It’s not often we like to blow our own trumpet, especially considering the challenges over the last 15 months, however we are absolutely delighted to have received the 2021 Travellers’ Choice Award for Hotels from TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel platform.

This means that our 19th century Ilfracombe hotel has been named among the world’s top 10%, reaffirming that North Devon should be one of the must visit UK destinations for everyone.

Our Restaurant

“Given the background of the last 15 months, it’s challenging to get an award like this. It’s special.”

“I think the fact that this award was due to the reviews of our customers means more in a way. It’s a more direct award because the direct feedback of our customers, many of whom return here, means a lot to us.”

Eliot Seabourn-Wren, co-owner of the Carlton Hotel for five years.

We know we’re a hidden gem, we’re so very happy that so many of our guests feel the exact same way about us, and we honestly cannot wait to see you all return to visit us this year.

We’ve been unable to trade for most of the year so far, so we opened up our Brasserie for food deliveries to local residents, it’s been a hit! Again, we don’t always blow our own trumpet, but our food is rather good.

Food from our Brasserie

“We are having people come in after eating one of our delivery meals and wanting to enjoy the food again in-house. There is a strong, loyal crowd that want to help our local businesses and I feel this award just reinforces that.”

“We are a classic hotel business in that we aren’t just welcoming to visitors, but also to our local customers. When we had Sunday lunch last week, we had a really good crowd and the majority of them were local.”

Eliot Seabourn-Wren

Tripadvisor spokesperson, Hayley Coleman, said: “Congratulations to the Carlton Hotel in Ilfracombe for its win in the 2021 Travellers’ Choice Awards for Hotels. The past year has been extremely challenging for the tourism industry but businesses like the Carlton Hotel have adapted to ensure that they continue to deliver a top rate service to their guests.”

“The Travellers’ Choice Awards highlight the places that are consistently excellent – delivering quality experiences time and time again even while navigating changing customer expectations and new ways of working. Based on the quality and quantity of reviews from customers over the past year, this award speaks to the great service that the Carlton Hotel provided guests in the midst of a pandemic,”

“I think everyone is looking forward to a great couple of months. We are looking forward to delivering great service to our regular customers and give them an opportunity to relax after what has been a challenging year.”

Eliot Seabourn-Wren

So, please do come and visit us this year, whether local or from afar, we welcome you to enjoy our gem of a Victorian hotel and fantastic restaurant, in the lovely coastal town of Ilfracombe.