Vast improvement

I did not stay overnight but attended a small function in the Allen Suite. Carpark was very full on arrival but I did manage to find a parking place. All staff I came into contact with were very helpful and friendly. The buffet food was excellent. I have previously worked in the leisure and catering industries, and I was very pleased with the overall level of service and the facilities. I obviously cannot comment on the accommodation as I did not stay overnight. I last visited this hotel a couple of years ago. I was very impressed with the vast overall improvement. Keep up the good work.

OK for a short stay

Stayed one night in Feb. Didn't arrive until nearly 2.00am, and found the night staff to be efficient if not exactly suave!

Hotel foyer is bland and clinical, more like a hostel than a hotel. Room was clean and comfortable but VERY small. Bathroom a decent size, good shower.

I wouldn't object if I found myself staying here again, provided it was only for one or two nights, but I would look for an alternative.

Do not waste money on this hotel!!!!!!!!!!

I am just back from a 3 night stay at the cresta court and would not recommend this hotel to anyone. Our room a standard twin room was tiny, and we had to keep standing out of each others way to pass in front of the beds. While the bed clothes were clean it was the only thing clean in the room....very dusty and old. Bathroom old and horrible, shower did not work properly, bath took about 40 mins to get 6 inches of water and taps in sink dripped constantly.......Dinner on the 1st night (the only night we ate in the restaurant) was just plain boring.....we both had steaks - no flavour at all and frozen chips served with them.......found some nice restaurants in Altrincham after that!!!!!!!!!!!! Service was dismal not once were we asked if the food was ok or if we needed a drink....just drop the food down and walk away seemed to be the way service was conducted! Breakfast on the first 2 mornings was ok....hard to get a fry up wrong and like who wants to talk first thing in the morning........on the 3rd morning we ordered and waited and waited....after 25 mins I asked a waitress would it be much longer and was told "its on the way" NO APOLOGY....after another 15 mins we decided to cancel the order and leave... I called the manager over and told her we wished to cancel the breakfast as it had taken so long and we needed to leave ...I was told "thats fine its gone missing anyway!!!!!!!!!! This summed up the Cresta Court for me -----No apology no explanation nothing!!!!! The male receptionist spent most of his time playin a gameboy behind the desk and never looked up as we entered or left the hotel!!!!!!!!! At a cost of STG 200 for the 3 nights I did not consider this hotel good value at all - in fact based on what we got i.ie. room service food it was a complete rip off!! But do go to Altrincham ...lovely place...very easy to travel to Manchester, Tatton etc and a must is a visit to Marcello's Italian in Hale....this restaurant was the ultimate in Service and food!!!!

Please look for another hotel if you are considering staying in Cresta Court......I would never ever stay there again.

Never again

Booked in as part of a party. Our room was not available for 2 hours after the notified time. The heating varied from sweltering in the public rooms to cold in the bedrooms. (The former may improve-there are big square holes in the dining room ceiling, presumably for air-con). Dinner was a joke- the booking was lost, the staff with one notable exception were uninterested in serving. The food WAS OK, when it eventually arrived,the wine arrived after 3 requests but without glasses. Spoons were grudgingly fetched. In due course, that is. The head waiter had to go and find someone to serve the queue of people at the bar.

The only thing missing in truth was Basil Fawlty!

Great Time, go on, book it!

The hotel was very clean and comfortable. It was modern yet welcoming and the appearance was wonderful, as were the staff. The rooms were sufficient although the breakfast was poor. It was very reasonable and close to the city centre without the usual noise and traffic problems. I would definitely recommend it.

It's either this or a bench at the bus station

Rooms

The rooms come in varied sizes, the smallest of which are too small to be comfortable. Ask for a suite when checking in (a process which can take up to 1/2 hour) - they seem to charge the same price for all of the rooms.

Staff

As noted above, checking in and out can be painful - there are generally staff hanging around in the background clearly not helping during busy periods, which doesn't help if you're in a hurry

The staff seem to work without sleep, with the same face serving you breakfast that was closing up the bar 3 hours earlier. Extreme exhaustion might explain the sometimes-patchy service.

Food

Breakfast (with the exception of the coffee) is OK, but don't expect fresh fruit. I didn't dine at the restaurant, but room service dinner was less than great (shiny budget ham in the club sandwich and undercooked oven chips), but relief is five minutes / GBP4 away in a cab - Hale has at least 5 decent restaurants, including Amba, 2 Italian places and a surf/turf type place for our American friends.

Conclusion

We half-jokingly called this place the "Worst Northern", but funnily enough, it seemed a lot better after we'd spent a night in the decidedly uncool-Britannia in Hale, which either proves that happiness is all relative, or that we English are too easily satisfied with shoddy service at high prices. Let's face it, there's nowhere else to stay in Alty.

Naff 2 years ago / worth the stay now

Having stayed at the Cresta Court I am pleased to say that the reviews I have now read are a little out of date. The hotel has changed since i last stayed 2 years ago. Then it was a friendly hotel but very tired and like your best jumper, lots of holes in it but you do not want to throw it away. Now the hotel has bucked its idea up and refurbed the rooms and ground floor areas. New gym small but good equipment, new bar and reception area the lift is still small and does bump but the whole place is worth staying at. Book on line for the best deals and ask for the third floor rooms a sthey are away from the function rooms and better still the hotel no longer has a night club.

Wouldn't choose to stay again

We stayed at the Cresta Court for one night in October 2003. I would never choose to stay again. The reception staff presented as morose and lethargic in that everything they did seemed to be too much trouble and smiles were not worth the effort. The lift was appalling - slow and creaky and our double room was far two small for two people. One person had to sit on the bed to let the other walk past. The room was dark and dingy.

On the plus side, the restaurant was good value. We ate at the hotel because we couldn't find any where else and were pleasantly surprised. The food was well-presented and good quality

Almost Quite Good

The Cresta Court hotel is almost OK. It has all the facilities, and 24 hour room service, but: - The lift is naff and cramped and slow - Room Service has a very limited menu - If you forget items in the room (e.g. shampoo) the hotel never contacts you to tell you about them - The hotel has satellite TV, as advertised, but this does not include Sky One - The bath plugs cannot be easily removed - On the wrong side of the hotel you get noise and smells from the kitchen, or noise from the nightclub - Since the hotel started pushing their scheme to have people park at the hotel and use the airport, there are rarely any free parking spacesThe staff are friendly and helpful, but can only do so much.

Not impressed at all...

I stayed at the Cresta Court for two days over new year 2002. While the lobby and the check in staff give a good impression, it is all down hill from there. There was no hot water anywhere in the hotel. The lights in our room had no light shades, the four poster bed was not really big enough for two people, and the coffee from room service was a weak grey color that tasted like it had been made hours ago. The coffee with breakfast was equally weak, and when I complained to the lady serving it, I was told that it wasn't her fault as she normally works on the bar. None of the vending machines worked, and when I complained, I was told that another company runs the machines, so it wasn't their fault. It reminded me of the Fawlty Towers moment when a customer complains to Basil only to be told that Basil has it much worse. Here is a hotel with staff that take no responsibilty for the service they offer, and that has truly forgotten that a weary traveller will forgive almost anything, as long as the coffee is strong, the water is hot and the bed is comfortable. None of them were, and I won't be staying here again.