Hotels near Lulworth Cove, West Lulworth

By far the best hotel in Dorset, or even the UK (in my opinion) the service is exceptional, the food is to die for, the rooms are lush and the views outside are second to none. I stay there every year as a treat and will continue. This place is a hidden gem

I wasn’t going to write this review because I know how much damage a bad review can cause. We’ve been here twice, firstly for a breakfast which was delicious and the service was excellent then the following weekend we stayed on their campsite which is excellent, nipped in pub for a drink and chips at lunch which were delicious btw! Then went in for our evening meal which didn’t go great, i wont go into details, but they did try to rectify it eventually after a bit of a bad experience but it meant I ended up with only eating chips again for my dinner. What I did want to say to anyone reading this review is one bad meal or one bad review does not make a bad pub or restaurant! Unless every review is bad, remember places and people have bad days, im not going to pretend I was happy but when the owners realised what had occurred they did try to put it right.

There is new management ... Forget the bad reviews of 2022 they no longer apply. Service was attentive and friendly. Lovely log fire was welcome too. The food was excellent with something for everyone on the menu. My, usually very particular, friend raved about the Vietnamese Prawn Curry. We are local and hadn't been here for years because it wasn't great but now we will definitely be going there to eat fairly frequently.

What a disappointment of a Sunday lunch at the Bankes Arms. The building is stunning as is whole of Corfe Castle, but forget ordering any food. Shown to a table with a very uninterested young lady, who pointed to a box with clip board menus. Bar area looked a mess, piled up glasses with no room to move. Staff chatting rather than clearing up. It's the first view for anyone entering the place! We had to ask to order drinks, placed our order for 2 roast lamb and 2 beef....... then we sat and waited. Oh and we waited. And waited for over 40 mins before 'we' had to ask can we have a drink & how is food order going. Food was poorly presented piled high topped with a yorkshire pudding. Meat on top of red cabbage & some other unrecognisable shredded vegetable. A carrot ? or suede 'baby food' puree spread across the plate. The roast potatoes were dreadful, clearly re heated in a deep fat fryer. The carrot & the parsnip were the highlight of the plate. The Yorkshire pudding was rubbery, cold if not stale. Meat was poor. Had the look for pre packed sliced meat. The cauliflower was lovely & cheesy. It was not busy, just seemed a bit chaotic and unorganised. The staff need to be given a bit of direction! The only thing we didnt need to sit waiting for was the bill, which arrived promptly after asking for it. I would suggest a calculator for behind the bar. Maybe a quick look before at the food hygiene certificate rating would have helped us. Such a shame 😪 in a prime location within this historic village with a bit of TLC, organisation, and a good Chef this could be a Star Attraction in this beautiful area. Come on 'Bankes Arms Hotel' - step up and show the visiting world how we can do things in the UK 🇬🇧

We spent a couple of nights here and had a lovely stay. The hotel is stunning, staff were attentive and welcoming. Our room was well equipped, clean and had a lovely shower room, our window over looked the long narrow pond and the carpark beyond so we did hear the staff arriving early in the morning on the gravel. It was also extremely hot and when we left I did mention it was a bit on the hot side she said the duvets had not long been changed to winter ones but it was a mild weekend. Breakfast was really nice with a choice of continental and cooked. They were very accommodating. There is a bar and plenty of comfortable seating areas to enjoy a drink.