The Tytherington Club, Dorchester 1

The stay at The Tytherington was faultless. Super comfortable room and sumptuous bed and all facilities. Highly recommend.

This was the worst hotel stay I have ever experienced, which is such a shame because aesthetically the hotel has so much potential. Unfortunately, the biggest issue throughout our stay was the staff, and this began even before our visit. Due to an unexpected issue, I needed to leave the hotel earlier than planned, meaning we would miss our pre-paid breakfast by around five minutes. I emailed ahead to ask whether the hotel could accommodate us in any way - either by allowing access to cereal slightly earlier, or by moving the breakfast booking to an evening meal, with me paying any difference. I was informed this would not be possible, with no greeting or courtesy in the response. I then suggested waiting until breakfast officially opened and asked whether it could be taken away, but was told to find out in the morning. Again, there was no reassurance or willingness to help, and none of the email correspondence showed basic politeness or customer care. Any suggestion I made was met with the repeated response of, “as I previously said get a refund through booking.com.” This was particularly frustrating as I was not concerned about receiving a refund; I simply wanted to ensure my children could be fed before we left the hotel. On arrival at the hotel, the man on the front desk was miserable, not only towards me but towards all guests checking in. The service was so poor that we chose to leave the hotel entirely for our evening meal. During the whole visit, the only friendly member of staff we encountered was one individual working poolside. The room itself was acceptable, however the overall cleanliness of the hotel was disappointing. Carpets throughout the hotel were visibly stained. The bed contained popcorn left behind by a previous guest, and the sink had not been properly cleaned, with toothpaste stains still present. We had to call for sugar and milk and were still not provided with enough. Due to the way we were made to feel like a nuisance, we chose not to ask again. The room was also very cold, but I did not raise this at the time as I was trying to avoid further negative interactions with staff in front of my children, as I did not want it to ruin their visit. In hindsight, the tone of the email correspondence should have been taken as a warning. Sadly, the experience reflected that initial impression. I would not return to this hotel and would advise others to avoid it.

The imbalance says it all. The club can increase fees on two weeks’ notice, yet members are locked into a full calendar month to leave even when giving notice immediately in response to that increase. That isn’t a fair balance. I’ve paid thousands in membership and PT over the years and continued paying through dated facilities and constant staff turnover. Yet when I acted promptly and reasonably, there was zero flexibility or goodwill. If this is how loyal members are treated, the high turnover of staff isn’t surprising.