The Swan at Lavenham Hotel & Spa in Babergh

It’s our 3-4th stay here & the food has absolutely tanked. I opened with quite simply the most awful mussels (all shell few mussels & just a bowl of creamy under seasoned fluid). Beef short rib was appalling & zero flavour, even the fries between courses had inconsistency, the salad base was from a packet. The meal was insulting & im very disappointed.

A lovely evening! Zoltan, Joe and the entire team were brilliant, really welcoming and made the occasion feel really special. Food was amazing - I’ve got an allergy and this was taken really seriously and well dealt with by all, very reassuring. Thank you to the team at the Swan, will definitely be back again soon x

I came for lunch it was amazing food and service

The food was absolutely fantastic, the building is beautiful and to top it off the service was absolutely wonderful. We were Served by Zoltan and Amber, who made the whole experience even more special. Cannot recommend highly enough!!

An excellent lunch... Beef short rib cooked to perfection, matched perfectly with wines from Zoltans recommendations. A very friendly greeting from Marian on the front desk. Gill was very quick to arrange a table for us in the restaurant and entertained us with lovely conversation. Very busy on a cold Monday afternoon but you can see why. Warm welcomes, good food and even better service.

The staff are friendly helpful and kind

Everything was fantastic, staff extremely helpful and polite, food very good, service also excellent

Lovely afternoon tea. Welcoming and attentive staff, we could not fault it.

This is a beautiful hotel, set in lovely village just outside Bury St Edmunds, if you love black and white timber buildings that have been lovingly cared for, olde worlde bedrooms with up and down stairs to access, low beams to duck under, roaring log fires, amazing Spa facilities with an outside hot pool to watch stars from, then this hotel in Lavenham has to be for you, wether it is for business or pleasure, you will want to come back time and time again. Mark R

We had a 2 night stay in one of the Tudor rooms, what an amazing stay we had with our little dog Bonnie, dog bed, towel, bowls, tennis ball and treat was all supplied in our room and was such a nice touch. We enjoyed our stay immensely taking advance of a couple of treatments in the spa. And relaxing by the fire with drinks in one of the snugs on the ground floor. Locals were so friendly and offered knowledge on where else to eat and take the dog for a walk. What a lovely village and outstanding hotel!

We can’t scream about this place enough! The food, the service and the ambiance is first class. We ate in the brasserie and were served by Sorin and Liam, nothing was too much trouble. Dave was excellent in the bar and was extremely friendly. We ate the venison and a pie, both of which were delicious. We’ve already booked to come back. Please thank the team for making our night so special

Wow what amazing place ,my daughter had her wedding here ,600 year old hotel absolutely gorgeous from the food to the rooms ,but what the icing on the cake is for the swan is your staff wow . From the cleaner to the bar to the restaurant to the spa ,happy helpful and go beyond to make your stay amazing ,to owner of the swan you must be proud off the amazing staff you have thank you all at the swann

Nice place. We had a cream tea/coffee, very nice, and good prices. Staff polite. Lots of different areas to sit.

Fantastic to stay in this historic location. The people were all very nice and helpful. Lavenham itself is also well worth a visit!

A unique visit for my parents anniversary meal with a power cut. Whilst this may have been an inconvenience to some it was handled so well by the staff who were very attentive. A massive thank you to the man in the white shirt and the young lady with the blonde hair who really made our night. A great evening, with great company, great service all in candle light!

Service was very bad in restaurant and food was hurried not a pleasant evening. Upset our stay will not return

Wonderful warm welcome at the Swan. Rooms, service and facilities are spot on and feel luxurious.

Great place horrendous food. My wife said the scrambled eggs were the worst since basic military training.. the evening meal was appalling . A risotto that was half cooked and tasteless beef rib . Great staff beautiful place awful food

Beautiful place very tranquil excellent service, excellent food well worth a visit, definitely go back again.

Fabulous stay. It's like going back in time. The building is amazing, the room was cozy and clean. We'd enjoyed the spa facilities and had a lovely quiet dinner in the restaurant. The winner for me was the room service breakfast which was perfect. 100% coming back

Gorgeous hotel in a beautiful village

We purchased an "Off Peak Luxury" deal consistent with a non premium rate discount. It cost us, but our expectations were completely met. Our 4 star rating on our room was perhaps harsh. The curtains were in poor condition and we hoped our rating was helpful. It did nor impinge on our stay. The bathroom seemed freshly renovated and was spectacular. My other positive comment was that many of the staff seemed to be locally recruited which we saw as adding to the friendly and relaxed atmosphere. We were celebrating our 60 year wedding anniversary after having our 20 year anniversary at the Swan.

One word to describe the service here Disappointing

An excellent lunch. Beautifully cooked and served. Relaxing areas to lounge in and have coffee after. Would definitely go again when in the area.

Beautiful hotel in a great location, with parking available. Room was very comfortable and well equipped, bathroom had refillable toiletries provided so no extra plastic wastage with the usual small complimentary bottles hotels provide. Dinner and breakfast in the spacious restaurant were both lovely, great selection of food at the breakfast buffet and on the cooked breakfast menu. Plenty of comfortable lounge space to relax after dinner with a drink.

This place is an amazing place to stay and the experience was one of the best I have been to stay at - would recommend to anyone if they want someone special to stay and have a nice relaxing time this is the place to go and stay.

We stayed in the Priory Suite which is a separate building across the road from the hotel it was fantastic. Exceptionally clean and full of character with wooden beams . A roll top bath , a four poster bed and very large shower offer a touch of luxury in this period property. Plus you can use all the facilities of the hotel including the spa and excellent restaurant .

So many things to say about the Swan, having stayed, been for drinks, had dinner and had champagne tea at various times. Suffice to say that the lasting memory was not the service, which is very pedestrian and in one case the guy just gruff and rude. The best thing about the hotel complex itself is probably the Spa, which comes highly recommended. The Dean itself is fine, but there are no doubt better places in the vicinity to enjoy, and maybe even sleep.

Brilliant place so welcoming and friendly. We enjoyed our stay here and so did our dog. We can't wait to come back. Our dog laid by the fire in the lounge and crashed out in our room after a busy day of walking around Lavenham.

Location is great, rooms are decent. Dinner was terrible. Lazy, food was dry and not interesting Real shame

Unsure how this place has such great reviews… the service was painfully slow and £4.30 for half a pint of coke.. must be having a laugh. Food was under seasoned and underwhelming. Such a shame as it was stunning inside.

Went here for a birthday lunch, food was good, prices fairly high but not overly so, good prices for set menu though. Serv8ce was good just a tiny bit slow, even though they were not busy. I would go back again

The Swan has a magnificent site on the high street in Lavenham, almost directly opposite The Crooked House, home to The Crooked Men and probably the most iconic home in England. Unfortunately The Swan is resting on its feathered laurels - content to charge London prices but providing exceptionally slow service in the dining/breakfast room and bar areas. Those responsible for managing this beautiful building must secure more staff. There are other fine places to stay and eat which offer much better service as well as plenty of excellent AirBnB options, including The Cygnet: don't be shy to try!

Didn't stay or eat. Just had a drink. Very nice medieval hotel.

My husband and I had a very enjoyable stay at the Swan at Lavenham Hotel and Spa.Beautiful hotel with lovely facilities, including a relaxing spa. The staff were attentive and helpful. If you are looking for a lovely birthday gift I would highly recommend "Dinner on us" hotel offer.

Had a delicious Sunday lunch, with a good bottle of malbec in delightful surroundings. Staff were polite and efficient. Would definitely recommend and return.

Pure class!! Amazing hotel with a calm relaxed ambience throughout. Very efficiently run with friendly, helpful, professional staff. Stayed in a delightful room, well equipped whilst retaining its historical charm. High quality furnishings and bedding provided a good night's sleep before the excellent breakfast service. Couldn't fault our stay and would highly recommend.

Beautiful old building steeped in history. Staff were very pleasant and helpful. Definitely worth another visit.

Great hotel and food was excellent

Extremely helpful staff that go the extra mile no.matter the time of night