Hotelbelltent Reviews

Stayed as a group of two families in two tents for Car Fest North Nowhere near as good as last year Not the jolly luxury retreat advertised - sorry Staff shortages harangued staff miserably told us how they had been dumped in it meant a very long wait to check in - in very hot sunshine and no buggy available to take luggage from car park to site unless we wanted to wait a very long time Buggy s were standing idle by reception as we queued around them No drinks or apologies as we waited and waited and waited No email received about pre booking breakfast so came as a shock that we were expected to go very early in the morning if we wanted breakfast The email came through last year but did not this year Not all things pre - ordered were in tent So by the time we had finally checked in gone back to reception to chase missing items - festival was open and well underway and we were already jaded Site disintegrated into a muddy unmanageable mess as soon as the rain started The mud was deep slippery and coated everything It was dangerous and by Sunday - a trip to the loo was an expedition Only bit ok to walk on was the grass area they roped off before we arrived as it was boggy So inevitably tents soon became a muddy mess and toilets were always filthy with mud when we visited People had clearly been trying to clean boots and things in the sinks Gross There seemed very little provision for wet weather The site was what it was rain or shine Breakfast was chaos More like a tent under attack from hungry buzzards as you sat elbow to elbow on long communal benches with your back against your neighbour eating your 1 sausage 1 piece of bacon and spoon of beans Which were cold if you queued for a piece of toast Having to go back for orange juice or water as it wasn t initially offered - you had to know it was behind the counter Glorious way to start the day Good things - Beds were comfy and site close to entrance Out of bell tents hands - but added to the misery - Not much sleep as we were in a tent next to a tent with a crying baby who was clearly being schooled in the keep crying but we won t comfort you self soothing approach With only two canvas walls between us - all the neighbours could enjoy this battle of wills through the night and the morning - all weekend Glorious If the site was all it was advertised to be it would be perfect - but it wasn t this year This is the last festival of the year for Hotel bell tent and it felt like it Felt like the staff had been abandoned with no support or additional plans wood chip - heaters for the forecast rain It seemed to turn very quickly to chaos We made a very quick exit Monday morning - glad to be away

Great accommodation as last year however standards had significantly dropped for overall service and particularly food and drink We turned up to poor make-your-own instant coffee this year rather than fresh coffee like last year which should be a minimum at what is supposed to be luxury camping with some packages costing thousands for a few days Breakfast quality produce seemed poorer quality too and so the overall food drink experience seemed like a cost-cutting exercise and would have been better at a Travelodge sadly There was not even the option of buying a proper coffee when we asked just alcohol Staffing seemed a bit thin too and not as happy as last year It s a shame as the accommodation was fine but we may not rebook for future due to the overall

The Glamping Tents are a great idea but the material they were made of was too thin so they were very cold at night The mattresses in the tent were blow-up so when the ground got cold the mattresses got very cold and body heat wasn t enough to get them warm so they were cold to sleep on without something extra underneath you

This is the second time we used HBT at Carfest and the main issue is the comparison with what was provided last year for the same perhaps greater fee this year First of all the plus points Staff - utterly brilliant-friendly capable and extremely helpfulCheck-in - straightforward and well organised with loads of help from lovely staff as needed to shift things to the tentFood - very good generous well cooked breakfasts ad hoc food from pizzas to menu very good although perhaps not the selection there was last yearBar - v good but smaller than last yearTent - excellent and comfortable albeit with the usual issues with airbedsNow the minusesEverything felt smaller and less glamorous i know we were at a festival but when you ve stumped up a few 1000 it matters so bar area smaller large screen a lot smaller than last year fewer and less great facilities Toilets blocks smaller fewer of them smaller and worse not well looked after infrequently cleaned often rather grubby loo roll not replaced hand driers not always working water pressure in sinks so high that they tended to spray everywhereShowers - smaller in fact pretty cramped no steps to access tricky if you have mobility issues tendency to flood not as many so long queuesThis all sounds a bit first world problems and if it had been my first time it would have felt better But it just felt that a great deal of cost cutting had taken place yet for the same quite high priceSo overall a mix of brilliance and disappointment Not sure I will do again next year given the cost and uncertainty about what we would get

We ve been lucky enough to stay with Hotel belltent a few times now at car fest It s not cheap but always felt that it was worth it The staff are always brilliant at making you feel like special guests However this year we think everything felt cheaper the loos and showers were lesser quality than previously and constantly ran out of toilet paper and paper towels the ones with dryers didn t work The provision of an accessible shower room is great however it never worked properly with the toilet not flushing and as my wife uses a wheel chair it was obviously inconvenient even requiring a female member of staff to help her use a normal shower one day