Good Hotel Guide editor slams five-star Carbis Bay Hotel chosen for G7 summit

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The editor of the Good Hotel Guide has slammed the hotel chosen to host the world’s leaders at the upcoming G7 summit as ‘cruel and unusual punishment’.

The UK is set to welcome Prime Ministers and Presidents from the world’s leading democracies, in June for the latest summit with the main venue being the Carbis Bay estate in Cornwall.

Yet Adam Raphael, editor of the Good Hotel Guide, feels there were better options to host the world leaders when the summit gets underway on June 11.

Writing on the guide’s website, Mr Raphael asks: ‘Why has the Prime Minister decided to inflict cruel and unusual punishment on his fellow world leaders?

‘What the world’s most powerful politicians will make of their two day stay on a wind-swept Cornish beach is anyone’s guess but they are unlikely to feel warm about British hospitality. If only Boris had consulted the Guide.

‘What has prompted this sour note from me is that the reports of Carbis Bay Hotel that we receive from our readers do not inspire confidence.

Mr Raphael goes on to cite a review from a trusted writers, Frances Thomas, which paints a less than flattering picture of her experience at the hotel.

Ms Thomas describes waiting too long for check-in at the reception, the lack of porters to carry bags to their rooms (for medical reasons), being ignored by the restaurant’s maître d and poor central heating.

The review concludes that, while service could have been worse, for the price they paid (£600 a night) they would not be going back.

Describing the review as typical of those received by other readers about the resort, Mr Raphael added: ‘It is expensive and luxurious, but just not good enough.’

The Prime Minister is expected to use the first in-person G7 summit in almost two years to ask leaders to ‘seize the opportunity to build back better from coronavirus, uniting to make the future fairer, greener and more prosperous’.

The G7 – which is made up of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the USA and the EU – is the only forum where the world’s most influential and open societies and advanced economies are brought together for close-knit discussions.

However, it emerged yesterday that with under two weeks until the prestigious event is due to start, overflowing skips, bags of cement, stacks of timber and giant containers of rubble are all still clearly visible strewn around the Carbis Bay Hotel in Cornwall.

World leaders will converge on the sleepy Cornish village on June 11 for the two-day summit.

But on the approach to the hotel – where US President Joe Biden and Boris Johnson will be staying – a beachfront car park is littered with construction materials.

And parts of the main car park at the five-star hotel further down also resemble a builder’s yard with construction materials and rubbish scattered around.

Teams of builders are now in a race against time to clear up as well as to complete three meeting rooms that sit above the £4,000 night lodges being used as accommodation for the summit.

The hotel hit headlines earlier this week after it was revealed the resort had become embroiled in a dispute over constructing the meeting rooms for the world’s top leaders without any planning permission.

Builders at the luxury Carbis Bay Hotel in Cornwall are close to completing the three single-storey wooden structures which will provide nine meeting rooms for delegates attending the high profile gathering between June 11 to 13.

But they may be forced to tear them down just weeks later if Cornwall Council rejects a planning application submitted after the work started.

More than 300 objections have already been lodged by members of the public, with the Council’s planning committee to decide on the retrospective application after the G7 summit.

The stylish meeting rooms, built into the cliffside adjoining the lavish hotel, have glass fronts which open onto a sky deck offering stunning views over St Ives Bay.

World leaders will be staying nearby in luxurious beach lodges that directly overlook the sea.

They will be able to access the lodges from the meeting rooms along a wooden path that is also under construction. 

Earlier this month, the Carbis Bay and Spa Hotel sparked fury after it was revealed it is charging a whopping £4,000 to visitors wishing to reserve one night on June 4, and a minimum of £3,500 to those staying overnight on May 22 and 23.

Tourists looking to set aside one room for one adult are shown the prices on Booking.com, with the hotel’s double rooms and apartments appearing fully booked for those specific dates, leaving only villas available on the site. 

Those wishing to book on June 1 can pay at least £1,200 per night for a two-bedroom apartment, with more rooms available towards the start of May, costing £550 for one night in a two-bedroom apartment.

The Government said the choice of Cornwall as the location for the Summit will mean ‘the eyes of the world are on the beautiful, historic and innovative region’.

The leaders’ meeting itself will be held in the coastal town of Carbis Bay, supported by neighbouring St Ives and other towns across the region. 

Visit Cornwall estimates the total economic impact for the county will be £50 million, including through an increase in future tourism.

The Government also said it will work closely with Cornish leaders and institutions to ensure the Summit leaves a long term legacy for the region, reaping the benefits of hosting the G7 for years to come.

The Carbis Bay Hotel has been contacted for comment.