Oxford, Remont B&B

There ' s plenty to like about Remont, but still some work to do to become the boutique hotel it aspires to. At present they are a very good B&B let down by an uncomfortable bed and no evening dining facilities which makes their rack rates a tad high. That said, and if we ignore the poor night ' s sleep down to the tired mattress, this is a very nice place to stay. Remont has free parking (very important for Oxford), a pleasant garden, reasonable location, scrupulously clean rooms, and welcoming communal areas all wrapped in superb friendly service. We really liked Remont, and feel really bad (a bit like kicking a puppy) in criticising such a friendly operation, but whilst it ' s a nice place it ' s doesn ' t quite match up to their own billing. For more info, the guest house ' s own website http://www.remont-oxford.co.uk/ is fairly accurate and worth a look.

LOCATION " Remont is situated in Summertown about 3 miles outside Oxford on the busy A4165 Banbury Road. Oxford centre is a £1.85, 15 min bus ride from a stop less than 100 yards away. The bus service is frequent and reliable.

ACCOMMODATION " Remont has 25 ensuite bedrooms which are decorated to a modern contemporary clean design and has only been open since 2006. All the rooms are well decorated, equipped with hairdryer, wall hung flat screen LCD digital televisions, tea & coffee making facilities with biscuits, complimentary bottled still & sparkling mineral water, modern ensuite facilities with thermostatically controlled powerful mixer showers using the new economical Raindance technology system. They are reasonably small, but thoughtfully laid out to make good use of the space. The place is a wireless hotspot and so free broadband is available throughout, and if you don ' t have a laptop, then there is even a computer for use by the guests in the reception area. The downside was that the room we had was too hot, very stuffy and the mattress was truly awful. Since they were presumably new in 2006, either they had not worn well, or this was an area that false economy savings have been made. The end result was very little sleep and an otherwise positive experience somewhat marred.

BREAKFAST " Cereal, fruit juice, fresh fruit and yoghurt was available to serve yourself prior to the main event. A choice of full English, continental and most variations between the two is available in a buffet together with tea, coffee and toast. The food was well cooked, good quality and in more than sufficient quantities. All in all, a great start to the day. A point to note is that whilst the breakfast room is light airy and pleasant, it wont pass muster as a restaurant if the aim is to turn Remont into a true hotel.

This is a well run operation that does most of the important things to a high standard and most of the minor ones well. If they can sort out the beds and the room ventilation we would certainly go back.