Hunday Manor Country House Hotel

Booked to explore the lakes and visit friends nearby. Undergoing a refurbishment at the moment but please don't let that put you off. The rooms are clean and cosy, and well stocked with tea, coffee and biscuits. The staff are extremely helpful and very kind. On one night we were the only people eating, so they were happy to serve us in the bar rather than the restaurant. The food is amazing, each dish is well presented and prepared. It is clearly made on site, and the dishes are well put together with complementary flavours. For example, I would not have put pistachio ice cream on a cheese board, but the nutty flavour cut the richness of the cheese. When the refurbishment is done they will be charging significantly higher prices, so grab a bargain and go now!

What a find. A lovely country house hotel, with fabulous views. In middle of a refurb outside and the gardens bit the staff couldn't have been more delightful, helpful and kind. Dinner was amazing. Room 20, great night's sleep. Breakfast was simply yummy, definitely coming back again. X

First impressions matter. I had been following this hotel on Social Media for some time, particularly after it was taken back over by the owner and the start of its refurbishment. I was genuinely looking forward to visiting, but wanted to wait until the bedroom renovations were completed. Unfortunately, when I did finally interact with the hotel, it was under very difficult personal circumstances. On Good Friday, I went to visit my brother, who has recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. I made a dinner reservation at the hotel for 8.45pm, trusting the glowing reviews about the food and wanting a brief moment of respite. However, just as I was leaving the hospital, my brother needed some help, and I realised I would be around 15 minutes late. I tried calling the hotel several times to let them know, but no one answered. We arrived at 8.58pm, mistakenly parking in what appeared to be a service car park area, surrounded by scaffolding and building supplies, with no clear signage. After eventually finding the main entrance and making our way in, I explained to a member of staff—calmly and politely—why we were late, and that I had made every effort to contact them in advance. It was now 9.02pm. Despite this, we were left waiting while the staff continued making drinks and coffees, with no acknowledgement of our situation or any sense of urgency. Eventually, at 9.14pm, a man—presumably the restaurant manager—approached us. Rather than showing any empathy, he abruptly told us we were too late and claimed our booking had been made through an external site for 7.30pm, which was not the case. I explained that I had used the booking form on the hotel’s official website and had received confirmation for 8.45pm and showed him my phone. However, he was uninterested and simply wanted us to leave, offering no apology. Interestingly they themselves cancelled a table booking for me at 9.07pm but changed the time of the booking to 8.15pm as if to justify their lie. However there is one thing a hotel being indifferent then there is another pretending you never booked it with them and pretending you was 90 mins late and then when they cancelled oir booking changing the time to 8.15pm as if to cover up the fact we had tried calling the hotel and we were only 15mins late dont they realise i do get emails when they changed things! To his only credit, he did attempt to contact a sister restaurant and suggested another local venue, but by that point I was emotionally drained and deeply disappointed. This experience left a lasting negative impression. At a time when kindness and understanding would have meant the world, I was met instead with indifference. I won’t be returning, nor will I be recommending the hotel to others. In situations like mine, compassion and basic courtesy go a long way—and sadly, both were sorely lacking.