Relais & Châteaux Weeshuis Gouda

We booked Weeshuis Gouda to celebrate our 23rd wedding anniversary, trusting in the Relais & Châteaux reputation for excellence, attention to detail, and warm hospitality. Sadly, our experience was anything but. Upon arrival, we were horrified to find our room in an unsanitary and unacceptable condition: there were visible traces of feces on the carpet, the toilet, and the bathroom floor. We immediately reported the issue and had to spend a portion of our limited time in Gouda dealing with a room change — not exactly how we envisioned starting our celebration. Things only got worse at dinner. We dined at Lizz, the hotel’s Michelin-starred restaurant, hoping for a memorable culinary experience. While the service was fine, the food was uninspired, poorly executed, and not at all reflective of Michelin quality. In fact, it was so disappointing I couldn’t finish my meal — an upsetting outcome on what was meant to be a special evening. We shared this experience with Relais & Châteaux directly. Their response? A brief apology followed by a request for “more detail” about our dinner at Lizz — as if it were my job to provide them with an evaluation. I declined to spend more time offering feedback. That’s their responsibility, not mine. We’ve stayed at many Relais & Châteaux properties over the years and have always held the brand in high regard. This stay, however, was a complete departure from what we’ve come to expect. We sincerely hope they take a hard look at the standards in both the hotel and restaurant. Based on this experience, we cannot recommend Weeshuis Gouda and would not return.