Best Hotels near Oak Paddock, Purbeck District

My wife and I have been visiting the Isle of Purbeck for over 40 years and have passed by Knoll House Hotel many times and said that one day we would like to stay there, an offer popped up on Travelzoo so we booked 2 nights half board in September. We found out that the hotel had been recently purchased by the Kingfisher group. I imagine the hotel will have some money spent on it and certain areas do need this but I would hate it if it lost any of its charm. Some of the rooms were really charming with a 1950s feel (I think they call this post-modern!) Our bedroom room was fine, it was clean and so was the en-suite although a bit on the small side, however this was more than made up by the wonderful views from the window, Sandbanks and Bournemouth on one side and Old Harry Rocks on the other - magnificent! The staff were extremely good, from reception through to waiting staff and barman. The food was excellent, no complaints at all. Breakfast was buffet style (not a fan) but there were some choices of freshly cooked dishes, we had smoked haddock with a poached egg which was perfect. For the evening meal there was an excellent choice of courses most of which changed on the following night and what we had was very well prepared and imaginative. Apparently they don't do lunchtime meals at the moment but they have built a bistro which opens soon, we had a sneaky peak and it looks very nice. There are 2 smallish swimming pools, indoor and outdoor but we didn't use them, they supply pool towels which I believe are complimentary. We will definitely came back to Knoll House, it will be interesting to see what changes they make.

Our coach holiday at the Royal Bath in Bournemouth was terrific value for money. The location is excellent with the beach, Bournemouth gardens, and the Pavilion theatre all minutes away on foot. Our rooms were spacious and appeared to have been recently refurbished. There is free wifi in the common areas and kettle and cups, ironing facilities and a fan are provided in the rooms. The common areas are comfortable and the food is self service. We found the staff to be friendly and attentive. The hotel is an old lady and not without it's flaws so if you are used to luxury then you may wish to pay extra money elsewhere for your indulgence. We were looking for a comfortable hotel in a great location and were very happy with our stay at the Royal Bath.

We hired the function room at this Hotel for our 50th Wedding Anniversary Party and must say it was excellent from the organiser at the Hotel (Lisa Dowdall-Souza) and the rest of the staff who went above and beyond to be helpful especially (Keiron) on reception who doubled as a bar-person in the evening, all in all a very good experience.

Stayed 3 nights this hotel is dated the room we had definitely needed a lot of redecorating. But in saying that it seemed clean and was comfortable although they only had very firm pillows. I guess I could of asked for softer but I didn’t. Entertainment was provided an Irish music weekend which we didn’t attend but the hotel was full of guests who did. It sounded ok from our room, but not enough to disturb sleep. Now the food, we ate the dinner on our first night and although I found it ok my other is a vegetarian and the choice was only veg curry which didn’t look that appealing. However for me plenty of food, not the greatest but for a budget hotel they know their customer base and was tasty. A Buffett is provided which included salad, meat and fish. A little pricey and felt as my other half was disappointed not value for money again we didn’t complain as I had enough to eat and really should of read menu first. Breakfast was another thing I felt for a budget hotel was more than ok. A Buffett again of cooked and cereal/porridge. The cooked was good and although you can tell it is all prepared from catering packs no real cooking was done it was very tasty and filling. You can’t ever really do a bad breakfast. We ate in the bar on last night and felt that was value for money. Location was good 30 minutes walk to Bournemouth close to boscombe nice walk through park. Other reviews have mentioned trouble and homeless people staying there, please remember Brittainia Hotels do have a government contract for this but I never noticed or saw any trouble.whilst there. Staff were very friendly the guy in charge of restaurant service was very friendly and helpful. Reception staff were great as were bar and restaurant staff. They put the queens funeral on tv in bar and was watched by about 12 people which was a nice touch good to watch with other people. Swimming pool was ok and the water was warm and clean. Al in all not an outstanding stay but for the price not bad. Would I go again yes but now I know the expectations they do lots of entertainment weekends and they seem to know their clientele and aim their service at that.

We attended a funeral in the area and the wake/ reception was held at this hotel. As we traveled from Sheffield we decided to stay the night at the hotel. The staff at the hotel are excellent and the rooms are of a good standard. We booked two rooms 1 Classic double and 1 Comfort double both rooms are good with the comfort being slightly smaller but still of a good size. All rooms had coffee and tea making facilities and the rooms also had a decent Wi-fi signal. We booked for the buffet breakfast and that was excellent. We had no complaints at all.

Really nice hotel. Great location, lovely bed and room decor. Room was pretty noisy, as windows are in the car park and door is by lobby and lift, so lots of people at all times coming by. I didn’t ask to be moved as I was only there 2 nights and I’d already unpacked when I realised how bad the noise was. On the flip side, the room was really handy for popping in and out as near all hotel facilities. Staff were all very helpful and nice. Pool was excellent! I would definitely go back but would prefer a different room, on the sea view side.

Visited in December for 2 nights for nye the room size is ok with a sofa bed for my 8 years old son to sleep at night and option to fold it for space during the day. All the staff at the main reception were good specially the Indian guy at the main reception with great smile was very welcoming and the the Indian girl was also welcoming both served served till about 10 pm New Year’s Eve and New Years day. The best role played was the young boy from house keeping, he was very pleasant and caring. The hotel food was very disappointing! all the food we had looked like frozen/packed food. I will be back this summer but will eat outside.