The Ancient Gatehouse & Rugantino Restaurant

It is without doubt one of the finest views I have ever had from a hotel window - set upon the arch of the gateway to the cathedral, and looking back at the structure in all its glory. We had the much anticipated Room Nine, which is in the tower above the arch and has a distinctly medieval feel. its accessed by a thin passageway off the first floor, followed by a rather daunting accent up a winding stone tower stairway which is not suitable for anyone with either height issues or accessibility problems - Its an adventure, but be aware you need to be able to climb these steep steps to get to it! Once you get to the room its a treat. A hand carved four poster, the view, the sheer feel of history and nostalgia all add to the sense its a bit of a romantic fantasy. The bathroom, is a couple of steps below on the same stairwell just outside the door. Again, access wise its a little steep, and if you have had a couple of 'Ales' you need to be careful of the short journey down those steps. But its a great bathroom, one of the most luxurious I have come across. It retains period charm with a ostentatious full size copper bathtub, but mixes a bright modern shower and WC without any compromise. Hot water is there within seconds and room is huge. Me and my wife had the most wonderful two days, and Wells was another great discovery. Loads of pubs and restaurants. a food market on Saturday, the cathedral, castle moat and great explorations through the town. Sadly, we did not get chance to sample the restaurant that was attached to the property, we simply ran out oftime - but the menu looked very good. Things to know: A) Parking is not nearby, at least five to ten mins walk albeit flat. We opted for fifteen mins and parked for free to the north on the roads outside the town, but there are long stays at the Waitrose for a fee. B) Room nine (ours) is not suitable for anyone who struggles with access (as above), but most other rooms looked perfectly fine in this regard. C) Two o'clock check in, and eleven o'clock check out are generous nowadays - and a credit to the management. D) Staff were extremely helpful (even when we locked our key in the room by mistake). keys give access 24/7 E) Great nights sleep, not a sound except the occasional dull chime of a cathedral bell.

My wife and I stayed at the Ancient Gatehouse last week first staying in room 7 then room 9 both rooms were so comfortable and gave a real sense of history like stepping back in time 500 years but with all the mod cons. The breakfast choice offered a full english breakfast cooked with quality ingredients which was absolutely delicious and the restaurant RUGANTINO was outstanding serving primarily Italian cuisine but there were other choices available The Chefs are excellent. And lastly, what a cracking team, the staff Andy, Nicky and Antonio, and the others were absolute professionals making you their number one priority and all were so friendly.

Booked into the Ancient Gatehouse in Sept 2023 for one night. Communication before arriving was very good. The hotel itself if very old and a most beautiful building. I have seen some reviews commenting about the smell and the stairs etc, which is rather ridiculous. The building is about 500 years old! This only adds to the charm. Views from the back of the hotel are stunning as it looks directly towards Wells cathedral. I forget her name, but the manageress was most helpful and very friendly. Unfortunately the restaurant was closed when we stayed so we are looking forward to eating there when we return in a few months time. If you don't like old buildings and creaky stairs then stay in a Premier Inn. We loved it, hence our return for 2 nights soon which we are very much looking forward to in a bigger room.

Lovely hotel in good location, would have preferred room at back of hotel, very noisy at front with Dustbin men at 6am and not much privacy with big window, no nets and tea making facilities in bay of window. Lush Breakfast. Not for hard of walking or disabled with steep narrow stairs

WELLS Holiday (08/12-05-23) Looked amazing on *********** and booked a 4 poster bed with big window and window seats for our wedding anniversary and a twin for my dad but on arrival we was shown to our room but when my dad who is 81 was shown his the stairs were so steep with only a copper pipe as a handrail there was no way he could get up them so we had to swap and it was hard getting up and down and we had a young dog. Good:- Location was great next to the cathedral but we was on the street side. Room was clean and dust free. The bathroom was great and the shower worked perfect. The staff were great and on arrival our cases were carried to our room and one woman gave us a great location to visit. Dog friendly. 'Hot Fuzz' filming location Bad:- No on site parking and it was a slog to find good near overnight parking. Stairs to second floor are so steep and hard to get to there dangerous and must be a health and safety concern. Carpets worn and ragged. Headboard was worn and torn. Windows were small and hard to close. Only radiator behind bed. Room very warm. Fan in room but very noisy. Blind pulley damaged and awkward to use. Carpets never hoovered. Only one small toilet roll a day. Some nights the enterence door locked early. Some dead flys on towls. Woke up every morning at 04:30-05:00 by bin men emptying bottle bins every morning. It was a good 4 night break but the stairs are that bad, I will post a photo, the room we booked was so much better but we never got to use it and my dad on leaving did say about it but the manager didn't care or want to listen and said "the stars are mentioned on the site" and just pushed the bill to us!!! Very unprofessional way to act, and only our room (we gave to my dad as he wasn't able to use the stairs) was on the site as the room we had was very average, you don't even get to go in tje gatehouse part of the building!!! A big letdown for a fantastic location.

This ancient building definitely has its challenges, and I can see that it would be difficult if you have any mobility issues. Some of the decor is a little tired, but inserting mod cons and moving furniture in such an old building is very hard. We very much appreciated the wonderful view of the cathedral from our room. The mattress was a little soft for our taste. Breakfast was good (dinner in the restaurant was excellent).