Champneys Springs

When we arrived we were given a room that was not closer to facilities as my wife has a problem with walking to far But this outstanding lady moved us with no fuss the lady name Opiel Ahamet it most definitely put us in good spirits for our stay first class and very happy and helpful

I had a lovely day with my sister, with whom I usually do a spa day here once a year, as she lives locally. It's always nice to have the opportunity to get away from it all and to have a good catch up. Just a few niggles... It would be helpful to have more seating around the pool if the hotel is going to book in so many visitors whether as residents or day guests. The pool area was the busiest I have ever seen it and we were very lucky to get seats at all - we managed to secure the last two available in the morning, but found it completely full after lunch. Fortunately two other guests left just after we arrived. We saw some having to sit on the tiled wall underneath the window, which looked extremely uncomfortable! As per many a holiday destination, lots of seats were 'reserved' with personal items (including a solitary packet of chocolate buttons in one instance!) for very long periods of time with no sign of the guests who were supposedly using them. It seemed to me that there was space for seats around two of the pool edges, where there is no seating at the moment. It was nice to see the return of the buffet lunch, rather than the set menu, but the food was barely warm, which spoiled the meal somewhat. The croissants offered as part of the spa guest breakfast were also very soft and stale. These days, the place does feel a little bit under-resourced, with only a handful of staff racing around to keep breakfast supplies stocked, replenish towels and toilet rolls etc - we found the same last year. The staff are all lovely and very welcoming, however, in spite of being so busy. Special mention must go to Massimo and Kristina in the restaurant and Oriel in reception. All three are lovely, warm people, who make you feel like a very special guest. We'll definitely be back, but this no longer feels like quite the same luxury experience as it was when we first began visiting and we will only do so again if we can continue to avail ourselves of some kind of special offer/discount - these do seem to be harder to come by now and don't offer such good savings as in the past. Unfortunately, I expect Champneys is still recovering from the impact of Covid, along with trying to manage the current cost of living crisis.

After experiencing Champneys Tring and Henlow in the past we felt confident that we would have a great anniversary weekend enjoying a well curated setting with the signature standard of treatments. In fact we checked out a day early as we have a rule. Never stay anywhere worse than our house. A wellness retreat invites you to spend time in a purpose designed facility looking after yourself but it’s clear that they haven’t looked after the building. I have read that there has been a refurb but couldn’t see where and why do it in same tired 1980’decor. If it wasn’t for the lovely staff and the two and a half hours to get there we would have left the same day. So many stains, on walls ceilings and floors and black mould in our bathroom. Come on champneys, do better.