The Riverside Inn (The Riverside Inn (Newton Abbot))

Member Name: daylelisahall

Product:	The Riverside Inn (Newton Abbot)
Date:	09/12/08 (219 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great location, modern rooms, good value for money, great food

Disadvantages: None

I recently started a Diploma in Canine Massage and in order to start this course, I needed to travel to Devon and attend a workshop. I also needed to take one of my dogs with me so I set out in a mission to find a hotel or B & B that would allow me to have my dog stay with me.

The Riverside Inn was recommended to me by the tutor that runs the course (as the course is actually held in their function room) and they also allow dogs to stay in the rooms. So I booked my stay and headed off on my long drive to Devon...

Cost
I booked myself into a single room which cost me £45 a night. This price also included a full English breakfast. As I already mentioned, I had my dog Dax staying with me and I had to pay another £5 per night for him to be in the room.

The Room
Upon first entering my room, I was actually really impressed. The room was larger than I expected and looked modern and clean. The rooms are located through the pub (on the ground floor) and up some stairs and to be honest, the hallway which leads to the rooms could do with some re-decorating (which the new owners are in the process of doing). I booked a single room but was given a twin which has two single beds, a wardrobe, a dressing table, two bedside cabinets and a comfortable armchair. The bed were really comfortable and covered with a white and green bed cover. The room also had central heating, tea and coffee making facilities and a flat screen TV with free view TV also. My room was en-suite and had a bath and a shower in the bathroom. My room was cleaned every day and the tea and coffee (and hot chocolate I might add!) were replaced every day and the supply was plentiful considering I spent quite a bit of time in the room drinking tea and doing my homework.

The Riverside Inn In General
As well as being a hotel, The Riverside Inn is also a fully licensed pub. They serve food all day up until 9pm. From May until September they operate an all day carvery which is only £3.95 per person which I thought was a really good price. I noticed that this offer really seemed t draw in the customers as the pub was always really busy, even during the week. As well as the carvery, they also serve a menu of home cooked food such as fish pie, baguettes, fresh crisp salads, and panninis. I had a cheese and pickle baguette for lunch one day and found it to be delicious, with loads of cheese and it only cost £2.50 which I thought was really reasonable.
Drinks wise, the pub has three cask ales on offer, and a wide range of wines and beers and soft drinks. They also serve bar snacks such as crisps and peanuts.
My room rate also included breakfast each morning. For breakfast, I was asked if I would like a full English breakfast and after explaining I was a vegetarian the offered me a vegetarian breakfast which consisted of beans, tomatoes, fried eggs, fried bread and toast. I was also allowed to help myself to the various cereals and fruit juices. I have t say, I was really impressed with the breakfast. You can choose to sit in the restaurant or the pub area to eat your food but I specifically asked to sit in the pub area as I had my dog with me and obviously he wasn't allowed in the restaurant.
My course was held in the function room at The Riverside Inn which can also be used for weddings, birthday, christenings etc and the room can hold roughly 130 people. This room has a self contained full service bar and has access to the landscaped garden which overlooks the River Bovey.
There is a large on-site car park at The Riverside Inn which means there was always somewhere for me to park and better still, the car parking is free of charge.
The pub area of The Riverside Inn has an open fire which was lovely to sit near in the evenings while we had dinner and a few drinks.

Summary
In summary, I would highly recommend staying at The Riverside Inn. I found the staff to be welcoming and the atmosphere matched their attitude too. My room was clean and much more modern and spacious than I expected. I had a bath every morning while staying here and I am pleased to report that there was more then enough hot water for my bath every day. Quite often when I have stayed at other hotels, you don't seem to get much hot water but this certainly wasn't the case at The Riverside Inn. I was really pleased that my dog was able to stay in the room with me (although there were signs in the room stating he wasn't allowed on the bed) and I thought that paying £5 for him per night wasn't too unreasonable.
The atmosphere in the pub was extremely welcoming, even to the point where I felt comfortable enough sitting my myself and having a drink. The food comes highly recommended, especially the breakfast!
On the whole, staying here was an enjoyable experience.

Summary: Certainly recommended