Hotel a bit pricey for what you get - but the location makes up for it. Rooms clean and breakfast good. Have stayed there 3 times. Twice the food in the bar in the evening was good - despite the shouting from behind the bar. Third time my chips were black - sent them back (never done that before) to which the 'cook' appeared with my plate and shouted loudly 'there is nothing wrong with these - everyone else
is eating them' I got him to scrape them off and he went off muttering 'I'm going to have to bite my tongue'

Well what can I say. I avoid this part of the lakes during the silly season of the UK school hols or as the French say Les Grandes Vacances.

Some of the best and hardest graded climbing routes in Europe are just behind the Hotel. Dawes Rides a Shovel Head E9 8c The last time I stayed we stood in the car park and saw a french chap have a good bash at this route, but fail.

Beer lots of it and a vast choice of real ale. Bar Meals are fast and furious going at 200 in 3 hours. You gets lots of it with the 80% being homemade including the chips.

Restaurant is brilliant with the emphasis on provenance with local people making it as well as producing it.

Music is often impromptu and eclectic. This years 4th of July was marked by the playing of the coal shuttle! Usually the first Wednesday of the month.

If you like Wainwright, Wordsworth, Shelley, Ruskin, The National Trust you must come here. JB Presitley wrote about one afternoon in the Climber's Bar in his auto-biography which is one of the more eloquent descriptions of the place.Some famous people have stayed here in the past including HRH Hirohito when he was Crown Prince in 1926 lots of infamous musicians such as Nigel Kennedy and Jimmy Page most importantly it still has a close relationship with the climbing fraternity with lots of UK based climbing clubs having their annual dinners here. Indeed Sir Chris Bonnington Ian Clough et al have all had a quick practice of their lectures before they went live.

If you really need you mobile phone to work and you are desperate to go online to check out myspace then stay at the Pillar. If you don't know where this is then look at the Timeshare. Some families who have a timeshare have stayed at the ODG.

When you sit in the Climbers Bar and re-tell of your day on the hill remember to read the Rules of the Inn next to the fire and if your story is too far fetched or is simply boring you may be asked to get round in.Mines a pint of Yates!

This place is bliss. No TV, No Radio, No mobile phones what you get are real people, real beer and real food in an atmosphere that can not be bought or replicated. People have lived here for over 5,000 years it is truly an ancient and foreboding environment. FANTASTIC!

We stayed at the ODG again for the ??? time - we have been so often that I cannot remember - as usual the welcome was warm and friendly and nothing was too much trouble - we have found this to be an excellent base for walking holidays since we took over the whole hotel for a group stay in the height of the foot and mouth crisis - then Neil really put himself out to make our weekend superb - even recommending walks that we could still enjoy without the benefit of the fells - and he ran us around in his Land Rover ( all 12 of us!) - subsequent return trips in happier times have not let us down - whether it be for a romantic getaway or a raucous group weekend - watch out Neil we will be back - in fact I have just booked another 3 nights for this October - can't wait. All other + points go without saying - but for the record - bar food - great - esp. after a day on the fells - music nights fab - try the packed lunches - I bet you can't finish the home made rolls made with beer bread - heaven in a paper bag!

With high hopes of a warm welcome after a day of walking we were disappointed in the ODG Hotel. Staff insisted on yelling out the dinner orders over the heads of the drinkers - (and I mean really YELLING !) to the extent that one area of the Walkers bar remained empty even on a busy night.

This, and a stand up quarrel between the chef (who wanted to leave at 9) and an unhappy customer meant that we avoided for the hotel for the rest of the week. Other hotels in the valley were much more welcoming.