I've been going to masonic ladies' festivals for more than half a century ... and this hotel scored the very best. The Milford Hall Hotel - the original house was built in the mid-Nineteenth Century - provided real,old-fashioned hospitality.
My partner, Jane and I, stayed for two nights and enjoyed the whole experience. But I had to point out that it fell down in one important regard, in common with many other British hotels, getting a drink from the bar on arrival was a lengthy ordeal. Hotel bean counters calculate that lunchtime bar trade doesn't warrant a full-time server. So the poor bar-tender has to do other chores while customers wait. At least at this hotel, there was a phone number supplied on the bar counter to ring for him or her! Not good for public relations.
Other than that, the four-star Milford provided five-star service and food. At the main meal on Saturday night, the slow-braised Hampshire beef featherblade steak was a gourmet experience. Well done to the chef, cooking for 85 diners. And the Sunday buffet breakfast was tasty, and generous enough to last Jane and I until dinnertime! Try the tasty traditional kippers.
The room was clean and bright and the beds comfortable ... although they were so tightly tucked in that one almost needed a shoe-horn to get into them.
We enjoyed a visit to Salisbury's town centre, with its Saturday market in the square. Be prepared to fork out £7.50 to visit the cathedral. The town centre is a mere five-minute stroll away.
Free parking and wifi are good plusses at the hotel, and there is plenty to visit in the surrounding area.
We enjoyed ourselves here. I recommend a visit.