The Queen's Head

We stayed at the Queens Head in Troutbeck (just to be clear this is the one which is some 5 miles outside Windermere on the road towards the Kirkstone Pass) last weekend. Great location and welcoming bar with real fires. Not much good after that though. Unfortunately the staff seemed to be inexperienced and the overall service was very poor. There was no obvious manager on site to help them. Breakfast service was extremely slow - took almost an hour to be served on the Saturday morning. No hot water and no heating in some rooms. No hot food available on the Friday evening and then we found out (we were not told) at about 7pm that there would be no hot food on the Saturday evening (we had previously booked a table for supper). The staff offered no helpful alternatives or suggestions. So we drove the 10 miles to Ambleside for supper. The bar prices are on a level with main city centre prices. Room was "ok" (bathroom was tiny) but no more than that. Owners refused to discuss the complaints with us (and a number of other guests) on the Sunday morning - leaving the staff to deal with the problems - but the staff had no authority to address them or offer discounts. From reading other reviews on this hotel these problems are not isolated - so I suggest that you spend your hard earned money elsewhere. For the record I am not a habitual complainer - but this was so bad it deserves to be highlighted.

What a beautiful location and a lovely old building. We were delighted with our choice of accommodation, it had so much character. The food and drink was also also excellent and the staff could not have been more helpful and friendly.

This is a perfect spot for the Lakeland traditionalist with its oak beams, stone floors, and big log fire. We absolutely loved it. The room was clean and modern though and there was plenty of delicious food to choose from on the menu.