The Bull

Excellent hotel and restaurant in a lovely area near Lewes and Glyndebourne. Very welcoming staff. Good food. Very comfortable bedroom. Parking.

Liked: Warm welcome. Very comfortable. Good food. Good price value. Parking.
Disliked: None.

Disappointing

Liked: The bar staff.
Disliked: 1) Building Maintenance Work .We arrived tired and hot after three days consecutive walking on the South Downs Way. We were told at reception that there was currently no hot water as the builders had gone through a pipe. (in fairness this was resolved within an hour).We were shown to our room which was small and very warm, at this price point I was expecting air conditioning, or at least to be comfortable. When we opened the single glazed window we were greeted with the noise of a compressor, exhaust and paint fumes, and painters shouting . There was a hammer drill operating on an adjoining internal wall. This stopped before we went to bed and restarted in the morning.2) Value for money.Very poor. No breakfast included, no biscuits, but an extensive array of overpriced snacks and drinks in the room to purchase, which judging by the dust on them had been there for a while. This room was twice the cost of our previous accommodation and I was expecting a lot more.3) WI FIFree, but requested lots of personal details to log in. Why is this invasion of privacy necessary?4) Language used in emails.Quote "We're determined to be great at looking after everyone perfectly, but we need your help with that (pretty please).If you have a spare moment (big ask incoming), "Am I a three year old child?Also I don't need conversation starter cards in my room to help me converse with family. I already know my wife's favourite colour.In summary we found the Bull to be overpriced and felt that making money was the overriding consideration as opposed to the comfort and enjoyment of the guests.I think that if accommodation is being offered during intrusive building work we should have been forewarned either on the booking site or in subsequent emails prior to our stay so we could have made an informed choice as to rebooking a quieter venue. Alternatively a reduced rate should be applied.

At £163 per night, it...

Liked: Not much. Bed was comfortable and bathroom was clean. Lizzie in the bar was friendly and helpful.
Disliked: I was in room 2. Airless stuffy room over a busy road junction. Room was cluttered and kitsch. Pounding music came through floor into room, and would have done so until 11pm unless I had not asked for it turned off. I tried calling the hotel to book for dinner but no one was answering the phone all evening, and the bar and restaurant staff were responsible for check-in as well.

Exceptional

Delightful room!

Liked: The rooms were above a very attractive pub. The room itself was smallish but very stylishly decorated. Both the minibar and other refreshments were thoughtfully stocked. Our check-in with Jamie was excellent - very thorough, helpful and professional. We would definitely stay again.
Disliked: The breakfast was very disappointing- I would not recommend. There was a rotting peach surrounded by fruit flies in the fruit bowl. The sour dough toast was stale and the mushrooms rather shriveled with age. The bacon was tough and did not taste fresh. The tomato was a clumsy chunk and not grilled. (The sausage was good however). Breakfast was 15 GBP. Obviously would not take breakfast again and it made me worry about the dinner menu (which we did not try). It was a shame to finish on such a disappointing note - as mentioned, the room was excellent

Great for a meal.

Liked: The Bull is conveniently located on the main road through Ditchling. It is easy to find. The pub has a nice atmosphere and a choice of seating areas. We enjoyed the meal, beautifully cooked fish and a lovely dessert.
Disliked: Our room faced the road so once traffic began in the morning it was noisy. The bathroom was very nice, the room was cramped. Pillows and duvet were unpleasantly lumpy. Not as good value for money as other locations in the area.

Very pleasant stay.

Liked: Very comfortable room.Good food.
Disliked: Taking a £50 deposit on arrival, despite having paid for the room in advance, seemed excessive. Perhaps we looked disreputable! It was refunded when we left, but it seemed an unusual request. Perhaps they have had bad experiences in the past.

Exceptional

Exceptional

Superb