Vanbrugh House Hotel 

My husband is an Alumni of New College so we regularly stay in Central Oxford but this was our first stay at this particular hotel. We booked the Vicarage Suite especially for our Anniversary weekend. The room, particularly the double bath bathroom and outside space were lovely but we did pay a premium for these extras. However the fridge was hot ( did not chill our fizz at all ) the bed was VERY hard despite the topper and would hugely benefit from sprung slats. Also our room door was opposite the foyer external front door and on the first morning the door was constantly banging very loudly from 6.15am !!! Suffice to say we pretty much had a sleepless weekend. Not what you expect for the best part of £750. We obviously appreciate the buildings age and need for preservation of original features BUT guests need for good sleep and peace should be a priority of the hotel's. So they need to urgently address this for those paying a premium for the ground floor garden rooms. On the subject of hospitality there was little to none in the way of customer service at this hotel. On check-in we weren't even offered help with our many bags down the street. through the heavy foyer door and into our room. I await a hip replacement and have shoulder arthritis so the offer of assistance would have been appreciated. Unbeknown to us nobody collected our breakfast menu from the door handle on the first night so we had to chase up our breakfast once we realised none was coming and then wait 40 mins for a continental breakfast. We weren't informed of any of the hotel's facilities on arrival so am still oblivious if there is a lounge or bar or terrace. We advised the hotel on booking this was for our anniversary and not so much as a best wish. The customer service leaves very much to be desired especially compared to The Old Bank, Courtyard by Marriot, Malmaison and Bath Place Hotel. If you need a fancy bathroom and outside space and are happy to pay a premium for little else in the way of service go ahead book here. The location IS fabulous. Otherwise there are far better hotels in terms of sleep quality, customer service and breakfast offering and going the extra mile for things like birthdays and anniversaries.

I spent two days in this lovely hotel with my son in beautiful room with private garden. The hotel is right in the center of Oxford with pubs and attractions. Nice service for breakfast with a basket of delicious food. Highly recommended for a cozy experience.

Hotel is plush and a high level of interior design. My room was small likely would sold as boutique, but not a good work space if on business. Would think the hotel is best suited to tourists. Found staff to be cold and unwelcoming with little interest in asking if I enjoyed the stay etcc, the normal standard pleasantries. Despite having a do not disturb sign on the door each time housekeeping ignored it and came in. (I was on work calls). No bar or restaurant, only continental breakfast served in a communal fashion. Overall very disappointed.