Micklegate House Hotel - Selby

The room was very quiet, allowing peaceful sleep.

Upon entering my room, it was uncomfortably cold, and it took too long for the heating to warm up. I faced a frustrating lack of hot water in the bathroom, particularly challenging on a cold night. Attempts to contact anyone for assistance went unanswered, leaving me feeling abandoned.

Lovely and excellent position, we thoroughly enjoyed staying here.

The stuff was very very helpful and we would stay here again. Everything was fine, though we stayed for 3 nights only. The room was good sized and equipped with a double bed and fan as described.

Overall it was budget with a double bed.

Oh, the cream cakes at Micklegate House! Grab a slice at The Micklegate Tea Room-heavenly! Plus, the vibrant dining scene is just steps away, with Mister C's and The Arches Coffee Lounge both a stone's throw away. Clean rooms with tea and coffee facilities added a cozy vibe to our stay.

Unfortunately, both rooms were uncomfortably cold upon arrival, warming up only to lose heat overnight. A lack of hot water was a bummer, and we struggled to get a response when we reached out for help. Still, I reckon folks should know they could shine in a warmer stay!

We booked two rooms for two couples at this boarding house through Booking.com, and thought that we were getting a good deal - nothing could be further from the truth. We booked the rooms at this accommodation based on the fairly positive reviews (we only read a few of them, which were fairly complimentary, but I now wish I had read them all as we would have known of at least some of the problems we would encounter). Now as this is going to be a fairly negative, but entirely truthful review of what we found, let me first say that I am not one for slagging a place off for a simple mistake, but when I feel badly let down I consider that I must let other potential customers know what they are paying good money for. Over the past month I have written 26 five-star reviews and 4 four-star reviews on TripAdvisor. Secondly, all four of us have been travelling together for 30+ years, and have stayed in all sorts of accommodations throughout the world, so I'm guessing that we have a fairly good take on what makes for a nice stay. We have stayed in this area quite a few times in the past, and for a few pounds more could have gotten breakfast, a decent night's sleep (more on that later) and free parking thrown in (more on that later) - what you need to factor into the cost of this boarding house is the fact that you will be paying for parking at the public car park across the road from the accommodation (50p for one hour, £1 for two hours and £5.50 for the day), and of course your breakfast (there are no catering facilities onsite - a fact that Booking.com does not make clear). This boarding house does not have a reception, or even anyone onsite if you have a problem, and as we found out contacting the manager if you have problems will result in no return communication. We were made aware of the fact that there was no reception shortly after booking the accommodation. What we were not aware of, and only received a text from the manager when we were on our way up to Selby, was that we had to call in at the Three Swans public house to collect the keys. Not too much of a problem as it's just around the corner from the accommodation. We arrived at the pub, and the first thing you have to do is read a long list of do's and don'ts, and then sign to say you agree. I know that property owners have to protect their investments, but this list of conditions made me feel a tad uncomfortable, and I can honestly say, as a seasoned traveller who has stayed in many different accommodations over the years, I have never seen anything quite like these. You then have to pay for your stay - quite unusual for Booking.com, as payment is normally taken direct from my registered credit card. I would however disagree entirely with the statement made in the Facilities section on Booking.com that you have a 'private check-in' - there could not be a more public check-in than in a pub where you have to push your way into the bar to speak to the barmaid, and then put your PIN number into a machine in full view of all of the pub regulars, who were sitting on bar stools no more than an arm's length away. Now I noticed that a lot of reviews about this property on Booking.com mention how lovely the staff are. What staff? We never saw hide nor hair of Adele the manager throughout our stay, and the only interaction we had with anyone was the bar staff at the Three Swans we picked our keys up from. We then drove around to the boarding house, and easily found a space in the public car park (we never had any problems finding a slot close to the boarding house whenever we arrived back). This is obviously not a secure car park, although it is stated in the management's reply to one of the reviews on Booking.com that it is - it is an open-air public car park! With the amount of drunk youths roaming around the square of an evening, you are constantly worried that damage may be done to your car, so not ideal to say the least. Now to the first of the real problems- the stairs, which there are no mention of in the information within Booking.com. There are four flights of very narrow stairs - 39 total, which you have to climb as there is no lift. Now I think that everyone that books a room in this accommodation will have to do this, as it appears that all of the rooms rented out are on the second floor, as the first floor appears to have permanent residents. We had great trouble getting our cases and holdalls, none of which were particularly large, up these stairs. Oh, and you also have a fairly long narrow corridor to navigate as well. This makes this boarding house wholly unsuitable for guests with mobility problems - another fact I could not find mentioned on Booking.com. I have posted pictures of the stairs along with this review. On entering the room, all looked good - it was clean and in a good state of repair, but the more you cast your eye on, the more you realise that there is a lack of attention to detail, and in some cases I would say a lazy, haphazard attitude on the part of the management. For instance, the beds. Both rooms had twin beds, which are fairly comfortable, with blue bedding, including the sheets. Not too much of a problem with that, although blue would not have been my choice of a colour scheme for bedding. What was noticeable however, was the fact that in both rooms one headboard was large and the other small. Both room's headboards matched material wise, so simply swapping one headboard round would make them equal in both rooms. We only had one bedside table, and no bedside lamps - how are you supposed to read when in bed? Something we do when we settle down for the evening, but not in this accommodation! You do get tea making facilities, but our kettle had to be put on the floor to be boiled - a bit of a safety hazard to say the least. Milk was in a fridge in the corridor, which is a good idea as it keeps the milk fresh, and we also used the fridge to put some of our own cold drinks in. What there wasn't any of on the first day was water in the fridge that was promised. Now you may think that I am nit-picking, but this meant that we had to try and fill the kettle in the sink in the en-suite. This was quite difficult, as the kettle was tight to fit under the tap, and it always resulted in water on the floor of the en-suite. There is no hair dryer in the room, and worse still no mirror in the bedroom to enable ladies to do their hair of an evening. We had to purchase a small mirror which my wife perched on the window sill, and squeezed herself between the bed and the window to curl her hair before going out. Now again you may think that I am nit-picking, but this was they only way that my wife could style her hair before we went out to a party, and I had to make do with the grief I got, as it was I that made this booking. The television in the room was on the wall opposite the bed, and initially seemed fine, that is until you open the en-suite door which then blocks it. Now this was sheer laziness, in that this TV was put up to the extent of the length of the power cord. Had this cord been extended by around a foot the TV could have been mounted a foot to the left, which was possible, and would then mean that the en-suite door would not block it, or damage it. The windows would not lock, and although we were on the second floor, it is still a security issue and should be seen to. There are drinks and nibbles in the room, which you pay for using an honesty box, but the pricing is extortionate - sweets, crisps & soft drinks are £1 and a small bottle of wine is £3. Now there is a Farmfoods just down the street where you can buy a six pack of crisps for £1 and a full normal sized bottle of wine can be had for £3.50, so good luck if you want to pay the prices requested on the note in the basket. Also, on this note is the statement 'Honesty prospers in every condition in life' - might be a good idea for the management to be more honest about this accommodation on their descriptions on Booking.com. Oh, you may think that nothing so far is of any consequence, but the worst is yet to come! I have included pictures of the room with my review. The en-suite is so very small, and the door opens out into the room. As there is little space between this door and the bed, we ended up opening the door onto each other as we walked past on a number of occasions - yes, the room is that small. Now all four of us have been cruising on a number of occasions, and I can honestly say that we thought the en-suites that you get on an ocean-going liner are small, but the size of the en-suite in our room was smaller than anything we have encountered whilst cruising. You had to slide sideways onto the toilet, and I'm glad that the heating was not on as the radiator is so very close to the toilet that in Winter you would definitely risk burning yourself. The amount of legroom between the shower and toilet is restrictive, so if you have long legs you will be sitting sideways on the toilet. The shower cubicle was diminutive. Myself and my wife are not particularly large, but it was a struggle to comfortably take a shower. If you were a slightly portly person you would not stand a chance. The shower tray is also very slippy, with no means to make it safe to stand in. The towels were cheap Wilko's towels, so in no way fluffy. You get one hand towel and two bath towels - not bath sheets, so you have little chance of wrapping these towels around your body. You get small shower gels, but no shower cap, or soap to wash your hands after going to the loo. I've posted a picture of the en-suite with this review. According to the blurb on Booking.com the property does not have Wi-Fi, but I'm pleased to report that there is free Wi-Fi, with the login details in the room. I never used it, so can't comment on the speed. Just as an aside, this boarding house has some of the most grotesque artwork we have ever seen, and I've put some photos on the review. Now onto the worst part of this accommodation. Booking.com states 'soundproof rooms'. They are anything but, and this is, as far as I'm concerned, totally false advertising. We could hear other guests moving about in the corridor on numerous occasions, and talking and snoring coming from the room next door. However, these are both trivial. This boarding house had the worst noise pollution of any room we've ever stayed in, and we've stayed in a hotel in the middle of Benidorm. Both nights we had trouble sleeping due to the amount of noise outside, coming from youths shouting and swearing, and racing cars around the square with stereos on full blast, but Saturday night into Sunday morning was absolutely unbearable with the volume of noise coming from a club opposite. All we could hear for hours was the thump, thump, thump of music, with the bass turned up high, coming from this club. You seriously do not want to be staying in any of the rooms facing the main street, as you will not get a wink of sleep. I have included pictures taken from our window at various stages through the early hours of Sunday morning showing drunk youths outside the club, shouting and swearing. This club has totally no regard for any of the residents around the area. At three-thirty on Sunday morning I sent a complaint to Booking.com, which they say they will investigate, but to date I have had nothing positive back from them. I will of course be pursuing Booking.com vigorously about this accommodation, as I consider the only retribution is a full refund. After all, do you not book accommodation to have a restful night's sleep? I know I do! At three fifty-three in the morning I texted the boarding house manager complaining, but she has not returned this text or contacted me in any shape or form - why should she - she's got our money! This appears to be her modus operandi as someone else has complained in their review on Booking.com of non-contact from her to an enquiry after they had paid! The music stopped at four o'clock on Sunday morning, at which point the revellers pour out onto the street, shouting and swearing. A large group of them then sat and stood below our window, shouting, swearing and singing. We then had cars racing around the square with stereos on full blast. It eventually quietened down at four forty-five, but you try to get to sleep when your adrenalin is coursing through your veins due to how mad you are with the club, the youth of Selby and boarding house management that was short on the truth on Booking.com. I actually have now found a review where another guest complained of the exact same noise, and Adele, the manager of this boarding house, stated that 'this is not just due to our location but the occasion of the time of year'. Not according to the locals, it isn't - this is every week occurrence, and from what we encountered pretty much an every night occurrence to a greater or lesser degree! We would never, ever stay at Micklegate House again. We value our sleep too much, and don't see why we should pay good money to get little of it, and to be kept awake by shouting, cars racing and loud banging music. You should definitely look elsewhere for somewhere to stay!

The unit we got was well priced and functional with fan, a double bed, for instance.

Micklegate House is in a prime spot for exploring Selby-just steps from everything! My room was clean, but the old building gave it a tired vibe. The check-in process was a bit quirky since I had to grab my key at a pub nearby. Good for a quick stay!

Absolutely dreadful experience! My room was freezing, and to top it off, there was no hot water. Can you imagine? I also expected a complimentary gift for the inconvenience, but clearly, they didn't get that memo. The hallway smelled like something died, and don't even get me started on the thin walls. Just awful!

Clean room with a private bathroom.

Extremely small room with no space to move around, heater behind the bed headrest not working, and a window that wouldn't shut properly. The bed was uncomfortable, and I could feel the springs.

Great location, clean room, comfortable facilities

Difficult room access, basic amenities

I appreciated the clean room with a comfortable en suite bathroom. The location was excellent. I also found the tea and coffee facilities a lovely touch for a cozy stay.

The bed could be more comfortable.

The location is excellent, with easy access to bars and restaurants. The keypad entry adds convenience and security. My room was very quiet, allowing me to focus on work without disturbances.

The bathroom amenities could use an upgrade, as some were basic.

The snack bar was a nice touch, but check-in took longer than expected.

The Double Room with Private Bathroom was a bit cramped. There wasn't much space to move around. The bed was not comfy at all, a letdown. The heater was acting up too, behind the headrest, and the window situation was pretty poor. On the bright side, it was clean and had a private bathroom, so that was good. It's also located in a great spot with plenty of shops and restaurants nearby.

great location but room amenities could improve

The central location made it easy to explore Selby without much walking. Parking was easy since it's right outside. It's free on Sundays! The double room was equipped with nice tea and coffee facilities.

The bathroom amenities could use an upgrade.