The Red Lion Hotel

Lovely oldy worldy hotel - lots of character and really helpful attentive staff. Our stay was rounded up by a fantastic Sunday lunch that was such good value for money - just under £8 per person for 2 courses in the lovely Tudor restaurant. Thanks for a lovely stay.

My fiancee and I stayed at the Red Lion in Colchester in September. We wanted to get away for a few days, and having read the history of Colchester, I thought it would be a nice break from London. We stayed 2 nights at the hotel, and yes, one night was pretty much a sleepless one due to the very, very loud nightclub across the street. It's not just the club, but after it closed there were hundreds of teen/early twenty-somethings outside yelling and continuing the party. I've nothing against partying, but it seems like the police should come by and scoot some of these folks to homes, late night venues...wherever. Don't think I'll be staying on any high street hotel from now on. There was a good bit of morning noise too at street level. The hotel itself was nice enough, it has loads of character. The staff were nice and helpful, our room was large enough, and fun in a slanty floor kinda way (what exactly do you expect for a property this old anyway?). I would stay there again, if and only if that club closed down.

I recently stayed at the red lion when a friends 60th birthday was in the area. I have to say from reading pervious reviews i was worried before i arrived! I have a complete opposite opinion of the red lion, the staff were very friendly and helpful, the food was lovely, excellent value for money. The staff were more than happy to explain alternative places to visit in colchester, including the zoo, and colchester castle. I thoroughly enjoyed my stay and may be considering my birthday party there too. When i spoke to management they explained that replacement staff had taken place, and that the hotel is undergoing refurbishment. I must say though the creaking floorboards only added to the historical atmosphere, and if you arent frightened of the possiblity of a scare from the in-house ghost then defiantely give it another go!!! Hope this helps anyone else looking to stay there or going to stay rach

Nice historical place with friendly staff. The room was good and the hotel had charisma, although the bar seemed a little soulless. Clean and OK value. Fine for a stopover.

A group of us stayed at this hotel when attending a friend's wedding and I have to say I have never been more disappointed with hotel accomodation. The hotel was so cold, we went out in the pouring rain to find a pub where we could warm up. The rooms are extremely basic. We were initially placed in a room above the high-street and were told there was nothing else available until we decided to look elsewhere - then another room was found. Altogether an unpleasant experience.

My partner and I chose this hotel for a one night stop over at the last minute and this will teach me to do my research. The room was not that small but this is about the only positive point I can think of. The bathroom was grotty, with yellowing lino and a toilet that would not flush. The panel on the side of the bath was broken and the tiles surrounding the bath were grubby. The hot tap was warm and the cold tap was boiling. The shower dribbled water so hot it could have come from the core of the earth, thus making washing impossible unless you were prepared to risk third degree burns. Our room faced the high street and had no secondary glazing. When the Hippodrome nightclub closed in the early hours of the morning the entire youth population of Colchester seemed to congragate outside our room to be sick or hail a taxi. If you did manage to block out the screams of the revellers the bed would not provide much comfort; we both woke up with backache. I did not fancy using the communal area given that the back of the chairs all had huge grease marks on the headrests. The £78 charge did not include breakfast and although check out was not until 11.00 a member of staff knocked on the door and was about to come in (until I asked why) at 8.30am for no apparent reason. This is truly the worst hotel we have ever stayed in, which is a pity because Colchester itself seemed a nice town.

we are 3 travel agent who stayed at the hotel after reading the reviews we did not know what to expect but the hotel was clean/and warm the bedding was clean an so were the towles the staff were very nice and the night ported was really intresting.

Like the two previous reviews, my partner and I were also in a room facing the High Street and yes as they said it can be noisy, but sleeping isn't too much of a problem. For £90 we got dinner, bed and breakfast - which is pretty good value. The food was excellent, and the room was pleasant enough with some nice touches, albeit a little on the small side. The only real criticism was perhaps the weak flushing toilet which could lead to some embarassing moments!

My wife and I stayed at the Red Lion in August. We had decided to go to Colchester for a short break to "get away from it all". The hotel itself was nice enough, if slightly tatty around the edges. The staff were reasonably polite and helpful. Some people might find the steep stairs within the hotel a bit of a problem, especially when carrying luggage. But our initial reaction was favourable. The hotel is located on the High Street which should, in itself, not be a problem. It is certainly convenient for everything in the old town. BUT...the hotel is also directly across the street from the Hippodrome, a loud and popular club. We were unlucky enough to have a room facing the club. The noise was unbelievable - it sounded like a riot. Once the club closed, many of the patrons simply hung out in the street - drinking, shouting, fighting, vomiting, singing - and this went on until 4am. It was impossible to sleep before then. And this was during the week. We cut short our stay because we didn't want to find out what it was like on the weekends. The Red Lion may be a good hotel if you are deaf, or an insomniac, or a clubber. Otherwise...

Quite possibly the worst hotel I have ever stayed in. Dirty bedding, filthy bathroom and towels, stains on the furniture upholstery. A shower that didn't work. A room that overlooked the High street, opposite the local nightclub meant we had to stay in the hotel lounge until 3am as the noise in the room was unbearable and we were unable to sleep, despite asking for a quiet room. Extreme indifference from the staff. All for £75 a night! I've stayed in B & B's for a third of that and been in comparative luxury. Do yourselves a favour and avoid this hotel!