Warner Leisure Hotels – My Thoughts and Experiences

Nick Everything Else reviews, travel 14 Comments

If you are 50 or over, you will almost certainly at least have heard of Warner Leisure Hotels. The company have 14 country and coastal resort hotels across England and Wales. They have a strict adults-only policy, and appeal mainly to an older clientele (based on my experience, the average age is late sixties or early seventies).

As well as accommodation, they offer a range of leisure activities, including day trips, quizzes, guided walks, archery and bowls, social dancing, swimming, and so forth. Most of these activities are included in the price, as is the evening entertainment.

Accommodation is generally on a half-board basis, including breakfast and evening meal. Guests typically book short stays of two to four days, often focused around a particular headline act. Some of those in the current line-up include Motown, Abba and Franki Valli tribute acts, plus the real Leo Sayer, Paul Young, Russell Watson, Alexander Armstrong, Jane Macdonald, and many others. There are also seasonal breaks, spa breaks (at the Thoresby Hall hotel), bowls breaks, and more.

I have been to two Warner Leisure Hotels, Bodelwyddan Castle in North Wales (pictured above) and Alvaston Hall in Cheshire. I thought I would therefore take the opportunity to share my impressions here for others who might be contemplating this type of short break holiday.

My Review

As my partner passed away five years ago, I went to both venues on my own. I am in my early sixties, and felt very young compared with some of the other guests!

In both cases I found the accommodation spacious and comfortable, with all the facilities you would expect at a good hotel. I was on the ground floor at both, and had a small private terrace with a metal table and chairs, which was pleasant to sit out on. Here’s a picture of the accommodation block in which I stayed at Alvaston Hall.

I thought the food was generally very good. The dining area was large and could be a bit noisy, but the waiters and waitresses did a great job of getting meals out quickly. You are allocated a table at the start of your stay and keep that for the duration. As a solo guest I was offered the opportunity to be matched with another solo male as a dining partner. I declined this, as it seemed a gamble whether I would have anything in common with them.

At Alvaston Hall the evening meal is combined with the entertainment. So, basically, you have your meal followed by a show, all the while sitting at the same table. I liked this idea in theory, but in practice I discovered it had a few drawbacks.

For one thing, if you have been allocated a table towards the back (as I was) it can be quite hard to see what is happening on the stage. In addition, for me anyway it felt a long time to be sitting in one place. Really I preferred the arrangement at Bodelwyddan Castle, where you had your meal in the restaurant then went over to the main hall for the evening entertainment (for which you could sit anywhere).

I must admit I was slightly disappointed by the entertainment programme. The evening entertainment in particular was targeted at an older clientele and I didn’t particularly relate to it, despite being no spring chicken myself!

Both hotels seemed very big on social dancing, with guests being invited to ‘take the floor for the foxtrot’ or whatever. Not my thing at all, I’m afraid. I had been hoping for something more akin to cruise ship entertainment, with song and dance shows and cabaret acts, but perhaps that was asking too much.

There were regular quizzes, though again I felt that they were often oriented towards the older guests. I did one quiz about the 1950s, a decade many of those taking part remembered well. As I was only four years old when the fifties ended, I felt at a bit of a disadvantage!

On the positive side, I went on several guided walks, which I really enjoyed. I also took full advantage of the swimming pools, and at Alvaston Hall went to an interesting demonstration of fruit and vegetable carving (see photo below).

I also enjoyed looking around Bodelwyddan Castle itself (pictured below), which is a National Trust property. Warner guests get free entry during their stay, which is a nice bonus.

Prices

As Pounds and Sense is primarily a money blog, I should say a few words about this.

I thought both the breaks I took were good value for money, bearing in mind that as well as comfortable accommodation you get breakfast and an evening meal, and a range of leisure facilities and entertainment.

When I checked just now, you could book a two-night break at Alvaston Hall for two people this weekend at prices ranging from £219.48 for a standard room up to £315.48 for a luxury suite. In my experience even ‘standard’ rooms are very comfortable, and the price above works out to just over £100 per person per night. By comparison, I have been charged well over £100 per night for bed and breakfast, with no evening meal or entertainment, in some hotels and guest houses.

If you are travelling solo (as I was) you may have to pay an under-occupancy surcharge. However, the hotels do have some single rooms, and there are also ‘no surcharge’ offers for solo travellers on some breaks. It’s definitely worth inquiring about this with the hotel you want to stay at.

Finally, I should mention that Warner Leisure Hotels often offer special deals and discounts. Once you are on their list, you can expect to be mailed regularly about these!

Summing Up

Overall, while I enjoyed my stay at these hotels, I have to say I did feel a bit young for them. The entertainment wasn’t really my cup of tea and I’m not sure it will be even when I’m ten years older. I saw one review that described Warner Leisure Hotels as ‘Butlins for old people’ and have to admit I think that’s quite apt (it’s owned by the same parent company as Butlins and Haven Holidays, incidentally). I don’t mean to sound snobby about this. When I was growing up I enjoyed regular family holidays at Butlins holiday camps and hotels. But the format does seem a little tired and old-fashioned now. In my view the company could learn a few lessons from the range of entertainment offered on cruise ships nowadays and even in tourist hotels in places like the Canary Islands.

I also think Warners could do a lot more to welcome solo guests and get them involved. At times I found staying there surprisingly lonely. Again, my experience with cruises has been that they do a much better job for solo guests, with regular meet-ups, social activities and even dedicated staff members to look after them. It would be nice if Warners did something similar. There are lots of older people who live alone, and I think the company are missing a trick by not reaching out to them.

But to be fair, I do think Warner Leisure Hotels offer an appealing combination of comfortable rooms, good food, a full activities and entertainment programme, and good value prices. I’m not planning on going again soon, but I certainly wouldn’t rule it out in future.

So those are my impressions of Warner Leisure Hotels, but what do you think? Have you stayed at one yourself, or would you even consider it? I’d love to hear your views!

• For a wider range of all-inclusive holiday options in the UK and abroad, check out this article on Over 60s Discounts 🏖

Disclosure: This review includes affiliate links, so if you click through and make a purchase I will receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect in any way the terms you are offered. Neither has it influenced in any way this review!