The Portland Hotel

We stayed for a night with our 2 dogs as we were hiking the south east coastal path. Excellent location. Excellent value for money. The hotel is a little dated and tired in places but it was spotlessly clean, had tea/coffee/biscuits, shower bits and fresh towels/bedding. We had a really spacious room and slept really well. We received a lovely warm welcome and the team really couldn’t do enough to make our stay the best it could be. We’d stay again!

At £60 a night for a 4 bed room our hopes were not high and let’s say they were perfectly met. We had booked the parking by the Skuba bar for £6 a night which became a hilarious farce - every time we came back to the car someone was parked in front of it and every time we came back to park again there was a car in the parking space. Each time moved without complaint but really not the glorious convenience we imagined. The room was fine, good value for the money, the beds were comfortable enough and the bedding seemed clean. Don’t inspect the top of the wardrobe though. The staff were friendly but really Skuba bar on a Friday night is a bit Wild West. We couldn’t really hear the bar from our first floor room but it was definitely lively in there. There was no food on when we were there but staff encouraged us to order in which we did. The whole hotel is tired and a bit grotty in places but I think the prices reflect that. Out of our bedroom window we could see both the sea and a big pile of old mattresses and furniture. We enjoyed ourselves and were only sleeping there. If you want luxury and no dust on your wardrobe you need to pay more. But we came away with a feeling of mild affection for the place and relief that we had left.

Booked via a Buy a Gift Charming Escapes Box we unexpectedly ended up with a booking at this hotel despite having all communication via the Westward Ho! Hotel. Despite this we planned to go ahead in any case for a much needed weekend away. Whilst the staff were welcoming on arrival sadly the room was not. The entrance to the hotel had a missing glass panel leaving it insecure and the entrance hallway could do with some freshening up. The room itself, described as “the perfect place to stay”, could not be further from the truth. We found the poor standards of cleanliness and the general condition of the room unacceptable. We felt we were unable to stay in a room where there were bodily fluids on the pillows and general untidiness throughout. With my partners anxiety already high we decided to check out immediately and found alternative accommodation. Despite not speaking with staff at the time we later identified our disappointment and issues with the room at a later date to avoid this happening with other guests yet had no response at all.