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Weddings

Down Hall Hotel & Spa Reviews

Down Hall Hotel & Spa

Down Hall Hotel & Spa

Hatfield Heath, Essex
5.0 out of 5 rating, 311 reviews
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Reviews

5.0 out of 5 rating
311 reviews
  • Quality of the service
    5 out of 5 rating
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  • Professionalism
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  • Value for money
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  • Flexibility
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99% Recommended by couples

Badges

  • Ana
    Ana Sent on 05/11/2023
    2.8 out of 5 rating
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    Micro-management required!

    The summary I would give our wedding is that the venue is stunning however the wedding coordinators and bar staff failed on several occasions to deliver the wedding we had planned or paid for.

    I really did not want to micro-mange my own wedding but this meant things didn’t go to plan. Luckily as we had evidence in writing we did receive compensation for this however that doesn’t change what happened on the day.


    Here’s what happened …


    Planning Issues

    We emailed our final planning information 2 days prior to our final wedding planning meeting. We then had our final planning meeting with Tracy who said everything was okay and on-track. 10 days later she then admitted she had not read the documents at the time of the final planning meeting and had now found a problem. There was a problem, which was my misunderstanding, and we resolved this however this is a great example of the level of service that we received.

    We had asked (thankfully via email) if we could have a musician outside during reception drinks and were told we were so we booked one. When we then visited Down Hall we were told we were not allowed a musician. As we could provide the email from them saying we could have a musician they allowed us to have one but I would recommend to any potential couples to get all communication in writing as you may need to provide what you have been told!

    These are just two of several fustrating interactions we had during planning!


    Time Management

    The time management of the wedding coordinators is terrible. We were left waiting on every occasion that we met with them, sometimes up to 45minutes with no idea what was going on. On our wedding day we were left waiting in the reception room for 20minutes wondering again how long we would be waiting with many things to do!


    Wedding Ceremony Music

    We provided a detailed run-though of the wedding ceremony and when music was meant to be played (nothing complicated, pre-wedding, entrance, signing and exit songs).

    - The pre-wedding ceremony music was not setup by the wedding coordinator as promised and was playing through the ipad and not speakers when the Groom arrived.
    - Tracy then proceeded mid-way through the ceremony to randomly start playing the second signing music song before realising she was drowning out proceedings and switching it off.
    - The Ceremony came to an end and everyone was asked to stand and out their hands together (this took quite a while as my Grandpa is disabled) despite this delay and being given a script in advance Tracy then totally missed starting the exit music until we were 3/4 of the way down the aisle.

    The team did offer us compensation for this.


    Horsebox Bar

    We had paid £500 to reserve the terrace and horsebox bar. When we asked the Food & Beverage team to open the horsebox bar back up after the meal they had to apologise and say that there was a mix up and no staff had been booked and this was not possible.

    After the wedding we then complained to the Revenue Manager who claimed that this was agreed with us and this was reflected on the function sheet which we received prior to the wedding … this was a totally untrue!

    We then (rather embarrassingly for them) sent them their own function sheet and highlighted the line which said “horsebox bar and terrace after meal service”. After agreeing that both the contract and function sheet said this should be open they offered us compensation. Once again showing the importance of getting everything confirmed in writing.


    Prosecco

    We brought our own drink and did corkage. During the post wedding drinks I went to the horsebox bar to get a Prosecco to then be told that was the last glass. I was surprised given how much we had brought. I found two bottles in the dining room and took them to the horsebox bar. These were drunk and then guests started buying their own drinks as a result of being told this was finished.

    I was then very disappointed to be handed back 8 bottles of Prosecco when we checked out. When I complained about this the Revenue Manger said the guests were drinking G&T which does not answer the complaint at all and again reflects the level of service we received.


    Summary

    In summary, the venue is stunning however from reading previous reviews it appears that a completely new wedding team are at Down Hall. I would only recommend this as a place to get married if you are going to micro-manage your wedding coordinator, get everything in writing, and don’t trust the function sheet as this is not guarantee things will happen.
  • N
    Natasha G. Sent on 01/09/2022
    5 out of 5 rating
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    Absolutely superb

    Wow what an amazing wedding we had at downhall, the venue was absolutely stunning and the team were amazing and always there for you along the whole journey. I could ask for more the whole day was an absolute dream and that wouldn't have been possible if not for the amazing team. Thank you so so much xxx
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  • E
    Elizabeth O. Sent on 26/02/2022
    5 out of 5 rating
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    Masters of their craft

    My husband and I got married at Down Hall in December 21. Covid cases just started to get bad again and even though Stu and I were a panicked mess in the days leading up to it, Becky, Imran and their dedicated team calmed every concern and we had the most incredible day. They are flexible, accommodating and the most reliable people I have ever met. No request was too much and they did absolutely everything they could to ensure that everything went ahead without fault. We met with the organisers the day before to discuss final details and they had everything written down and ready before we opened our mouths, even down the sticking down the sign on our post box. The smallest touches made the day magical and their attention to detail is unmatched. Because of them, we have the most fantastic memories of our day. Thank you so so much xx
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    Zoe D. Sent on 21/08/2021
    5 out of 5 rating
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    Incredible

    We had the most magical wedding day! Would recommend this venue to everyone
  • L
    Lindsey Sent on 10/11/2019
    5 out of 5 rating
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    Beautiful wedding

    We got engaged in January then went to down hall on valentine a day I had been there before to stay and just knew I’d love to get married there so booked a meeting with a Julie and booked straight away the whole experience was perfect so professional and easy Julie was the reason for that she made it stress free . Our wedding day was perfect everything ran smoothly and just how I’d imagined we stayed from sat till Monday. Toast master Simon was amazing run the day brilliantly .
    I would encourage anyone to get Married at Down hall perfect venue.
  • B
    Billie Sent on 06/10/2019
    5 out of 5 rating
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    The Most Perfect Day!

    Right from the start we was not even sure if we could have this fantastic venue, due to our small and intimate wedding. But to our delight, Down Hall tailored and accommodated our needs every step of the way. We must say all of the staff were brilliant in every way possible.
    The food was perfect, and presented beautifully, and our guests loved it.
    My husband and I had the most magical day. Once again we would like to give a massive thank you to all of the staff at Down Hall, for giving us a day that we will never forget.
  • K
    Karen Sent on 09/07/2019
    5 out of 5 rating
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    A perfect day

    We couldn't have asked for a better day. All our friends and family are still talking about what an amazing day it was. Venue looked amazing, service was excellent and as for the beef it was exquisite.
    From the moment we stepped into the venue it felt special and the wedding team made everything so easy building up to the day and on the day.
    It was so good we want to do it again every year!
  • M
    Michelle Sent on 03/06/2019
    5 out of 5 rating
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    Ride or die together

    Perfect! Perfect! Perfect!

    Couldn’t have asked for anything better.... the venue is beautiful and still going through renovations to keep it looking so. The staff were amazing, very welcoming, very attentive to detail, very accommodating. Everyone contributed to making our day the best day ever!

    My husband and I would just like to thank everyone at the Downhall once again for making our
    wedding day the best day we could have ever hoped for. The day was well
    planned and executed perfectly by all staff involved. We couldn’t have asked for a better wedding day, or venue or service from all your staff involved and
    even by those who were not. Massive thank you to Marie and Julie and Martyn; you guys made us feel like royalty!

    Compliments to the chef! Everyone loved the food and we appreciate you going the extra mile on our personal requests.
  • N
    Nikki Sent on 12/09/2018
    5 out of 5 rating
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    Beautiful!

    My husband and I got married at Downhall in August 2018 we viewed over 6 different venues and Downhall is by far the superior! it is a stunning and beautiful venue in and out!
    The staff are friendly and helpful. Food is delicious and the rooms are spacious and excellent. We received lots of wonderful comments on our wedding day about the venue and the day itself. We had a lovely day! cannot recommend Downhall enough. If your looking to get married then Downhall is the place! you will not be disappointed. Check it out
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