De Vere Beaumont Estate

I attended for a work visit in a manual self propelled chair. I found the hotel difficult to traverse in a manual chair due to the long ramps, steep ramps, broken lifts and thick pile carpets. I saw a 5* review from a lady with her husband in electric chair. My review was as a solo traveller in a manual chair. I did not have carer or husband etc to assist me. The hotel was 4* and an old building on a hill. I know old buildings are harder to change. They have tried to make accessible but I found it too hard an experience to enjoy. My room was in the west wing at end of two long carpeted ramps, prob intended for suitcases not chairs. My work conference was past the bar up two flights of stairs, (also used for weddings). There was no accessible toilet on the same floor as the function room. The stair lifts did not work until I was checking out. The elevator to bar and other floors were working. Part of the reason it was so exhausting for me was we were moved between rooms throughout the day for breaks, coffees, lunch, dinner etc. This meant traversing the entire hotel all day long. It was a zig zag about all day.

We went to The Beaumont Estate for a family wedding (beautiful) and stayed at the venue. It is expensive, but it was well worth it for the attention to detail in all areas. The staff are amazing and really could not be more helpful. The hotel is fabulous - but vast! All areas are accessible BUT sometimes it is necessary to be able to go a long way round to access ramps and avoid stairs. When we were there all lifts were working but a stairlift was not, meaning I had to push around the outside of the building to reach another part of the wedding venue. The bedrooms were clean and smart and big enough for my wheelchair. The wet room and toilet area was big enough for my wheelchair and for me to be completely independent. There were grab rails and a secure shower seat attached to the wall. We booked accessible rooms for both my husband and I, and for my mother, but also asked that my adult autistic son be close by. We found ourselves in the green wing downstairs, which had only 4 rooms and was perfect for us. The hotel is vast. It has a bar, 2 restaurants, a private dining area, courtyard dining and I believe a swimming pool/gym - though we didn't use those. However, being so big it did mean a lot of pushing/walking between the rooms and places to eat. Also it is not on a flat site, so it is great going downhill but not so great pushing uphill on grippy carpets. On the other hand, it saved me gym workouts and I got my step/push count up to 11,500 each day! We were able to park our car right outside the door both for reception and for our room. If you want a treat trip away (or a wedding) I would thoroughly recommend.