We booked this hotel for four nights having read reviews on ‘Tripadvisor’. We were not disappointed. It is a beautiful building in a dominant seafront position and is altogether a fabulous hotel. The bedroom was excellent, with a large flat screen tv and best of all an outside balcony seating area within the large central atrium area of the hotel. We sat for hours there, soothed by the plants, flowing water, and good wine. Far preferable to a front sea view room. This was one of the most relaxing hotel rooms I have ever stayed in.

The attitude of all the staff was very impressive, they were clearly very well trained and committed to customer service without appearing forced or obsequious. We ate three times in the Norman Wisdom bar, and the food was excellent each time. In fact these were the best meals we had whilst in the Isle of Man.

We would class ourselves as foodies but on the I.O.M very little choice until we discovered this one when staying at The Sefton.
We really enjoyed the food and with all the little extras was not as expensive as it sounds. If you enjoy food cooked with flair then you will enjoy this , service was excellent and someone with talent was at work in the kitchen

We stayed here for 4 nights and whilst disappointed with the Atrium and breakfast both of which were over rated but adequate.( did not get into our top 10 breakfast league} we loved our room and the view over the bay . A big spacious bathroom was an extra bonus . The swimming pool was a disappointment , 3 strokes and you cover the length and if people stand in the middle having a conversation as the 3 women did for the whole 20 mins I was in the pool you have to squeeze by . Noisy and dark too with sauna and steam room not woeking on my visit.
Food in the Bar is adequate and typical bar food but the restaurant was very good we only ate there 0n the last night our mistake we thought it was expensive but on an island where fine dinning isin the almost non existent category this was an oasis and only a few quid dearer than one of the other local eateries which did not hold a candle to this . All in all a lovely restful place with friendly staff some with limited English but nice smiles and nowhere was pretentious.

Booking and check-in were both simple and friendly thanks to Tony at Reception. I paid £440 which apparently included one night free for a four night stay in an 'Atrium' type room including breakfast during the Easter Bank-holiday weekend. We were advised at the point of booking that the pool was closed for refurbishment.

On arrival at the hotel we found ample spaces in the underground car park. Having checked-in, we were pleased to find a spacious, clean room with king-sized bed, sofa area, bathroom with bath and separate shower, large corner balcony overlooking the internal garden area, fridge, flat screen TV and free Wi-Fi Intenet Access. Although not to the standards of style and comfort of some hotels we have stayed in at a similar price, the accommodation was more than adequate.

We decided to dine in the hotel on our first evening and chose Sir Norman's Bar. Granted, on a Bank Holiday Sunday a sea-front bar is bound to be busy, but we were shocked to see many dirty tables were left well after the rush was over. After being ignored by one unoccupied member of staff who was standing right next to us at the entrance, we were shown to one such dirty table and requested a highchair for our baby. We were presented with a particularly grubby highchair. We had to request that the young waitress who was also operating the bar and who, although very pleasant, was obviously out of her depth dealing with table service as well as the bar, clean both the table and the highchair. After 'cleaning' the chair still contained the large solid contents of a previous child's meal-needless to say, our baby remained in her pushchair. Paying £15.95 each for a thin steak and some cooked from frozen chips, we were sorely disappointed by both the food and the poor service throughout the meal although from the comments of a fellow guest who had no complaints the following evening, perhaps we may have caught them on a bad night?

Breakfast was served in a sunny sea-facing room staffed by a very friendly and attentive staff. The breakfast wasn't as good as eg. some of the Hilton's we have stayed at recently but good all the same. Full English, cereals, fruit and pastries are available buffet-style and the quality of the food to order was excellent, including smoked salmon and scrambled egg, kippers, smoked haddock, poached eggs, porridge etc. On our final night we had room service which was fine. We did not try the Gallery Restaurant.

We were fortunate with the weather during our stay so spent most of our time outdoors. We were both impressed with the stress-free nature of the island, the breathtaking scenery, friendliness of the locals and excellent fishing locations.

The thing we particularly found lacking on the Isle of Man was the availablility of good food! The worst meal I have ever eaten in my life was a takeaway from 'The King & I', a Thai Restaurant in Douglas-the only word to describe their food is 'sickening', particularly the re-hydrated meat they use which is pumped so full of water its consistency is like jelly-we left almost all of it and at £46 for a starter, main course and rice for two, it wasn't cheap. However, I can thoroughly recommend the following places to eat: The Sound Visitor Centre, Nairbyl Visitor Centre, The Hop Garden and an excellent Indian Restaurant just off the Promendae in Douglas-unfortunately its name escapes me.

Although the accommodation in The Sefton is comfortable, there is certainly room for impovement from a dining and service perspective following our experience in Sir Norman's Bar. At the prices charged for food and accommodation, I would have expected better. However, the general consensus of the fellow guests and locals we got to know is that with such a limited choice on the island, standards are not set much higher than this.