Having scoured the brochures for a decent hotel in the West Counrty within easy reach of a railstation we chose this. The write ups looked promising and it's many years since we went to Falmouth. We booed a Superior sea view room and was allocated 115 on the first floor. Although recently upgraded and with a sea view I'd be hard pushed to identify what made it superior other than the provision of bath robes. No slippers. The bedroom was rather small and lacked somewhere to store our travel bags. We ended up stacking them in the corner on top of each other. There was a minibar taking up space in the wardrobe and flatscreen tv on a large glass topped table taking up too much floor space. This could have gone on the wall with a swing bracket thus not needing the table. The bathroom was compact, although containing a full size bath and shower over. Shelf space was again insufficient for 2 toiletry bags. The room was kept clean and made up daily. The nightly turn down service was just that, beds turned down, damp towels left on the floor and curtains not drawn. On the second night we didn't even get this service. Expecting much from the AA 2 rosette winning restaurant didn't start well with the room guide advising that jacket and tie were no longer required just smart casual dress. On being seated I commented about the discomfort from a bar which ran around the underside of the table (I'm 6'4'') and although nothing could be done at that late stage we would be repositioned from breakfast. The food served for dinner was acceptable but not outstanding and one main course dish was the wrong one. At breakfask sadly the reseating didn't occur dispite the matre d' admitting he was aware but chose to ignor thr note. The quality of food at breakfast certainly isn't 2 rosette standard with porrige the consistency of water, no offer of cream or honey, a request for a runny fried egg as part of the full English arrived hard and as overcooked as the rest of the dish which had obviously been kept somewhere warm. Although nice to see Kedgeree as an option this was very bland and certainly didn't contain curry powder of any sort. Overall disappointing and not meeting what I'd expect from a 4 star hotel.

The food here is quite a shock, ie. its exceptional! I had a very grotty single room though and kept complaining until a lovely, recently refurbished double room became free and they put me in that for my last night and didn't charge me any extra and also gave me a discount for the grotty single. So the customer- service is pretty good. Restaurant staff are mostly eastern european and very pleasant. I think this place would appeal to anyone over 60 or people wanting to go away with their elderly parents - but it is expensive and not very big, ie. no garden, just a very smart umbrella-and-chair terrace at the front (too windy for us to use), a very big formal dinning room, a pleasant sun room at the front of the hotel, a dark TV room, and a not particularly welcoming small indoor swimming pool. I'm marking it as Above Average because of the food and staff only.

After reading reviews on Trip Advisor I arrived with my young family at the "Royal Duchy" with some concerns that it might not live up to what what we expecting.These concerns were soon put at ease.We arrived on the Dec 23rd in miserable misty weather but were immediately impessed as we drove into the hotel by the excellent decorations outside,it really did look special.We were checked in very promptly and offered sherry and mince pies,the doorman ( James) took all our luggage,xmas presents and family bits and bobs to our room on the second floor.Despite its moderate size it was well presented and of a high standard with an extremely large bathroom.We settled in quickly.Dinner on the first night was excellent as was the local carol singers who came in to entertain us.The dining room was extremely well presented and looked festive but in a quality way,service was of a high standard.The staff seemed happy.The following morning after a traditional breakfast we were contacted by reception and offered a complimentary upgrade to a bigger\superior room due to a cancellation,this was great as we had a travel cot in our room.Good old James then moved all our luggage,xmas presents etc again.Christmas morning saw Father Christmas visit the dining room and presents were given to all including our 6 month old daughter.Xmas luch was excellent with a champagne reception.The high standards continued for the rest of our stay.Other treats were a lounge set up with traditional games,competitions,daily program and a Nitendo Wii linked to large flatscreen tv.We also had use of a pool and a snooker room.The view from the well furnished lounges were supberb and a great place to read a book with a small scotch particularly when we had the cold ,bright winter sun.All in all a great xmas break, not cheap a one but you get what you pay for,we wil be back!

Just had the most fantastic weekend break at the Royal Duchy-what a lovely hotel! The staff were great - really friendly, helpful and attentive without being pushy. The location - right on the beach yet within easy walking distance of the town, the Maritime Museum etc - was perfect, and the food was sublime!
Can't wait to go back!