A family has branded a County Durham hotel as a “disgusting” hovel after claiming their rooms were filthy, mouldy, covered in dust and crawling with bugs.
Chris Stewart travelled from Scotland to County Durham with his wife, sister, brother, niece and nephew for a visit to Beamish Museum before checking into The Moorings Hotel in Chester-le-Street.
The family had previously stayed at the hotel in 2019 and Chris said they had “a lovely stay”, prompting them to book it again for their latest trip.
But he claims their return visit was a far cry from their previous experience.
The 'black mould' bath mat found in the bathroom
(Image: PROVIDED)
Chris claims there was a dead animal on the path up to the hotel, black mould on bath mats in his room, as well as dead insects, a full bin, dirty carpets, bedding and towels amongst general uncleanliness.
The Northern Echo has made efforts to contact The Moorings Hotel for comment. A reporter visited the grounds, where the hotel appeared to be closed, with its window blinds shut and no one inside. A sign on the outside reads 'could you run this pub?'
Chris said: “We booked through Booking.com after staying with them in 2019 when we had a lovely stay, so for this year when we planned on going back to Beamish we wanted to stay there again.
“It was me, my wife, sister and brother as well as niece and nephew and we spent the day at the museum before going back to the hotel around 5.30/6pm to check in.
“We had initial trouble as we booked three rooms and they only had two for us, but after speaking to the manager it was sorted.
“The place was run down - there was nobody else in the car park apart from a few caravans. To say it wasn’t clean is an understatement.”
The dead animal found on the path on the hotel grounds
(Image: PROVIDED)
Chris claims the problems continued when the family reached their rooms.
He said: “When we got to the rooms, the carpets were not hoovered and filthy. I wouldn’t even stand on the bath mat in our room with flip-flops - it was black with mould.
"There were no clean towels, marked bed sheets that looked dirty and crinkled, dust and dirt an inch thick, dead bugs, spiders and wasps on the furniture. When we first walked in we saw a creature that we think was a cockroach run across the floor to under the bed."
He added: “It was as if the place had been shut down, they’ve just got a booking and reopened it for that.
“It was deserted, there were sheets over furniture, the bar and restaurant was closed and we were never informed of this.
“There was even a half-eaten rabbit on the walkway as you entered the hotel.”
The dirty bathroom
(Image: PROVIDED)
Chris said the family ended up spending £214 and then had to buy another stay at the South Causey Inn.
He said: “We had spent £214 and everything else on our travel and tickets and ended up having to buy another stay in the South Causey Inn, which we couldn’t have asked for more from.
“Since then, Booking.com have offered us £13 back and we are just being passed from pillar to post between the hotel and them.
“It was just a hovel, to put it politely - it was disgusting.
“We just wouldn’t want anyone else to spend their money on a place like this, I wouldn’t let a dog stay there.”
The 'inch thick' dust found all over the rooms
(Image: PROVIDED)
Chris said he had lodged a complaint with Durham County Council.
Owen Cleugh, safer places manager at Durham County Council, said: “We can confirm that we have received a complaint about the Moorings Hotel in Chester-le-Street.
"A member of our health protection team has spoken to both the complainant and the business about the concerns raised and has given appropriate advice.
"We are satisfied that no further action is required at this time.”
The dirty and damaged bathroom
(Image: PROVIDED)
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The Moorings Hotel in Chester-le-Street with a sign saying 'could you run this pub?' as well as having all blinds shut and no-one seemingly inside
(Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)
The Moorings has recently been advertised for lease by Trust Inns on July 1 as a “well-established pub and restaurant” in a semi-rural area of Chester-le-Street.
The listing described the premises as having an upstairs restaurant, downstairs bar, large catering kitchen, standalone 11-bedroom hotel and garden with countryside views.
It also stated that a refurbishment was planned and described the business as “currently available to let”.
The Moorings Hotel did not respond to anty of The Northern Echo’s requests for comment, including attempts to contact the business by phone - which appears not to be in service - by email and a visit to the premises.