The Varsity Hotel & Spa
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Modern hotel with a stunning rooftop terrace, perfectly located in the center of Cambridge along the River Cam. All 48 rooms are named after a different Cambridge college. Fitness center, Spa and parking facilities available on site.
Summary of reviewsThe Varsity Hotel & Spa is a lovely hotel that boasts a fantastic location in the heart of Cambridge, making it an ideal spot for tourists. The hotel offers well-appointed and visually pleasing rooms, although some describe them as expensive and lacking storage space. Many guests have praised the hotel's cleanliness, exceptional service and attention to detail, while others point out negative experiences in terms of rude staff behavior and outdated features. The breakfast and dinner options at the two on-site restaurants receive mixed reviews with some guests praising their quality and selection, while others found them lacking in variety and overpriced. The spa facilities are basic but offer fantastic treatments, making it an excellent spot for winding down. Some reviews mention issues with parking but overall, the hotel's excellent location, cleanliness and high-quality service make it a great choice for travelers looking to spend time in Cambridge.
Categories
Luxury Hotel
This boutique luxury hotel offers extensive spa facilities including a spa pool, sauna, and steam room, Elemis spa treatments, and a gym. It features an iconic roof terrace and a panoramic bar with city views, as well as fine dining options like the Riverside Steakhouse.
Hotel for Honeymoon
Features a rooftop terrace with panoramic city views, a spa, and luxurious rooms, creating a memorable and romantic experience. Its central location along the River Cam is ideal for exploring Cambridge.
Hotel with Spa
The Varsity Hotel & Spa provides a serene escape from the hustle and bustle of daily life. The spa offers an array of treatments and services to help guests unwind, refresh and recharge. Soak in the stunning views of the river from the whirlpool hot tub, or indulge in a range of Elemis treatments. Guests can also take advantage of the sauna, the steam room and the spa pool for a full body experience. The spa offers a wide range of massages, facials, body treatments, and beauty services for couples, gentlemen, and expectant mothers. For a romantic touch, couples can have a candlelit massage in the double treatment room. Guests can also choose between a massage or a facial or opt for a combination of both for a complete spa experience. The spa also offers a variety of beauty services, including waxing, eye treatments, nail care, and hair services, using high-quality products from brands like Jessica and Aveda. Whether you are looking to pamper yourself or spend quality time with a loved one, The Varsity Hotel & Spa has everything you need for a relaxing and rejuvenating day.
Family Friendly Hotel
The hotel's central location is ideal for accessing family-friendly activities such as punting on the River Cam and visiting the University of Cambridge colleges.
Romantic Hotel
Offers a rooftop terrace with panoramic city views, a luxury spa, and stylish rooms. The central location allows for romantic strolls along the river and easy access to Cambridge's attractions.
Hotel near Nightlife Spots
The Varsity Hotel & Spa boasts a prime city-center location, offering easy access to Cambridge's nightlife. Its 6th-floor Panoramic Bar and Brasserie provide spectacular views and cocktails. The hotel is near many colleges, punting, shopping, and nightlife, making it ideal for exploring the city's evening scene.
Business Hotel
The Varsity Hotel & Spa offers private meeting and conference rooms, and is located in Cambridge city centre. The hotel can accommodate up to 60 theatre style and offers a full range of audiovisual, technical and presentation equipment. Regular clients include Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Barclays, PwC and Facebook.
Accessible Hotel
Provides accessible rooms and spa facilities with stunning city views. The hotel's central location and accessibility features make it a popular choice.
Hotel with Gym
The Varsity Hotel & Spa offers a fitness center along with its spa, providing guests with options for both exercise and relaxation. The gym is well-equipped.
4-Star Hotel
The hotel provides a luxurious experience with its spa facilities and stylish rooms. It offers a unique vantage point with its rooftop terrace, providing great views of the city.
Boutique-style Hotel
Dog Friendly Hotel
Hotel with Parking
Guest Reviews
The Varsity Hotel & Spa boasts a fantastic location in the heart of Cambridge with guests describing it as brilliant, great, fantastic and superb. The hotel is within easy walking distance to the city center and its many sites and is situated in the nicest part of town, close to the green, the river, shops and cafes. Guests also loved the scenic breakfast spot with views of Cambridge rooftops. The location is perfect for exploring Cambridge easily with everything just a short walk away. Additionally, the hotel's central location provides easy access to shops and colleges, making it an ideal spot for tourists. Despite being located on crowded tourist streets, reviewers raved about the hotel's central location, which is close to the river and Jesus Green. The hotel's location was described as excellent, convenient, ideal and perfect, making it a fantastic spot for visitors to Cambridge.
The breakfast at The Varsity Hotel & Spa has received mixed reviews from guests. Some have praised the selection and quality, describing it as excellent, great, fantastic, delectable and plentiful with a big continental buffet and beautifully presented foods. Others have found it disappointing, basic or lacking in variety with only continental options included in the price and poor quality ingredients. Some have also complained about being upsold on paid menus or having to pay extra for a cooked breakfast. However, many have appreciated the stunning views and rooftop location where you can enjoy your meal and some have also praised the food served in the hotel's restaurants as excellent. Overall, while the breakfast may not be perfect, it seems to be a decent option for starting your day during your stay at The Varsity Hotel & Spa.
The Varsity Hotel & Spa has two restaurants on-site, which received mixed reviews from guests. On the 6th floor, one restaurant offered great views and good food, while the other, especially the steakhouse, was lovely. However, some guests did not have a good experience, calling one restaurant dreadful and dirty with average food that wasn't worth the price. Some felt that the brasserie was better suited for breakfast or lunch rather than dinner. Despite this, some guests had excellent food and service experiences, such as a lovely celebratory meal at Six Brasserie. On the other hand, some were disappointed with the offerings at the six brasserie and felt that the food and bar menu were very expensive with little choice.
The Varsity Hotel & Spa offers a mixture of opinions when it comes to the rooms. Some guests found the rooms expensive, small and lacking storage space which made it unsuitable for two people. Others, however, found them to be well appointed, lovely and clean. Information on the hotel was conveniently placed on the tablet by the bed. Upgrades are a possibility and provide guests with lovely views and big bathrooms. The hotel is located in a perfect spot with some describing the property as stunning. Guest complaints centered around outdated features such as furniture, discolored grouting and tired decor. Noise from deliveries and housekeeping staff was also a concern. However, many found the room very comfortable and clean with impeccable cleanliness being mentioned by several guests. Despite some mixed reviews, the hotel's location, cleanliness and high-quality rooms make it a good option for travelers looking to spend time in Cambridge.
Guests of The Varsity Hotel & Spa have mixed opinions on the beds. Some have found them to be uncomfortable and hard, while others have lauded them as the most comfortable and amazing beds they've ever slept in. Some reviewers have criticized the age of the beds, while others have praised their comfort and size. However, most agree that the rooms are lovely and beautifully decorated. Some guests have noted issues with the thickness of the duvet or the discomfort of the pillows and there have been reports of an inconsistent quality of travel cots provided by the hotel. Overall, guests can expect comfortable and quiet beds in well-appointed and visually pleasing rooms.
The Varsity Hotel & Spa boasts lovely, clean and modern accommodations according to many guests. The hotel maintains its cleanliness well with guests commenting that it is exceptionally clean or impeccably clean. The traditional values of the hotel can be seen in the clean, tidy rooms that are well-kept. Some rooms are also very comfortable with lovely facilities. However, a few guests have had negative experiences with the cleanliness with one guest finding the spa to be dirty and another wishing for some bleach on the grouting in the bathroom. Overall, guests can expect a clean place to stay at The Varsity Hotel & Spa.
The Varsity Hotel & Spa boasts an exceptional team of staff according to our guests' reviews. From the reception staff to the restaurant crew, the level of service and attention is characterized as pleasant and attentive, friendly, fabulous and great. The staff are hugely helpful, paying attention to detail and catering to all requests no matter how big or small. Guests particularly appreciated the staff's kindness, professionalism and warmth, making them feel welcome and looked after. Some guests commented on the staff's exceptional customer service, while others cited unhelpful, rude and indifferent behavior from a few staff members. Overall, the staff at The Varsity Hotel & Spa are a standout feature that adds to the experience of staying in this lovely hotel with gorgeous views and fantastic facilities.
In the heart of Cambridge, The Varsity Hotel & Spa offers a lovely spa experience with outstanding treatments and high-specification facilities. However, some guest reviews do express disappointment at the basic and rather small spa facilities. It's worth noting that the spa is next door, not part of the hotel itself and some guests complain of the inconvenience of walking out onto the street to get to it. The sauna, steam room and jacuzzi are delightful, but the small size does mean that at peak times, it can feel quite busy. While some reviewers described the spa area as a hot tub and steam room with men winding down from their gym session, others enjoyed their gym and spa access with one guest boasting of a perfect and relaxing break with an amazing spa experience.
Read reviews of 'The Varsity Hotel & Spa' and you may come across mixed feelings about parking. Some guests found the lack of on-site parking inconvenient and a nightmare to find, while others found the valet parking service efficient and great. However, some reviews highlighted the high cost of £25 per night for private parking, which requires advance notice and the fact that valet parking involves leaving cars on double yellow lines. In addition, some guests mentioned that the half marathon and binmen on Sunday morning made access an issue, which was obviously not the hotel's fault. Despite these few drawbacks, most guests found the hotel a luxurious and comfortable stay.
The Varsity Hotel & Spa has received impressive reviews from many guests with a great location being a standout feature. Many have rated the hotel as very good or superb with an average rating of 9.00/10 for facilities and services. The outstanding service deserves a five-star rating, according to some guests. However, a few guests have found the rooms to be basic or borderline run-down with several reviewers considering the hotel to be overpriced. Despite this, the breakfast options and variety on offer have been praised, even if the prices were a bit high.
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Location
Breakfast
Dinner
Rooms
Beds
Cleanliness
Staff
Spa
Parking
4 Star
No, The Varsity Hotel & Spa doesn't have any pool.
Yes, a spa is available at The Varsity Hotel & Spa.
Yes, The Varsity Hotel & Spa welcomes dogs.
Yes, parking facilities are available at The Varsity Hotel & Spa.
Yes, The Varsity Hotel & Spa has a gym.
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