The Houghton Hotel, Spa, Wellness & Golf

Service Quality: The staff received consistent praise for their exceptional service, friendliness, and attentiveness. Many guests highlighted feeling welcomed from arrival to departure, with particular appreciation for the wait staff at the restaurant and bar.(based on 1 review)

On arrival there was a wonderful receptionist who was very helpful, unfortunately I did not get her name, but she is the lady that looks life Nefertiti. My room location, view and condition were excellent. In fact the view was fabulous. I was very comfortable. The negatives were I was not met at the airport despite making a booking and the woman who answered the phone when I borrowed a phone and made a call to the hotel was so nonchalant about it and actually quite rude. The driver, when he eventually arrived, was equally nonchalant and unapologetic. The spa was not well run. My appointments were mixed up which meant I turned up early one morning and found they had given my slot to other clientele. The manager seemed entirely unconcerned by their mistake. When I did get an appointment for a pedicure they had no pedicure chair and instead had me lying flat on a bed which was awkward and extremely uncomfortable. The pedicure was also poorly done, overly harsh, and the next morning I had pain in my soles and had to limp gingerly to my airport shuttle. I did have a massage on another day and it was good. You have some great staff and some staff who need to be trained better or perhaps chosen better. The room service staff were excellent and there was a lovely cleaning lady who attended to my room. However, at the beautiful poolside there was an extremely grumpy young bartender who seemed to object to serving me a drink. He made the cocktail poorly and when I asked him to change it he became belligerent and made me pay for the change despite the fact I only had a sip of the initial drink. I have had this sort of problem in South Africa before where male bartenders have a problem serving me.I had no problems with the young lady who was at the bar the afternoon before. I wonder if is a cultural thing where some of the men disapprove of women drinking... ? However, this is not my concern, and I object to being patronized by a stranger young enough to be my son. Please put only staff who have pleasant demeanour and good customer service skills in front facing roles.

We booked, not sure what to expect. And our minds were blown. Oasis in the middle of the city. Absolutely spectacular service, friendly staff and excellent food. Special thanks to Caroline (Nova Bistro) for her exceptional heart-warming service. We will be back!