grainy picture, and a very limited number of channel with only BBC and a couple showing very old movies from 1980s. You can only watch SkySports at the bar but not in the room. The next day I ended up taking a shower in a puddle as the tub did not drain well. I told the front desk and the staff who happened to be the manager took very good notes and said he’d have it fixed right away. Well, after coming back in the evening, I checked the tub and sure enough still clogged so went down to the front desk and another staff member (appeared very embarrassed) spent a few minutes and then offered to change the room. So, after about 30 min fiddling with the reservation system on their computer we moved into another room. For some odd reason my 5-day visit was done under two reservations: 4 days as one and the last day as another one. On the 4th day reception called to move me into a suite due to the 2nd reservation. I talked to the Front Desk staff and offered that staying at the same room for the same rate was fine. The junior staff agreed as the room was available and started processing but then ran into a problem on their computer system. He asked his manager for help and he promptly rushed by, summarily waved his hand, completely ignored my presence, mumbled something like “it can’t be done,” and walked away. The junior staff was clearly embarrassed and apologized and said he'd ask another hotel manager to keep me in the same room. I asked for the manager’s name (Lloyd) and said that his behavior was rude, not professional, and not that of somebody in the hospitality business. Lloyd showed up after the room situation was resolved and apologized for his behavior. Frankly, nobody needs drama, disrespect, and being treated like a nobody. After all, I was a paying guest and a long time Marriott member!! New room was a copy of the old room except the drain was not clogged. Then the next day I noticed the bathroom bulb was dead. Called the Front Desk from room, but nobody would pick up. Within a span of 30 min I called several times but nobody would pick up, so I walked down to report it to the Front Desk. Problem was solved next day. And now the WiFi: could not find the WiFi code so later called the Front Desk but again nobody would pick up. Another in person trip down to the Front Desk and asked why they wouldn’t pick up. Answer: oh, we didn’t see the phone ring! During the entire stay the corridor on our floor always had a minimum of 3 room servi

We stayed here for our wedding, and were really quite underwhelmed. We had hoped to stay somewhere that felt somewhat luxurious, but the entire hotel feels quite outdated. While they can't control the heat, it's unfortunate that they don't have any air conditioning - it made it really challenging to sleep, so I would recommend staying somewhere else over the summer months. This was exacerbated by the fact the bed was extremely uncomfortable - there was either a bar across the mattress or a spring loose, but either way I couldn't get any sleep (not ideal the night before your wedding!) The breakfast food was not bad, although staff were slightly abrupt with us until they realised we were there for our wedding (at which point they did become far more friendly!). Our parents stayed with us at the hotel, and were similarly disappointed by the hotel - one was staying very near their events room and so was kept up by the noise coming from that. The drinks in the bar are extremely expensive, even when you take into account the location. It's also a shame that the upstairs & outdoor area that looks out onto the river is for private party use only. It means that when it's a nice day and you'd like to sit outside for a drink, there are only 2 tables at the side of the hotel overlooking the carpark - not particularly joyous! Check out was also a bit of a nightmare - after a certain time in the morning the doors automatically lock you out (which we discovered while going to the car to pack up). You then need to queue at reception to get this undone so you can get back into your room, which unsurprisingly at check out time is quite frustrating. Overall, not what we expected for the price. It's a massive shame because the property is beautiful and in an incredible location and they have so much potential to make this spectacular with some care and investment.

We had high expectations after reading the website and based on the price. Overall we enjoyed the stay but it wasn’t quite 5*. The welcome at reception was efficient / lukewarm. There was also working going on in the lobby area. Our Chic room was on the first floor no mention of a lift or a help with the bags. The room itself was nice and the bed comfy, but the bathroom was pretty small for the price and perceived room standard. Our room was near the stairs and at the intersection of 2 corridors so a little noisy at times. My wife said the spa was wonderful. We ate in the bistro and thought the food was good an reasonably priced but the setting was quite functional. (Please invest in some vinegar!) Breakfast was fine but not special given the hotel. One or two areas are starting to look a bit tired. In general the staff were friendly and helpful. So in summary very nice but could do better. Would we stay again - probably, and it might help that our expectations will have been tempered.

This hotel is a clean modern hotel which is well maintained. My wife and I stayed here twice, for 3 and 4 days respectively while touring the UK. The rooms were comfortable for sleeping, quiet and the air-conditioning worked well. The bathrooms were well designed and very clean. Housekeeping was fine. The major problem was that both of our rooms were very small and they had virtually no space for clothing. There was no usable drawer space and closets were tiny and had an inadequate number of hangers as well. If you are traveling for other than 1-2 days, there is no place to put anything. Living out of suitcases for 4 days or more does not add to the enjoyment of one's trip. The Breakfast is at best, just OK. There is a minimal amount of fresh fruit and while you can order off a hot breakfast menu, most things we ordered were not very good, so we stopped doing that. The Reception staff was marginally helpful. No one came to help us with our luggage. If you need a taxi or limo to take you to the airport, you are on your own. In addition, the front of the hotel is covered by bus stops so the taxi or limo has to try to find a place to pull us to load or unload. There are just a lot of annoying things about this hotel, some could be remedied, others probably not. For my next visit to London, I will not be staying here.

We are members of the Lensbury and joined earlier this year. It’s an awesome place - great facilities and grounds. The biggest thing letting it down is the poor food and restaurant service. It always takes ages to order and when the food arrives it’s really not as good as the nearby pubs. If they change this, it’ll easily be the best spot in teddington - such a shame.

I am actually laid on the bed before checking out and couldn't be happier with our stay at The Pillar. I am a wheelchair user, and it is stressful trying to find truly accessible hotel rooms, but this one is including emergency pull cords by bed and shower, bars by toilet and a raised toilet, the seat in shower is bolted to the wall. Some people have said the Wi-Fi is bad, well we laid in bed and streamed shows from BBC iPlayer and 4 on Demand with no buffering! What really made this special was that a Chuppah was set up right outside our room and the central area soon filled with guests, and we got to watch this special moment which ended of course with a lot of singing! Breakfast was perfect, and the staff are very attentive, and over all I cannot fault our stay at this wonderful hotel.