I booked this hotel for a party of 7 for a small family get together. Generally, the hotel was excellent. The staff were friendly and extremely helpful although it was clear they were short staffed due to a large Wedding party. The rooms were comfortable and clean, although no consideration seemed to be made on room allocation, our single party member was allocated a king size room where as the twin room was a small double, but it did not detract from the experience. We had dinner in the restaurant and the quality of the food was fantastic. We dined as part of a package and so the price was very reasonable.

We decided to stay in Banbury for a night to break a long journey and as Banbury is just off the M40 it was an ideal choice. Hotel is in a fantastic location next to 'Banbury' cross in the centre of town. Hotel has it's own free car prak which is also a bonus. Staff were excellent, friendly and nothing seemed to be a problem. We stayed in a room in the new part of the hotel and it was large and clean with a lovely view of the garden. We did not use the hotel restaurant as opted to eat in one of the many restaurants around town. We also made use of 'Weatherspoons' round the corner for breakfast instead of paying 15pound each at the hotel. The hotel itself is quite historic, but being in the newer part of the hotel this was lost, altho the reception and bar areas have some original features. I wouldn't hesitate staying again and as it was Sunday we got a very good rate via laterooms - so shop around for a good deal.

Checked in late at 10.30pm but had phoned ahead to ensure the hotel knew. Reception received on arrival compared favourably to a watered down version of Basil Fawlty. Explained I had been disappointed that I had not managed to book a promotional room (better value) was met with a blank expression and ignored. Bar service was appallingly, a queue had formed of eight people and then was down to one (me), the others had left to get a drink elsewhere. Did not receive apology when barman finally turned up but did give a good shrug of the shoulders. Breakfast at ?30 for two, for tea and toast, was ridiculous!

Having read previous reviews on this hotel our expectations were not very high. We were however pleasently suprised. The staff were all very helpful and polite. Table service at both Breakfast and Dinner was attentive and once again the staff were polite and helpful. The food quality was good and prices reflect normal hotel rates ( expensive if not included in your hotel booking rate ) Our room which was located facing the main road in the original building on the second floor could be a little noisy late at night. The church clock strikes on the half hour all night long. However the biggest irritation was the creaky floor boards both in the room and along the corridors. The location of the hotel is good and there are lots of places to eat close by if you don't wish to use the hotel facilities. If you can get a good package deal on this hotel it offers a good weekend break.

The room I stayed in was tiny by most US or UK standards, and that is the highlight of my stay. The hot water was hit or miss, most showers we're never really hot enough, and then there was the front desk staff. The front desk staff was somewhere between indifferent to passively aggressive. I discovered the mini fridge wasn't working, and when I asked the receptionsit about having the mini-fridge looked at, I was corrected, it wasn't a mini-fridge, but a "cooler", and it was working fine. Mind you, the clerk wasn't bothered to check it himself. I'd never heard anything so silly in my years of travel, being corrected about something like a mini-fridge when he no doubt knew it wasn't working...Unacceptable. The "star" of this experience was the maintenence man; he candidly tol me the mini-fridges we're no longer being used, so we're being removed through attrition. He arranged for my food to be stored in the kitchen, and replaced the lounge chair with a desk chair for the table, as the lounge chair was too short for the desk. Overall, this was not a good stay. Didn't eat at the hotel, as I couldn't imagine it could be any better. Mercure mgmt needs to step up and provide some customer service training, low cost, yet good ROI.