Norbreck Castle Hotel

2 readers found this review helpful

Just returned from a most horendous 3 night stay at the Norbreck Castle Dump. How Visit Blackpool/Environmental Health allows this Hotel to continue to operate I will never know.
As soon as we walked through the doors of the Hotel it stank. The reception was undermanned (2 staff) checking in what we were told was 1200 over the few days.
Our family room for four in the Windsor area was filthy, stinking of cigarette smoke and had 1 single bed and one double. How 4 people could be accommodated in this I will never know. When we complained at the reception, after waiting another 30 minutes in the que, we were told that as the Hotel was full we would just have to make do. I don't think so! not after paying £345 for the room I said. After asking for the Manager we were told that we could have the Braemar suite, sounded great, but it only had 1 double bed so they would put in two Z beds later in the day. When we returned the Z beds were there with one sheet and 1 blanket , no quilt. Sleeping on them was a nightmare as the springs were gone and touched the floor. Eventually after queing for another 30 minutes the next day we did get proper matresses for the beds - why these couldn't supplied initially I don't know.
The double room was very dusty, you could write your name on the furniture and the filth which lay behind the heater was questionable , beer tops and what looked like human excrement.
The restuarant was sheer hell, more waiting , and sub standard food mostly from a packet.
The snack bar was worse. If you order a toastie be prepared to wait a further 40 minutes after already queing for 30 and don't expect to get the salad and coleslaw garnish as they don't have enought time to put that on, they tell you that when they throw the toastie across the counter at you , but still charge the same.
I believe that the Norbreck Castle Hotel definately takes the pleasure out of Blackpool and am disgusted that the Britania Hotel Chain are exploiting so many customers. If you read the majority of reviews on any of the internet sites everyone is saying the same. I would suggest Lancashire Council Environmental Health Department and Visit Blackpool take an unscheduled inspection to this Hotel and stop others being ripped off like we were.
I give this hotel a rating of 1 - that's for the car park.

1 reader found this review helpful

this was a really good holiday and we love the norbreck as we usually go 3 times every yea with kingshill a linedancing firm. we went on thursday night and stayed until sunday but didnt want to go home! we went as a group party of 61 but in my family there were 9! we got our rooms which we had 3 of and went and unpacked. we went a walk around as the smell is soo nice and the carpet just relaxes your feet! the room was good all of them were and we had a joint bedroom. the bathroom was nice and clean and the cleaners did a good job and were always cleaning. they made the beds give you coffea dn sugar for your room and made it look nice. the room was a bit shabby as the drawer was hanging off but apart from that was ok. the lifts are busy but we were on floor one so didnt mind really. have really good acess for disabled people too as they have a ramp and opening door. the swimming pool is nice and clean and there is a jacussi, sauna, hot rom and gym aswell as a shop for swimming and gym and a small childrens pool! the hotel is really big and is so clean! there is a bar which is reasonable a cafe shop and lots of vending machines. it is near to the front aswell and it beautiful. it is brilliant and the staff are realy helpful. we are definately going again maybe at easter
hope you book and enjoy your stay! we did

1 reader found this review helpful

I would never come to this hotel again.
I booked this hotel to come to the l word convention.
I could honestly say that this hotel is the worst I have ever stayed in.
If you have any thoughts about eating in any off the resturants in the hotel dont bother. you have to pay in advance and the food is well below standard. Dont drink the house wine, you may as well be drinking vinegar.
The rooms are, and I am being generous, they are okay, the bed kept creeking everytime we moved, the room itself was tiny and the worst of it all was it took ages to get to it from recepion. The corridors were narrow and to get a suitcase through the doors is a mission.
I stayed in room 224, dont stay there!!!
I will never recommend this hotel to anyone, its below standard and over priced.
Jo Johal

2 readers found this review helpful

My wife and I stayed over the weekend at this hotel. We saw it advertised with a 3 star rating. Whose rating that was is a mystery. I can’t see any way this place should have any star rating.
We knew we had made a mistake on arrival. The outside of the building was unwelcoming. The reception area of the car park was taped off with plastic tape. The car park was in poor condition and jammed with cars.
One look at the building and it was evident the place was old and decrepit.
The reception was entered through revolving doors straight out of the 1950’s.They were too small to comfortably enter the building. The reception desk had a long queue. It looked worn and untidy. The whole area was absolute chaos.
Looking around the interior was poorly decorated and the furniture was in a tatty condition.
After eventually getting our room entry card we made our way to our room. A warren of undulating corridors accessed this. They were littered with clean and dirty bed linen and towels. The smell of cigarette smoke in the corridors was overwhelming.
On arrival at our room the entry system didn’t work. I had to return to the back of the queue at reception and then wait for a member of staff to unlock the room.
The room smelt badly of cigarettes. The kettle was filthy. The bath had a long black hair in it. The tea and coffee tray was broken. There was no toilet roll on the holder. The sink plughole looked dirty and unclean. When we used the bath, we felt worried we would come out dirtier than when we got in. All of the furniture was in poor condition, chipped and marked. The decoration was very poor. The dressing table drawer was open on arrival. The place just seemed scruffy, dirty and un-cared for.
We foolishly decided to pay extra for a meal in the restaurant. The food was ages in arriving. The portions were tiny and the food vastly overpriced for the standard.
The overflow restaurant area was noisy and chaotic. It bore more resemblance to a greasy spoon truck stop than a hotel.
The following morning we were woken at 4.30am by a delivery vehicle parked right outside our bedroom. A member of staff unleashed a torrent of four-letter abuse at the lorry driver because a part of the delivery was wrong.
On arriving for breakfast at 8.50 we waited for 40 minutes in different queues to get our food. The cut off time for breakfast was 9.30am so when we finally arrived at the food there was no bacon and the staff was already starting to clear away the food trays. Trying to get a cup of tea with your meal from the overstretched waiters was nigh on impossible.
The entertainment was poor and exactly the same on both nights.
The whole place was a chaotic shambles. Noisy, too many people crammed into too small an area. Nowhere to sit quietly nowhere to relax. TERRIBLE!
We were very disappointed with this hotel. It doesn’t deserve a score of zero let alone one. I have contacted Britannia Hotels, but have not received a reply; I guess they are too busy dealing with other complaints.
I wish I had stayed in Blackpool in a nice B&B. It would have been much cheaper and a much, much nicer environment.

1 reader found this review helpful

Stayed here for 2 nights, NEVER AGAIN !
The place is grubby and dated and massivly overpriced for the standard. The decoration is dirty, the whole place looking like it last saw a lick of paint 30 years ago. Bedroom decoration and furniture is to put it mildly well used. Our bath was dirty and some furniture damaged.
First impressions as you pull up outside are grim to say the least. Poorly maintained with a makeshift tape barrier more akin to a crime sceene than a hotel reception.
If you enjoy queing for everything this is the place for you. It took ages to book in and when we finaly got the electronic door key it didnt work, so we had to rejoin the queue.
Breakfast was beddlam. 9.30 being the strict serving cut off time. Little did we realise we would have to waot in a queue for 35 minutes and the food trays were almost empty when we eventualy got to the front of the queue.
The place is big very very noisy, thre is nowhere to relax AN ABSOLUTE HELL HOLE.
Take my advice and keep away. If there was a zero out of 10 rating, thats what I would award this place.

2 readers found this review helpful

I was part of a group of 4 adults and 4 children who stayed here for a weekend break. On arrival we found the Hotel to be tired looking,but clean. Reception Staff were pleasant and helpful on arrival.
Rooms on first floor were reached via a maze of narrow corridors with stairs and ramps at various intervals. Observed damp, soiled towels lying in various places (they still lay there 19 hrs later when we departed.) There were strange smells in the cooridors, possibly from damp carpets. Oh, and there were several families sitting forlornly in the same corridors, unable to get into their rooms, whilst other guests were observed arguing at Reception over the same problem. Our 2 rooms were adaquate, although one had a strange odour. In my room, the windows were dirty, with dust on frames and parts of the furniture. The bathroom was superficially clean, but areas close to ground were poor. There was a hole in the bathroom wall, with the plaster lying on the floor. For the price, and short time we anticipated being in the rooms it was acceptable.
Our evening meal was included, but we upgraded to the "Premier Boston Resteraunt" at a cost of &18 per family. Initial service was good, and the restaurant itself didn`t seem too bad. However, my friend asked a waitress for a plain white bread roll for her 5 year old. The waitress said she would have to change it, lifted a roll from the basket and returned with a white roll in her hand. It then took a further hour after our starter plates were cleared for the Main Course to arrive (the bill for extras was set down 50 minutes before the meal!) The waitress was brusque and unhelpful, and was particularly rude about our children. When the meals arrived, some were undercooked, one overcooked, and although the vegetables came on hot dishes, the veg itself was actually cold. The childrens half portions (no childrens menu available) were bland and inedible particularly for the 8 and 5 year old.
When I asked to see a Manager my request was bluntly refused, and their continued assertion that they were busy (in a Restaurant 2/3`s empty) and dismissive attitude did cause severe irritation.The Duty Manager did actually come to the Restaurant but spoke only to staff and did not come over to us because she"chose not to" (her words) It took a further 20 minutes and 3 requests to get our bill, before we left in disgust. Further requests to speak with a manager met with blunt refusals from staff.
The Duty Manager did phone us half an hour after we left the Boston..... to inform us that we had 1 hour to vacate the hotel, or she would call the police to have us removed. When I finally was able to speak to the Duty Manager in Person, she displayed the same lack of People Management skills clearly demonstrated by the Restaurant staff.To be fair, the Duty Manager was a person of her word, and did call the Police to throw us out. However, the Police did point out to the manager that it was slightly unreasonable to throw 2 families, including 4 hysterical children (2 of whom were disabled) out onto the Blackpool streets at 11:00pm, and the Manager was satisfied that I left, allowing the others to stay.The Police were most helpful, finding a lovely family hotel a mile or so down the Road (Highly recommend the Blue C Hotel)to which we all moved the following morning. I actually spent a more fortunate night, in that unlike my family and friends who stayed in the Norbreck, I was not kept awake most of the night by excessive heat, banging pipes, loud music until the early hours and the sounds of other guests, loudly prowling the corridors throughout the night! I have to say that the Norbreck Staff and Management provided a stay to remember. Whilst it is reasonably priced, though basic, I would not recommend staying there if you have any propensity to complain about truly substandard treatment. I don`t believe that the customer is always right, but at the Norbreck, the Management truly seem to believe that the customer has NO RIGHTS!

2 readers found this review helpful

Second time this year stayed here, and for £85 for 2 of us and our young son, DB&B, with all the facilities and fantastic entertainment then a bargain compared to what else is on offer in Blackpool this time of year with the lights etc !
The hotel is a short Tram journey into town, which forms part of the break really, and is located just outside the start of the Blackpool Lights. your car is safe and not squashed in tiny a car park where you have to leave your keys etc unlike most Blackpool Hotels, the Staff are fantastic, the food is superb. The 'John smiths' wasn't the best, and the pool area could do with a makeover and another couple of degreesC, but apart from that all is fine! The room we had this time was superb, last time not as good but again, take a look at other Hotels in the area to compare with and not the Mayfair in London!

2 readers found this review helpful

Came here as a wedding gift night away and didn't even stay a night. On arrival we found we could not book in till half three so had to leave bags and go off into blackpool( which is miles away from hotel) with out being able to freshen up first. We were a bit worried by the look of the place, nothing like on the internet, and it smelt. When finally checked in our room was of poor standard but what was really bad was the smell of fags. We complained to reception and told them we wanted another room. We were told ALL rooms are smoking rooms but we could try another if we liked other wise they couldn't do anthing. The second room was just as smelly, even more dirty and had loads of flies in it, the bed looked like it would fall apart if we attempted to sleep on it. We didn't even bother to argue about it, we just left and booked into the Hilton instead. Went back next day only to get the bus home and chatted to alot of upset people about their stay. Seems like the hole bus had a bad night as well.

1 reader found this review helpful

Booked this hotel for just myself and my husband as our two children (aged 8 and 5) were going to stay with my mother in law for a few nights. I had read the reviews before I went and was therefore not expecting much and wish to comment as follows:
Previous reviews state that the building was shabby looking? Well I am totally confused by this, considering the hotel is right on the sea front and subject to the wind, rain and sand (which our car was covered in after 3 days!) The outside looked absolutely fine. From what people had said I was expecting a tatty old building but this was not the case.
We went into reception to check in and were given our keys immediately. The reception staff were lovely and welcomed us and told us were to go for meals etc.
I must admit we were given a room on the 5th floor which happened to be the last at the end of a corridor but hey it wasnt that far, there was a lift (although we did walk once or twice and to be honest, if you are booking into a hotel that big it is a chance you are taking.
Walking around the hotel was just lovely, the carpets and decor was nice and the place was spotlessly clean. There were always cleaning and maintenance staff wondering around and very busy doing jobs.
Our room was pretty small but we had a lovely sea view and our bathroom with bath and shower was huge. We had lovely soap, shampoo and shower gel and lovely fluffy white towels.
The beds were made up nicely and the bed was so comfortable, I honestly havent slept that well for years!
There was a great welcome pack waiting for us in the room which gave us plenty of information on the hotel and also surrounding things to do (the tower, pleasure beach etc) as well as tea and coffee making facilities and colour tv. There was lots of storage space, a nice desk and nice big wardrobe.
The bar was really pleasant and drinks were reasonably priced at £2.80 per pint however they had a happy hour every day between 11am and 4pm where pints were only £1.70!!!
There was a nice cafe bar where you could buy hot and cold sandwiches from £2 and scones, teacakes and muffins (approx 90p) and jacket potatoes.
Included within your stay is the use of the swimming pool, which is section off into two halfs, one half for swimming only and then the other half can be used for people wanting to take their children. A Jacuzzi and sauda and steam room. There is also a gym and sun bed facilities but there is an extra charge for these.
There is a FREE cinema for the kids with films showing all day long! and another bar with Sky sports showing all the football matches and a little arcade.
We were having such a nice time at Norbreck Castle that we decided to go back to reception and stay an extra night. We were even giving an extra 15% off as we were already guests staying there!
The food was lovely. The restaurant did get a bit busy but well what do you expect in a hotel of that size! The food was all served buffet style (apart from the soup which is served at the table) There was always plenty of choice. There is always about four different deserts including nice cheese cake and chocolate fudge cake. Full English is always a crowd pleaser with cereal, yoghurt and fruit too!!
I loved this hotel and was very pleased we went and will most definately be going back!

room lovely with sea view clean and coumftable all the staff especially in restraunt very frendliy and couldnt do enough for you.......... evening entertainment good bar staff nice and polite.....leisure facilities lovely and clean son loved swimming pool............food was lovely and fresh especially brekfast so much to pick from