The Runnymede on Thames

Arrived on Monday 28/9/26 around 12 noon, for a three day break. We knew that check in was 3pm, so we parked up and had a wander along the Thames waterside having had a coffee in the lounge bar. Found a lovely little cafe just off the waterside called Runnymede cafe for a bacon bap and cheese burger. They also sold duck food to feed the many wildfowl in the park. Egyptian geese, - who knew? Having walked the route to where the Magna Carta was allegedly signed, you can follow a trail to the JFK monument which is hilly in parts, but a nice walk. We got back to the hotel in time for check in, and it was very very busy and took a long time to process, Not helped by a lot of the guests querying things that they could easily find in the welcome e-mails that are sent out! We stayed in room 2004, basic but sufficient. a tip here for the hotel, - put a guide next to the air conditioning control, I'm not a Nuclear Scientist! The food throughout was first class! Our first evening meal was in Brasserie 32, which is more formal, and you choose from a set menu. We both enjoyed our meals, and they came very quickly, hardly any wait between courses at all. Breakfast and the second evening meal was in the Market Kitchen, a buffet style set up, and was both varied in choice and superb! Drinks are added to your bill when dining, but if you want, at the bar you can pay as drink. It cost me more for two Coke zeros than it did for a lager and a Coke zero! We enjoyed the stay, the only frustration was some of the guests who should probably know better decided to hold some sort of mobility scooter drag race down our corridor at gone 11pm after the shows had finished! At it sounded like it anyway! We would stay here again, really enjoyed it!

We spent, on the whole, a lovely weekend at Runnymede - mainly good food, comfortable bed, nice decor throughout the hotel and friendly staff. However some things not so great, more staff are required, we ate in the Brasserie and service was terrible, we were shown to our table, 25 mins later and no one had come to take our order so Ihad to find someone - we were at the backend of the restaurant and it seemed out of sight out of mind as the 2 other tables close to us suffered the same poor service - worrying also that the server asks if there are any allergies, a lady on another table said she was gluten free, so her side order of bread arrived with a little gluten free flag, as did her starter, then she was served a roast with a Yorkshire pudding on top, which was not gluten free. I could go on with all the issues we experienced and witnessed that evening. We were compensated with some free drinks but really what we wanted was good service. We were booked in the Brasserie for dinner on Sunday night but moved to the market kitchen as less stressful and have to say the food was better. We did have breakfast in the Brasserie one of the days and the service and food was great. We booked a deluxe room, however the aircon wasn't working and the fridge wasn't cold. Also surprised that a deluxe room has an over the bath shower. There were good bits, pilates class, gym, spa, shuffleboard, we took a boat trip to Windsor with the French Brothers, which is close by. Staff friendly and helpful but just not enough of them and they were getting moaned at from people having to wait for drinks at the bar. Also surprised how low down and deep the chairs are in the lounge, feel like they haven't considered their target market age group and mobility. This was not a cheap weekend and it didn't live up to expectations.

Fantastic location. Close to RHS wisley, Hampton Court, Windsor and many other attractions. Great seating areas by the river and in the gardens. Heated outdoor pool with pool bar, towels, sun beds. Great entertainment. Very clean room and facilities. Bring the prices of the drinks down (8-9 for medium pinot Grigio is a bit steep) and less people will go to their rooms for a top up. Decor is imaginative and lounges are very comfortable.