Elmbank Hotel

The hotel was a very poor 2 star property. My room was cold. The bathroom was not very clean- the wall tile had hairs stuck on. The walls were very thin and the people next door clearly had a lot to talk about way beyond midnight. The food was really appalling- the best example of a kitchen's indifference. My main course of roast pork was covered in a layer of dark 'gravy' so dark that it looked like chocolate sauce and so think that I could not see the meat. Having stayed in a number of hotels in and around the area, the Elmbank has a lot of work to do to catch up with the Holiday Inn down the road- it may be boring and standard but at least the room is a lot warmer, brighter and cleaner.

I booked this hotel after reading a number of reviews which seemed to imply that the place was average to good. I'm not sure what the Hotel itself is like as we ended up in the Lodge which is just over the road. For £85 a night the room was tiny, you could only just walk around the bed, the decor was awful, flowery bed covers and holly green blankets and pink walls. It had the smallest TV you could get with no remote and although the bathroom was acceptable there was no hot water for a shower on the first night and we were advised we would have to wait as others must be using it. The location of the hotel is good as it is in walking distance to the town but the front door of the lodge bangs every time someone closes it. I would not recommend this hotel to a friend, it certainly was not 3* and I will not be visiting it again incase I happen to have to stay in the lodge.

in a hotel like this when they come to the UK. It is so old style British, down to the squeaky floorboards, Falty Towers style check in and keys, and basin in the bedroom. I found the Elmbank quite satisfactory, no complaints at all. To get there from the train station turn right as you come out of the station and follow the road round to the junction. Then turn right again and walk for about 15 minutes, quite an easy walk. You will pass a Premier Travel Inn on the right, a Hotel Ibis on the left, there is also a Sainsbury's corner shop for groceries. I paid around 39 pounds from late rooms dot com. Clean and basic, no toothpaste or fridge as usual in UK hotels.

Well, this was the first time that I had stayed in York - the city is fantastic - however I was not so keen on the ghost in my room. The room was clean and tidy (no mould) and the staff were very friendly, the location was excellent, it was just the ghost that I didnt like. I loved the breakfast, I loved the bar walls, I loved the man that I met in Ziggys (sorry, cant remember his name, might possibly have been Ken.. or Colin.. anyways,) I just didnt like the spooky ghost. I suppose this place would be great (if you like ghosts or you are Derek Acorah -thankyousam -) but I do not. The only complaint that I have is that the ghost nicked my shoe.

This Hotel was better than I expected after reading the reviews on this site. We had no problems parking although the car park is small, we went on a Friday so I dont know if that helped. I saw the lodge from the outside and it looked ok but I was glad to learn that our room was in the Hotel. The Hotel was very arts and crafts/liberty/william moore in decor. We didnt eat here and breakfast is £8.50 but you can take a nice 10 min walk into town where there are plenty of cafes to eat. The Staff were not very friendly but I just think that was typical straight talking Yorkshire manners. The radiator in the bathroom leaked but we were offered another room straight away. This hotel is a good base to use but dont expect Hilton standards.

My 16-year old daughter and I stayed in this hotel last year as part of a birthday trip for the both of us. We chose the hotel because it looked lovely and was easily reached from the town centre (the bus stops quite near). The receptionist was very friendly, the room was clean and the bathroom, although small, offered everything that was promised. Breakfast was good and plentiful, with a very nice waitress offering us extra toast and tea without us having to ask for it. We only stayed for one night, but when we return to York for a family holiday (and we definitely will) we are going to stay in this hotel again. It made our stay in York even better than we thought it would be.

The pictures that you see on the internet of the Elmbank hotel really don't show it in it's true light. To get to the room we stayed in, we had to walk out of a fire escape, accross a car park and into an adjoining building that resembled a portacabin! The room was OK but very much 1* motel quality. The worst was yet to come, as I tried to have a shower and really scalded myself as the cold water just went off. My boyfriend went to complain to reception, and although we were moved to an adjacent room we were offered no form of apology. To make matters worse the room we were given had twin beds not a double when we had asked for a double room. As we were running late for a restaurant reservation by this point we got ready and went to reception to order a taxi, where we were told it would take over an hour for one to arrive. It would have been good of the staff to advise us of the long waiting times when we checked in! Therefore we had to walk the half hour trip into town... in the rain. All in all... disappointing rooms, staff that didn't care and weren't interested in any problems. Only stay here if everywhere else is fully booked.

We thought that we would like a weekend in York before Christmas and the Elmbank was our second choice. Unfortunately it had a few problems and we wished that we had read previous reviews before going ahead with the booking. (Lesson learnt!) The hotel parking is for about 25% of the rooms total and the streets around are all double yellow lines. Arriving late we had real problems finding a space anywhere near. Our room which was in the lodge over the road on the top floor was very small (no chairs) and bathroom was also small although clean. The noise of the traffic and the next door room occupants meant that we got almost no sleep the first night. The food was nothing special but reasonable value. The temperature of the floor was incredibly hot and my wife almost scalded herself when the shower went from cool to boiling hot in an instant. The staff were friendly and the only redeeming feature of a hotel with real problems (in the separate lodge). Not recommended for car owners or others when busy.

My wife and I stayed at the elmbank for two nights as a 40th birthday treat for her. We found parking easy on the road right outside the hotel door. There are also a couple of small car parks that the hotel own. On first impressions the hotel could do with a bit of a tidy up to its exterior but inside it was very welcoming with a hint of a medieval feel. The grand staircase is a sight to see. Our room was large enough with two large windows looking out onto the road below. The bathroom had all you need although it was a dodgy colour. Breakfast was served up until 9.45am and was acceptable. We found the staff pleasant and helpful. For the price we found this hotel was everything we needed, was only a 10 minute walk into york city centre and in a quiet but convenient spot. It is much preffered to the more central but second class Moathouse, where our previous stay was appauling.

I booked this hotel via the web initially we had booked the Hilton in the centre but were told 48 hours after booking that there infact were no rooms available so we then booked the Elmbank. I booked this weekend away as a celebration of our 10th wedding anniversary, we arrived in York mid morning and parked up to check in, we were given a room in the Lodge which is situated across the street from the main building, the room we were allocated was on the top floor but seemed to have everything we would require for our 2 night stay. I quizzed th receptionists as to whether were I had parked my car was sercure, it was just up the street but was private off road parking that the hotel owned she stated it would be fine as it was covered by CCTV. The landing outside our room was sweltering due to heat being pumped out, the outside tepmarature was 23 degress and the heating is on full belt! again I quizz the receptionist and she tells me the heating is not actually on and the the radiator is hot because the system heats the hot water for the building, she offered us a fan which she said would be in our room for when we got back- it was! We proceeded into the city and had a great day with our 3 year old son, upon our return we decided to eat in the Hotel restaurant which was a grave mistake, it looked as though we were the only people the restaurant and as the night wore on that seemed to be the case the food was not the best!! We were awoken abruptly at 7.30am the following morning with the news that our car had been broken into, upon inspection the rear quarterlight window had been smashed and glass was everywhere, the Police were promtly alerted and were with us within the hour they took a statement then proceeded into the Hotel to check the CCTV footage but were told no one was in to operate the system until later that day he was also told that a coach has been broken into in exactly the same place the night before, and that it seemed to be quite a regular occursion which his colleague confirmed, I understand that this could happen anywhere but when I asked the receptionist to confirm the security of the car park she failed to mention the coach the previous day, this wound me up even more and we decided to cut short our weekend and promtly checked out. My advice to any one contemplating staying here would be to park as close to the Hotel reception or on the very small car if possible. the Hotel seemed fine and the staff were okay, the location is fine for the city too! but beware where you decide to park your car it may cost you dearly!!