The Old Ship in West Dorset

The perfect overnight stay in Dorchester, passing through. An excellent price. Central to all amenities, other pubs and nearby fish and chips and the river. Host, Chris, was welcoming and friendly and helpful when asking questions about the nearby areas. Our room was neat and well presented. Overall the atmosphere in the pub itself was friendly and warm. A classic pub and inn!

Good pub, dog friendly, pool table and darts board. Didn't have any food.

Bad atmosphere. Clicky ! Visited as fancied seeing what a local proper pub was like rather than the Wetherspoons close by which we use when we’re on a break in Dorchester. We were a group of 4 and my goodness if you’re not a local don’t bother ! The barman was fine. It’s the regulars who Made us feel VERY uneasy and to be honest we couldn’t drink up fast enough and leave. Wouldn’t advise eating there either if the “cleanliness “ of the pub anything to go by

A very nice central pub ... good service and spaces ...

Extremely rude and unhelpful barmaid, can’t believe she’s paid to be there, clearly hated her job. No one else In the pub for the whole time we were In there which was no suprise. Avoid at all costs!

Popped into this pub to get out of the rain, there was a table of about 6 people near the bar and while waiting to be served I could hear the most appalling language especially from a woman, every other word was an F -word, I'm no prude but this is totally unacceptable, and what made it worse was the lady behind the bar, who must have heard this foul mouthed woman, never battered an eyelid, she obviously used to this behaviour. Thankfully I could see no children in the pub during my very short stay.

Food advertised on website but not available. Friendly bar staff

Riff raff establishment. We booked over the phone and whilst in the shower we were told the room was double booked by someone online and we had to leave. This was 7pm! Unprofessional is an understatement.

Visited Dorchester the other day , feeling a pub much was needed to popped into the Old Ship for a pint and something to eat . The pub itself was clean , panelled walls and some very uncomfortable seats. The young lady behind the bar obviously didn’t know what a shandy was as she completely lost when attempting to pour the drink and my wife ended up with a lager. The food itself was ok but that was just it , the ploughman wrap was tasteless and the chips were actually quite nice . The chicken wrap lacked chicken … My point of shipyard ale was pleasant which is always a winner

I would just like to say a massive thank you to the staff in this lovely little pub , not busy for a Saturday afternoon but it was full of smiles and everyone was extremely accommodating, I couldn’t have asked for a better welcome as me and my partner were stranded due to a breakdown on the roadside , the staff welcomed us in made sure we had drinks and a comfortable place to wait , the girl behind the bar deserves an even bigger thank you for talking to us often and even making sure our puppy and 6 month old were fed watered and comfortable… impeccable service and all round lovely people , THANK YOU ❤️ Sophie and olly ❤️

I was late getting to room as working at Dorchester, was given room 3. Seemed clean when i walked in. On closer inspection bed and towels were clean, but the room was very dirty. Spoons were dirty, never been washed, skirting was dusty, looked like it hadnt been cleaned for weeks. I honestly didn’t feel like stopping in the room. It was most probably worst room i have stayed in for years.

charged my card twice, spent £210 on a room that was frankly diabolical. refused to take liability.

Called in twice during a stay in Dorchester (June 24) as a couple. Had a meal both times. All 4 meals were very tasty, especially the burger and curry. In conservation with the landlord , l understand he has only just taken over. Hopefully he makes a go of it. Only a limited menu at the minute, but as stated before all meals were good and reasonably priced.

A place to be avoided! I stayed for 1 night. The room was badly in need of redecoration. The bathroom was supposed to be en suite but was across a corridor which was supposed to be private but which was being used. The pub's website showed a food menu but there was no food. Very poor value for money at £90 per night!

We attempted to stay here for the night a few weeks ago. We are a family of four and a Dog. I was asked to pay for the room before being given the key to the room. At this point I was also informed that the chef was on Holliday so there was no food available. When we got to the room we find that for our £140 we didn’t even have an en-suite bathroom. We presumably had the unlocked (Not Very Private) toilet that was over the hall way from our room. On finding this out I immediately went back downstairs to try and resolve the issue and ask whether there was another room available as this was not suitable for us. The lady behind the bar did give me the keys to another room however on inspection the room was full of personal belongings. I immediately returned back downstairs without even fully entering into the room as I felt embarrassed. The lady did attempted to call the landlord who was not on the premises and could not be contacted. I explained that this was just not suitable and unacceptable. My wife was so upset that she began to have a panic attack. I asked for a refund to my card and told the bar maid that we would find somewhere else to stay for the night. The woman behind the bar was very nice and apologetic but said that she couldn’t do refunds as she didn’t have that option but promised me that it wouldn’t be a problem the landlord was a genuine guy and we would definitely get a refund. My only comfort is that I used my credit card to pay for the room. Hopefully the credit card company will have a better chance of getting us a refund than I have up to now. Three weeks later and multiple conversations with Martin the manager to sort the issue out still no response. As an added note there is no where to park we had unload on double yellows and it’s apparently a seven min walk to the nearest pay and display. There was one parking space but the car occupying the space looked suspiciously like it may have been the landlords car. This had been explained when booking but it may make you think again before booking.

Best it's been for a lot of years

Very nice place to go with family the food was delicious.

Lovely old pub, does good music nights too..

Lovely clean and well set it out pub ,good music, great atmosphere .good selection of beers and cider etc. Friendly staff and we both had the Vegetable Lasagne with salad and baked Ciabatta. The lasagne was the best I have ever had, with the most unckious sauce and I could easily have just had a bowl of the delicious salad as that was superb. What more could you want great tasting food with a cold pint in a warm pub on a cold winters day. Top marks. Highly recommend and to top it off there's 10%of drinks and 20% off food in January 2024. Get yourselves down then and try it for yourselves

Great Landlord Great atmosphere Good all round pub always looked after us locals 🙂

Very smart inside they do meals nearly all day Good menu impressed with decor and menu Good idea would be to put menu in window or doorway

Lovely little pub with great food.

Went here for lunch with my dad. The food was fantastic! The pub has tasteful decor, very clean & well organised. Lovely atmosphere & very friendly staff. Would definitely recommend!

Lovly pub in the heart of Dorchester

Great atmosphere and friendly staff. Plenty of room inside and out. Also plenty of entertainment and fun nights are organised

Landlord is grumpy & unwelcoming! No atmosphere in the place & the toilets obviously haven’t been cleaned in a while. The decor might look nice but it’s not a nice place to go for a drink. We came in march & April when we were back in Dorch & was really impressed but it’s changed hands again & not for the better! Sony be returning!

The food was amazing and we can't fault the staff as they were so friendly and so accommodating, they couldn't do enough for us,we will definitely be going back there.

Needs the previous landlords back. They were well liked & we only went due to the atmosphere they brought.

Really friendly staff. Comfortable accomodation. Very reasonably priced. Will definitely be returning.

Love this pub .... especially Happy hour and live music.

Really friendly staff they make real effort to know their customers drinks prices very reasonable and some great bands too

This is a great pub. It's in the centre of Dorchester, the drink prices are very cheap, and since it has been under new management (Michelle and Andy), the place has a lovely, warm, friendly atmosphere. We had my fiancée's birthday drinks there recently, and Michelle and Andy made it very special-even putting up banners and balloons. They have regular live music playing - which Dorchester desperately needs. A very welcoming place to be in....which is now our new local pub 😄👍

Popped in with partner for a quick drink. Just reopened under new management and looking good with great potential. Good luck with your opening parties this weekend, wish we could have made it.

Had a great night with good pub grub and excellent live music from Emily Jean.

Came to see some great live music from Emily Jean and decided it would be nice to have a meal first. We were not disappointed! Good sized helpings nice and hot and well presented. Good choice of honest, freshly cooked pub meals and we were very happy with our choices (party of 6). Relaxed service was fine for us and I always feel happier when food doesn't appear too quickly as it is a good indicator that the food has been prepared and freshly cooked for us.

Really nice friendly pub, lovely atmosphere and a 5star pint .. Will be visiting again

New landlords in there now and seem to be making a positive impact! They also do some lovely home made food

Lovely new owners such a quaint little pub with clean and welcoming rooms. The owners have just recently taken over and are definitely pros! Arranged for us to have a breakfast too as these aren't provided usually at the moment. Will definitely come and stop here again. Thanks so much.

The family room had plenty of room and was clean and quiet

A bit scruffy inside, nice outside area

Come here for a stay after the Tank Fest. Nice Pub, good food, good price. Needless to say, good service. Will definitely come again next year.

Food was excellent, staff were very nice and friendly

Very nice meal very pleasant pub but bit expensive.

Nice little pub with a relaxing atmosphere that offers a good choice of beer and wines, probably the cheapest prices in Dorchester. Also offers food from Tuesday to Saturday with outdoor seating available. Highly recommended if you live in or visiting Dorchester

Always a lovely welcome, food was good

Very good value for money. Nice place. Old fashion pub vibe.

Lovely pub, friendly and welcoming. We called in for Sunday lunch, they had a private party going on. But they still provided us with a delicious Sunday lunch.

We rang and asked if we could reserve an area for guests of a Baptism. This wasn’t something they usually did so they created a buffet spread for us and reserved the back area and it was absolutely perfect. The food was delicious and the area the of the pub was perfect for our small group of guests. Lovely afternoon and the staff was so accommodating, especially as the buffet wasn’t normally offered so they really went above and beyond to do this for us! Thank you 😊

Lovely pub, room was very clean helpful service and friendly from the moment of arrival will deffo be back again thankyou

Very comfy beds. We all had a good night sleep.

Stayed for 2 nights in the rooms at the back. Clean, tidy and a short walk from the centre of town.

Friendly, clean and welcoming, but not as busy as they could be, obviously due to Covid 19, I wish them well

Grubby room, dated and small. Shower didn't work and the bed cover was dirty. Booked for 3 days, left after 1 day.

After paying £75 for the room we were very disappointed, with the standard of the cleanliness of the room, the toilet seat and system were very loose, no toilet roll holder, there was a pack of cheap toilet tissue you get in a public convenience,the cups didn't fit on the saucers, the one blind was broken. On a positive note the bedding and towels were clean, but on the whole we were very disappointed with room 1 at the back of the pub.

Great experience with very friendly staff from landlord and landlady to the bar staff. Highly recommend a visit.

We went and had a meal at loo N The food was excellent very good chef and very good service I would recommend it to anyone.

Very friendly staff, who make you feel really welcome.

Can not fault the place come in every time we are down here from Birmingham. Team are always welcoming

Nice place with friendly staff. Room clean and comfortable. Thank you!

Great place to stay, big bed good shower and great staff.

Great place to stay.. Near to everything.. And owners make you feel very welcome.

Very very basic not even any hand soap !!!

Callled in yesterday what a great pub New owners just took over fantastic welcome from them cant wait to go back and visit again

Lovely food great atmosphere and lovely scenery

Stayed here for 1 night and its was so nice, the member of staff were so helpful letting us drop our bags off so we didnt have to carry them around while waiting to check in. The bed was so comfy and the room was clean(ish)......would I stay again? Yes I would.

Can't wash your hands, no taps!! Disgusting

Good proper drinking pub by day, now doing reasonable food as well, then later in the evening it becomes a sort of night club. Been many, many times and really enjoy it

A tremendous lack of respect for guests! Impossible to sleep with very loud music until 2am.

Good food and reasonably priced. Cute barmaid as well. Happy days

Amazing gig last night, incredible acts, reasonably priced drinks, lovely crowd and friendly staff - 10/10

Good wholesome basic food menu, food was piping hot when it arrived. Very efficient service, nice outdoor area. Moldy worldly pub in the middle of Dorchester high street

Not anything special at all. A standard town high street pub. Beer was ok but not a great range of ales on tap. Lots of budget larger and cider Didn’t eat here because I was not inspired by the menu

Called in Wetherspoons and they had no burger rolls, so thought we’ed give the ship a go. What a mistake, the barman should have realised when we asked for a steak knife to cut a yorkie pudding. My Granddaughter asked for the Yorkshire pud filled with mash potatoes and three sausages. Well they were three tiny cocktail Yorkshire puds filled with instant mash and three cocktail sausages, the puds hadn’t been cooked but pinged in the microwave which instantly made them as hard as rock, totally inedible. Complained and chose lasagne,salad with garlic bread. Well it arrived with a tiny slither of lettuce one slice of tomato and one thin dried up piece of garlic bread. But the lasagne was one sheet of pasta over a dessertspoon of meat then topped up with about a kilo of melted cheese, to cap it all it was also burnt. Now as for the burgers, the rolls are obviously kept frozen then wacked in the microwave to defrost, resulting in a solid rock of bread. When the barman came over I wacked it on the table to show him how hard it was. We were the only people eating in the bar and they took an hour to produce a meal that was totally inedible. Will never cross the threshold again.

Everything you need. Bed, ensuite toilet and showers. No breakfast in the morning but there are plenty possibilities nearby (Taste was quite good).

Expensive landlord has 2 pubs in Dorchester with the same brewery why in 1 pub a large vodka is £3.80 and the ship is £5.00 that's a big difference not many customers bar staff good though

Had a fantastic stay at The Old Ship. Lovely newly refurbished rooms, big comfy king size bed. Food was delicious too! Would certainly recommend!

Great food, very quiet, pleasant staff, pilsner beer!

Poor compared with the last time we ate there about three months ago

Ordere steak salad medium to well done When it came there was red meat in 2/3rds of it so I left it Not handled well by the manager who said the chef stated it was as requested RUBBISH!!

Das Interieur zu modern für das alte Gebäude. Essen und Getränke gut und preisgünstig.

A pint of larger 3.90 but atmosphere and bar staff great

Booked a break with breakfast, but when i got to the place was told different. The staff were very friendly

Worst place ever. Person taking the order didn't even know how to actually take the order, it took over 10 minutes to order food for 4. Chicken nuggets and chips were over tried and very dry, didn't bring the right food ordered, finally we were told it would take 20 minutes, but it took over 40 minutes. Another family eating there was also complaining about the food. Wouldn't recommend.

Great sea side pub full of pirates

The patio outside the back is delightful with fresh geraniums on each table.. a terracotta pot for those wishing to smoke.. fresh drinking water was brought out to our dog.. extremely friendly staff.. food was delicious.. well presented and hot.. the beef burger was excellent, perfectly cooked.. good menu choice.. Definitely recommend this pub.. The overnight accommodation is well worth a stay.. friends stayed Saturday night and were extremely happy.. all in all.. I highly recommend this pub it won't break the bank and you can eat drink & sleep for the price of a double room a few yards away...

Really cheap food, mash potato was hard, would not recommend this place to anyone!

Excellent pub, reasonable prices, good food. Dog friendly, very nice outside seating area.

Not enough staff. Slow service. Staff OK.

Stayed here in a newly refurbished coaching room. Great bed - great night sleep. Ate here too - great food for very reasonable prices. Staff friendly and helpful. Beautiful beer garden.

Went to the ship for Sunday dinner! It’s was a lovely pub, great staff, food was on point (nearly as good as mums) I will be going back soon.

Great place to eat sleep and drink plenty of selections of gin rum and vodka

Great all round venue we stayed the night in there newly refurbished letting rooms super king bed was like sleeping on air spotless clean room and well decorated .. we had decided to eat there glad we did the mix grill was really nice my wife had the veggie option she was very impressed , you can’t fault the service ... We watched the live band that was performing in the evening absolutely amazing , if your reading this I can recommend staying here pleasant surprise Thank you to all at the old ship fir making our stay perfect ....

Brilliant place to go during a night out - huge improvement after the refurb works and has helped liven the atmosphere in the town too

Located on the High Street, The Old Ship boasts a good selection of reasonably priced drinks as well as live music

I ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala and the chicken was cold Service was painfully slow and other orders were incorrect so we were forced to ask for a refund which was only partially given

We should have known better when at first taking a look through the windows and the place was empty. Unfortunately we had cycled 20+ miles and were hungry, so we decided to venture in.... big mistake!!! Barmaid told us she was also the chef, and that they were serving Sunday Roast. We ordered 6 Roast beef and asked did they have horseradish sauce to go with the beef? ‘Course we do’ was the reply. After a laborious 40+ minute wait we’re were faced with what I can only describe as the worst Sunday Roast I have ever been presented with, and guess what... there was no horseradish sauce. The barmaid/chef??? then tried to make lite of this and said that someone had used it without her knowledge????? Not convinced it was even beef! To add insult to injury there was no real ale on tap, the guy that covered for the barmaid whilst she was in the kitchen was next to useless - he didn’t know how to make orange juice and lemonade!

Good Beer. Nice to meet local people. Very welcoming and friendly.

Lovely pint of beer well looked after. Tasty great value and well cooked food. Engaging bar staff with personality who are very attentive and thoughtful. Offered to dry our jackets as it was tipping down. Thoroughly recommend the mixed grill washed down with a pint of Brakesbear. All the meat was tender and moist. This was on a very wet Thursday lunchtime.

Lovely pint of beer well looked after. Tasty great value and well cooked food. Engaging bar staff with personality who are very attentive and thoughtful. Offered to dry our jackets as it was tipping down. Thoroughly recommend the mixed grill washed down with a pint of Brakesbear. All the meat was tender and moist.

Stopped here for lunch because it was quiet, and I was in a hurry. The server was very friendly, but the food was pretty bad and not at all as advertised. It seems like they are trying to renovate and improve, but I would give them some time to sort out the kinks.