Ashdown Park Hotel And Country Club, Harry Clarke

We had a lovely stay at Ashdown Park Hotel & Country Club with our 4-year-old and overall it was a very enjoyable family weekend. The location is fantastic. It feels properly rural and peaceful, yet it’s not far from London at all. The surrounding area also has plenty to explore with children, which made it a great base for a short family getaway. Our room was very comfortable. The bed was excellent and we all slept well. Soundproofing wasn't perfect, but it was never particularly noisy so it didn’t affect our stay. The bathroom felt a little dated, but overall the room was well equipped and thoughtfully set up for a family of three travelling with a young child. One of the biggest highlights was the value for money. While it may not be a luxury five-star experience in every aspect, the overall quality compared to the price makes it very good value. That alone would definitely make us consider returning. The spa facilities were also a great bonus. While I enjoyed a massage, my husband and daughter spent time in the pool. The pool temperature was perfect and the size worked really well for a young child, making it a very relaxing experience for the whole family. The main disappointment was the food. The restaurant itself has a beautiful atmosphere, but the quality of the dishes didn’t quite match expectations. We also found the reservation system a bit confusing — booking only in one-hour slots felt unnecessarily restrictive and slightly inefficient. Overall though, this is a wonderful countryside hotel for a relaxing family weekend, especially if you’re looking for somewhere peaceful but still easily accessible from London. We would happily return.

Drinks in hotel are extortionately expensive - double London prices. Will likely witness managerial staff hissing at the bar staff like we did, seems quite toxic! We stayed in the middle of winter and had every window open, slept with a sheet (for a total of 4 hours as it was like sleeping in the middle of a desert) and a fan on as the heating was on 30+ in the bathroom (which we couldn’t turn off). When we spoke to reception on check out their unsympathetic robotic response was ‘sorry to hear that, we hope you enjoyed your stay and we see you again soon’… we obviously didn’t so that statement came off as quite rude. Although the spa decor is like being thrown back into the 80s, the therapists are great and I had an excellent facial which was the only redeeming service!