The Imperial Torquay Reviews 

After a very disappointing start, I am delighted to report that customer service dramatically improved and we will be returning to this hotel again in the future. It is a beautiful hotel in need of maintenance and modernisation in the bedrooms and staff training at reception. The spa is good. It is dog friendly in places but does not always deliver what is advertised. There are some really nice staff so it isn’t fair to generalise. I would like to edit my earlier review but it hasn’t the option to change or delete.

We work for a residential home and every week take some residents out for a cream tea, different place every week, imperial booked for 2pm, on arrival no sign of any made up table/s for 8 of us, young lady looked confused when we told her we had booked and said is it ok to sit at 3 small tables, we all agreed better than nothing.
40 minutes later a member of staff came over to ask are we here for cream tea or the afternoon tea, another 25 minutes and our scones turned up, after 15 I went to the bar and informed them the whole idea of a cream tea is to have tea as well for which we didn’t. Another 15 minutes went past our residents had had enough, we were just about to make our exit when the drinks arrived, coffees in tumblers, such a shambles of an afternoon tea, pleased to be informed due to staff shortages and poor service we didn’t need to pay the bill, such a shame because a nice view over the bay it could have been a nice experience but instead a sad reflection of this poorly run hotel

I had a horrible experience with the hotel reception staff during my stay. They were incredibly rude and unhelpful, giving short and uninterested answers to my questions.

Furthermore, we changed our room before changing it I asked about the price, she told 60£, we agreed and paid it, next day she told we have to pay another 60£ ( total would be 240 for a room) obviously I didn’t agree to pay it, because I want told about it! instead of apologizing and fixing the issue promptly, they made me wait at the front desk for an unreasonable amount of time and arguing with me, for their own mistake! (Let me get something clear, the room it self didn’t worth the money we paid- everything old and dirty)It was clear that customer service was not a priority for them.

Overall, the hotel reception staff made my stay incredibly unpleasant and I would not recommend this hotel to anyone looking for a pleasant and welcoming experience.

Spa day

We arrived to find a very restricted lunch menu 4items I believe , the salad came out brown and rotten so neither of us ate this.

The spa area was dirty floors slippery and visible slime on them . Pubic hair on the steam room seats , we had not been informed the jacuzzi was boarded up . Both treatment times were only 20 mins and that included the briefing instead of 30 mins each .

We left after 1.5 hours and emailed our complaint in 2 weeks later I finally got a reply saying if we book another we would see the improvements. Absolutely never would I pay to return to this spa ! I wouldn’t go back if it was free ! Avoid save your money and book elsewhere.

WINTER RETREAT
I love old grandeur and was so pleased at last to find a good old-fashioned hotel with charm and character rather than the cold, grey minimalism elsewhere. Established in the early 1800s during the spa era, the colonial interior remains while the exterior was modernised in the Frank-Lloyd Wright-style of the early 1900s. At times I felt I was on a grand ocean liner with all the views out to sea. I felt lifted with its history of famous creatives having also stayed here, from James Joyce to The Beatles. One gets inspired, like Elizabeth Barrett-Browning, Wilfred Owen or Agatha Christie must also have done. Each guest I met during my stay were regulars and were also in love with the hotel. The staff are wonderful and nothing was too much trouble for them, giving help when you get lost in the maize of corridors or coming over to my table if I had the slightest look of worry. Breakfast is a wonderful experience with both self-serve and waiter service to your white table cloth. Regulars to the spa were so friendly, the steam room was popular. Ladies and gentlemen have their own separate saunas and the indoor pool is just the correct temperature. All this just a 10 minute walk past the marina into town down a hill of restaurants with Michelin stars and blue plaques. I enjoyed it so much, I have booked to come again in the Autumn.

Health club-immaculate until ladies showers never well cleaned black ingrained mould on ceiling at close up is a health hazard to anyone with asthma plus old ingrained mould in tiling &thick body grease next to shampoo fittings as hotel cleaners dont clean here only health club staff do a v poor job &manageress does a bad job not preventing recent rowdy pool behaviour & swearing& threats no action taken against these people who are still members & manageress v aggressive when asked to intervene &clean properly.Left health club sadly after 60yrs going to hotel until health club has new manager who enforces pool safety rules & cleans the showers with good manners&courtesy.Pity the poor staff under her.

Poor, ill-trained staff

Evening meal menu was poor, we had the same small menu 4 nights running with only 4 choices on each course. No chicken or lamb. Very short of staff although they tried hard to please. Nice size room.

I have to say first impressions weren't good! The hotel looks very dated on the outside in desperate need of a lick of paint! If we hadn't of booked, I felt like driving on!
However inside, the communal areas were all very palatial and well kept. We had a sea view room with the balcony, which had a lovely view. The room on the whole wasn't too bad, but was unimpressed by the hairs in the bath plughole, a cable tie on the bathroom sink to hold the chain in place and stains up the wall beside the bed. It was well equipped with all the things you would expect to see, even an iron and ironing board. However no fridge! However the balcony was very tired looking, paint peeling off the iron work, shabby looking wooden panels to each side and a dead shrub growing up the wood - testiment to the lack of maintenance!
The staff were very good and attentive. The restaurant had a lovely seaview and the service was very good, despite it being plain to see that they were short staffed. This was very evident in the mornings, when there was quite a queue for breakfast, despite empty tables a plenty - the staff were run ragged.
Breakfast was very good with a vast choice of hot and cold to suit everybody.
Dinner was very good, but the menu remained the same for the duration of our stay - 4 days! We intended eating in the restaurant on the final night, but due to this decided against it, especially as my husband had had the same thing two nights running!
We decided instead to have a bar snack. The menu was very limited. Decided upon a croque monsieur only to be told they had run out of ham. Went for the pate instead, which turned out to be the same as what I had had the previous night in the restaurant as a starter, except the home-made pate was replaced by shop bought and three minute pieces of toast. However when we paid our bill on the final day, they had charged us for both!
This hotel also charges you to park your car! How do they expect people to get there!
We won't be returning.

The Events management was superb. The impressive room was set up exactly as agreed. Coffee and Biscuits arrived as stated in our program, always an important issue.
The banquet was brilliant: the food was excellent and the serving was well orchestrated.
Bedrooms were comfortable with great sea views. Breakfast was a delight with a large choice.
Dinner at the restaurant was disappointing with the menu not changing daily and poor unsmiling staff. there was only one choice, all week, for a vegetarian and a reluctance by the waiter to suggest an alternative.

If you want poor service and poor food use the imperial in Torquay nice location the end 😤

The Imperial Hotel is a palace and being in a room with a balcony looking out at the hotel garden and sea is the sensation of being on a tropical island. Food, drink and service excellent. Having said that, in January, the room was cold. The heating was on a timer and we were cold at night. It would have been nice to be able to control our heating ourselves. Also, the complimentary water in the room was fizzy where we would have preferred still. To cater for both choices, perhaps put both types of water in the room?

My third day of the Xmas Package started gloriously with a clear blue sky and a warm sun penetrating through the windows of our deluxe room and, from our balcony, a magnificent view of Torbay and, beyond, Paignton. It proved to be the start of a very enjoyable day. The usual delicious, multi resourced, breakfast, followed by a period of leisure and conversation with others in the communal lounge areas, was further complimented by a sumptuous cream tea. It was even more pleasurable for my wife and I when our young family , who live locally, joined us. A very acceptable evening meal followed by music and dancing (and a firework display from the front at Paignton) whilst accompanied by our newly made friends, concluded a first rate experience at the hotel. Tomorrow, after another not-to-be-missed breakfast, we will be returning home. Would I spend another Xmas at The Imperial? Yes I would and I will. Despite the occasional hiccup and the inexperience of many of the staff, I accept this as a part of modern life and I have become sufficiently hardened to the occasional deficiency. Mike Richards.

Booked for a 1 night stay.
Partner is disabled and a wheelchair user .
Arrived to be told the lift was faulty so would we mind if we were given a different room but still with the view we wanted.
They couldn't have been anymore welcoming or helpful.
Risk assessment was done , we were shown to our new room pointing out the fire exits.
Our room we have been moved to is an upgrade of a suite.
We really have been made to feel really valued .
Thankyou so much for making our 1st stay such a positive 1.
Can't wait to try the food for dinner xx

What a disaster!! I booked a spa afternoon for myself and my daughter. Due to Covid I kept in regular contact and one week before my spa afternoon I rang one more to confirm my booking- the treatments we had requested etc. On arrival we were directed to the dining room for lunch. After lunch it all went down hill. We entered the ‘spa’ which was very under whelming, no atmosphere and one plastic garden chair! I approached the gentleman at the made up desk to be informed that they didn’t have the correct treatments on file. I once again reiterated my requests only to be very rudely informed by a woman that I was wrong! When I showed her the paper work she was rude and said she really didn’t have the staff to do it !! Eventually my daughter was taken into a room and had her full one and a half hours treatment- I was given 50 minutes of my hour and a half with no explanation or apology. I am really angry and upset with this. On my return home I immediately emailed the Hotel but 8 days later have not had a reply. This spa afternoon cost £175 and was a gift to me for a special birthday. What a complete let down. My advice would be not to book here- it is a disgrace!!

I didn’t stop here and was glad of that but did attend a wedding reception, I was forewarned by my hotel about the prices for the bar but the biggest shock was the total lack of effort in the bar to present a drink for the price charged. Pint of larger and a double Bacardi with coke shouldn’t cost £26 outside London especially when the Bacardi was a cheap Jamaican Rum. By the second round they’d run out of draught cider and were serving a small hot £8 bottle of Moreti.
I was then watching the staff put out buffet food that took forever and most was hot food that they let go cold before announcing it was ready, no serving cutlery for relish/sauce and cold mini burgers 🍔, I, like many more of the visitors made for the exits and better cheaper bars.
Could be a beautiful hotel but lack of any class. Too expensive from a bar that my two star digs did much better at a fraction of the cost. Avoid if you want your guests to stay and enjoy your 🎉party

Room was dirty sea view was poor.
Bathroom dusty and falling apart! far from Covid ready, shouldn’t have to ask for the cleaner to come back in with a pandemic! Rips in curtains food and crisps on the floor the list goes on.... only plus the was location And food was ok!
(Got plenty of pictures to back it up as well)

Sadly once past the ornate reception your visit will be disappointing all the way....from the "Cacophony of Carpet" from the 70's and 80's which hasn't been cleaned since it was laid to the mismatched furnishings, which were probably purchased from an end of season catalogue sale...
Shabby would not adequately describe my room from its scratched furnishings broken drawers a filthy balcony with weeds and rusting ironworks and two cheap and faded plastic chairs and the most disgusting plastic moulding purporting to be a table...
The bathroom decor looked more like a public convenience from a Soviet state in the 60's and the ceiling was peeling.

I have taken numerous photos of both the interior and exterior from the crumbling and rust ridden frontage to the threadbare carpet on the stairs and the faded and broken tiles in the swimming pool area..sadly l am unable to post them here, or indeed l most certainly would have.

Thankfully l missed breakfast on the first day but my spirits crumbled on the second morning when l viewed the over cooked English breakfast floating in grease...l decided to opt for a Continental breakfast only to find the fruit was tinned the breakfast cereal consisted of only two varieties neither of them what most people would consider popular ...As for the jam just one choice Strawberry and not a croissant in sight and only one selection of bread more suited for cardboard packing.
As for the breakfast staff, they spent more time arguing amongst themselves as to whom was responsible for attending to their quests...The only time they showed any enthusiasm, was their eagerness to encourage the diners to hurry up and finish...if my table and chair had been on castors l'd have ended up in the foyer.

To summarise my visit is quite simple....STAY AT A TRAVELODGE
The only thing imperious about The Imperial is the price...even after submitting an internal customer feedback survey...no one has even attempted to contact me let alone offer an explanation .