The New Inn Clovelly

Beautiful setting, great helpful attentive staff, good breakfast, comfortable room all at a very reasonable price. Will definitely stay again. A special thankyou to the the breakfast ladies who on learning we needed to be away fairly early made sure we weee served promptly and the barman who looked after us do well the night before

This lovely hotel fits perfectly in this little town, quirky and full of history. Sally, Amy and their crew were welcoming and went out of their way to make us feel comfortable. Large, clean room with a view to the sea and unexpectedly varied menu with great food. A little gem, I’d recommend for anyone visiting.

The hotel is a little dated but we found that to be part of its charm. Our room was clean, the bed linen was crisp and white, and the bed very comfortable. We had a lovely meal in the restaurant, and the staff we encountered were friendly and helpful.

Cute hotel but with awful staff....namely the bar maid/waitress. Rude, insulting and thoroughly miserable. I would go as far to say she tried her best to make people leave...and we did! Heard so many guests saying the same. Such a shame that the amazing Clovelly estate feels the need to employ this kind of person.

We stayed in room 21 as part of a travelzoo deal. It’s an awful room just enough space for the uncomfortably cold double bed. No useable chairs/table in the room. It has a large bathroom attached but that was grubby. Nasty musty smell. The staff are obviously working really hard to meet needs and are constantly busy. However they need a dedicated cleaner and a freshen up everywhere. There are other rooms which look nicer- perhaps we were unlucky and got the “ick” room. The local area is historical and beautiful. It’s also really hard to move around if you have some form of mobility issues- sharp hill and cobbles making walking difficult and carrying a bag even harder!

We had a lovely couple of days, using a deal booked through Travelzoo. We stayed in Room 1, which is in the main building. It was spacious, en-suite, with a double and a single bed. We could just about see the sea! There was plenty of wardrobe space, plus tea/coffee making stuff, tv, good Wi-Fi, hairdryer, shampoo and conditioner. The building dates back to the 18th century, so it has lots of character, oak beams, etc. but it does look a little worn in places. We particularly liked the room where we had breakfast, with its paintings and antique furniture. Breakfast itself was great. Full English, with veggie/vegan options, fruit juices, cereals, yogurt, unlimited toast, jam etc. and they had soya milk, dairy free “butter”, gluten free bread. We ate both nights in the downstairs bar/restaurant. There were standard pub meals (great fish and chips), baguettes, nachos, plus interesting specials e.g. mussels, schnitzel, mackerel quiche, jambalaya. I’m dairy intolerant, and they were very helpful with adapting meals for me. I couldn’t have the afternoon tea though. The staff were all very friendly and helpful, and some had lived all their lives in the village. I’ve loved Clovelly since childhood, and it didn’t disappoint. On the day we arrived we walked down to the harbour, and saw porpoises from the wall! March is off peak, so there wasn’t a lot going on. Just the amazing views, historic buildings that you can go inside, a small shop selling sweets, pasties and ice creams, a lovely tea shop, and another pub/restaurant. There are various walks, gardens to view, plus the donkey stables. The visitor centre has some shops, a cafe and a brewery. We loved our stay, and will hopefully go back again. A few tips….even though we’d visited the village before, we underestimated how steep it was. You have to carry your luggage quite a long way down, and then back up when you leave - we took way too much, and didn’t need half of it. Wheelie bags are a waste of time because you can’t wheel them on the cobbles! So if you’re staying there, take the minimum possible, eg. just one pair of non-slip shoes. Everyone seems to dress quite casually. You need a reasonable level of fitness to cope with the steepness. It would be impossible for anyone with mobility issues. There is a Landrover service that goes from the visitor centre to the harbour and back, but it only operates in peak season (e.g from Easter to autumn). I’d recommend having a room in the main building rather than those on the other side of the path, as we spoke to fellow guests whose bathroom was across the hall. The lower number rooms are in the main building.