The Three Swans Hotel - Market Harborough

MSDSK

A good choice on weekdays, but read this review before booking at a weekend. ||My wife and I have stayed at this hotel several times and considered it to be a pleasant, comfortable and reasonably priced mid-market hotel in a great position in the centre of Market Harborough with the advantage of included on-site parking and an attractive enclosed courtyard. Rooms, while unexciting, contain everything needed for a short stay. We have always found the staff friendly and helpful. ||Earlier this month my wife and I stayed at this hotel again, arriving on Friday and leaving on Monday. While everything else lived up to our expectations, Sunday’s breakfast did not! The hotel website says “Here at the Three Swans we believe that breakfast is definitely the most important meal of the day” and goes on to list some of the dishes (eg Eggs Florentine, Eggs Benedict) available as an alternative to a full English breakfast. On our first morning [Saturday] the alternative breakfast menu was available and we were able to have a very nice smashed avocado on sourdough toast with poached egg. When we tried to order from the alternative breakfast menu on Sunday morning we were told that the General Manager had decided that, with effect immediately, only the full English breakfast buffet (or a vegan/vegetarian full English breakfast) would be offered at weekends in the future. We were told this was because the alternative dishes were proving very popular and kitchen staffing had been reduced, so they could not cope with the demand for them. Very reluctantly, we ordered a vegetarian full English breakfast - a heavier dish than we wanted. On Monday morning we were told we could again order from the alternative menu.||We find it quite remarkable that the hotel responds to the popularity of dishes on its menu by withdrawing them without notice - particularly as the dishes are part of what the hotel regards as “the most important meal of the day”. We can only assume the hotel regards customers having breakfast preferences as a thorough nuisance! ||If you are thinking of coming for the weekend you should ignore the page on the hotel web site describing its breakfast options and ensure you are happy to be restricted to a full English breakfast each morning.

Chris G.

My wife and I booked a celebratory meal for our small wedding party of 12. The staff at the Three Swans were incredibly attentive throughout the meal. The food was excellent and everyone very much enjoyed themselves. We were in the Oak room, which is in an alcove joined onto the main restaurant. It gave us plenty of privacy whilst also allowing some of our elderly guests to attend and access the disabled facilities. Would recommend for anybody looking to host a small, intimate gathering. We pre-ordered our meals which saved a lot of time on the day and allowed us to focus more on chatting with our guests and enjoying the occasion. They were also happy for us to cut the small wedding cake that we had brought with us. Thank you so much for making our day feel so special!

Doretta S.

Excellent location, the rooms were clean and spacious thanks to the hard working cleaners. A special thanks to Laura and her colleagues at reception who were amazing they went beyond to ensure we had a comfortable stay. The restaurant food was lovely and the service was brilliant. I would recommend this hotel to friends and family.

Dee S.

This was the absolute worst sleep experience I’ve had in many many years at a hotel. The rooms above the bar/restaurant are not fit for purpose when the temperatures outside are high.

They should not be allowing guests to stay in these rooms. It’s a matter of health and safety. My room was 33 degrees. There’s a small overhead fan built into the light and a small table fan for use. This is a joke. Not only do they not cool the room down, they are just circulating hot air. The windows opened a crack but brought in no cool air during a hot spell.

I asked for another fan or to be moved twice but they claimed the hotel was full and no extra fan ever materialised. Slept less than 2 hours all night. Had soaked a towel with cold water to place over myself to keep me cool throughout the night but this was dry within a couple of hours (to give you an idea of the temps inside the room).

As soon as I opened my door, it was considerably cooler even in the corridor. I understand that it’s an old building but if you can’t add air conditioning to rooms, then they should be blocked off from being booked during hot weather. It’s unacceptable to pay to sleep in a room that can’t maintain 20-25 degrees. Considering the breakfast room on the same floor had air conditioning, they could extend it for the whole floor.

There are other things to be said like the room was seriously outdated; had a funny smell in the bathroom; you couldn’t wash your hands in the sink without your entire front being splashed with water even if you only slightly opened the tap; peeling and chipping paint, oversized furniture for a tiny room. But really none of this matters if you suffocate while being inside it.

I had more stayed booked here next month but I have now cancelled them.

T4078ZBkirstyh

Wow! Lovely hotel, excellent experience and friendly staff. The rooms (new block) were some of the most pleasant, clean and comfortable rooms I have ever stayed in. The bathrooms were modern and clean. Would highly recommend this hotel to anyone looking for a stay in this quaint market town.

Mira D.

Absolutely disappointing experience – never again.

We came in hungry and left frustrated. The food was far from fresh – everything tasted like it had been sitting around for days. The steak was completely overdone, dry, and flavorless – totally killed, despite asking for medium rare. They didn’t even serve extra virgin olive oil, not even after specifically requesting it.

The tiramisu? An insult to the name. It was soggy, bland, and had no real flavor – more like something you’d find in a convenience store fridge. But rest assured, we’ll never be back. Save your time, money, and taste buds – go elsewhere.

Jo T.

I think i could've pictched a tent in the carpark and had a better quality sleep, it certainly wouldve been cleaner.
The location is central and thats where the positives end really.
The room was awful, essentially its in a car park - outside our window was the parking machine and the other side an MOT testing centre. We were in the building labelled 15 on the map ive included. There were motorbikes parked in the apparant one way bit that were revving engines from 6.10am one morning. You're also on the main route for the bottle bins and wheelie bins being taken plus the beer barrel collection.
The awful sleep experience aside the room itself was dirty, dusty and smelt of damp. The bathroom windowless and just disgusting, the curtains in the bedroom were hanging off and I found an old plaster on the floor.
We were ignored in the bar trying to get drinks by servers chatting amongst themselves. The only polite and friendly staff member was the lady on the hotel reception check in.
Avoid avoid avoid.

Paige C.

I booked an afternoon tea for my Grandad's 90th birthday. My Grandad, my Mum, my two young children and myself were there. The cakes for the childrens afternoon tea were rock solid and were inedible for my young children. They had obviously just been removed from the fridge. I have been to a lot of aternoon tea places and this wasn't worth the price. The service was non-existent. It took a while for our afternoon teas to come out. We were informed it was unlimited drinks, yet no one came over to our table the entire time to take more drink orders. Instead, I had to go and find someone and ask them. For the price I paid, it was definitely not worth it. It ruined what should have been a special occasion and I will not be returning.