Nanford Guest House

Delighted to read that the Nanford is still as awful now as it was when I stayed in 1997. That 'double' room with half a dozen or so beds of varying sizes; the bizarre mould-filled fridge; the carpet eaten away around the edges; the landfill site 'garden' to the rear. So often these examples of old-world British hospitality have been swept away in the quest for cosmoplitan sophistication. Long live the Nanford and its surprisingly excellent breakfasts!

Jamin (Unverified), 23/03/12

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All I can say is my friend and I stayed at Nanford Guest House, and will be talking about it for many a year! Looking back it seems we were transported to a time and place that does not exist, peeling paper, damp stains, boiling water in the "shower" - the en-suite was appalling - a dog that howled on the balcony next door. I said to my friend that the place seemed reminiscent of the Addams family, and to keep a an ear out for "Thing" plonking up the stairs to our bedroom door in the night, she promptly put a chair in front of the door to keep "Thing" out!

The car was safe at the back of the house, but what on earth were all those cleaning products (they should have been in a locked cupboard, there was so much stuff) it was like a very run down warehouse out there, a scrap heap, washing machines, and heaven knows what else, it was sheer comedy!

There was a small fridge in our room (of three beds) inside nothing but rusting shelves, the TV did work, surprisingly. It was a very strange set up. There were old enlarged mountaineering photos of mine host on the drab, peeling walls in the dining room, where a very good breakfast was served.

Admittedly the sheets on the beds were clean, and the lady who served our breakfast had clean pinny on, and was polite. But, never again! Good for only one thing... material for a novel!

Alice (Unverified), 04/06/10

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Wow! The Nanford- you have to see it with your own eyes to believe it. The place is outdated to say the least and needs a major refurb. The smell of cheap old air freshener rings around the place as soon as you step foot in there. I did not have breakfast there so can't comment on that who- would want breakfast? You would want to get out of there first thing in the morning. The room was outdated with old furniture, the shower looks very grimy, the look of the carpet would make you not want to take your shoes off, and the only good thing I can say is that the room was a decent size. The prices for this place are cheap- good if you want somewhere cheap and are not worried about what it looks like, but if you want somewhere decent look elsewhere as this is not the place. Would be worth paying a bit more for something better. Also the guy that showed us around had a very bad attitude, made us feel very unwelcome and rushed us as well so be warned. If you do stay there it will be a experience you will never forget.

Cant believe it (DI User), 19/05/10

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The Nanford is in a world of its own. Yes, it's quite a cheap place that'd make a student house look tidy and clean. Yes the mysterious fridge in our room and the lines of ant powder around the walls could have been a warning.

However, our double room had six beds in it, the slime in the shower was good to talk to in the morning, and the housemaid was very eager to remove our towels and replace them. One of our friends even woke up with a ladder against his open bedroom window, which was considerate. I bet many 5 star hotels don't have personal fire escapes for guests.

I even survived a "cooked" breakfast, probably best I saw the kitchen after eating, while trying to get my car out the carpark. It was like those sliding block games.

Stay there, it's an experience that probably won't be fatal.

Piku (Unverified), 01/10/09

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We stayed at Nanford Guesthouse for the weekend (Sat & Sun). It cost £20 each per night. Our room seem to be newly decorated with wood flooring, we also had a big breakfast with lots of choice. It's not a palace, but if you're on a budget it's ideal.

lynn (Unverified), 29/11/08

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We had booked for 2 nights but stayed 1. As we paid, the picture of Basil Fawlty should have been a warning. The office looked like a day centre for tramps, our room was smelly, the bath mat was dirty, the bed was broken and the back yard looked like Steptoe's yard. There where cats everywhere and boxes of rotten veg. Needless to say we didn't eat there. This was truly the worst place I have ever been.

37357 (Unverified), 30/09/08

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This place is fine. I really don't know what it is with people who pay for budget accommodation but expect 5 star standards. We had a very acceptable room, complete with mini-fridge, and OK, the shower did have just the one small spot of mould, but for £20 per person - which includes an excellent breakfast - I felt I could easily accept this. Room was clean and spacious, beds and bedding were clean, and lots of clean towels. Tea and coffee facilities provided. Come on people - get real.

peejay7cornwall (Unverified), 12/09/08

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we were there twice....what are you all complaining about ? comprehensive breakfast on large plate and we slept comfortably...it was...down to earth....all you have to do is sleep and then eat in the morning and then move on....no probs

indiana jones (Unverified), 31/08/08

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Missed opportunity. This place could really be something, but it is in dire need of a full refit. Does not look like it has been touched for at least 15 years, so charging 40+ notes a night is a bit of a bad joke really.

Nanford can be summed up in one word: grotty. By this I mean: filthy, hairy carpets, rotting window frames, window wouldn`t stay open, but with a view of a junkyard, it was probably just as well!

The bathroom was tiny, with crumbling plaster and sealant, a dirty shower base and weak dripping from the showerhead. Two tiny, previously-used pink bars of soap were all that was provided.

Full marks to the chambermaids - on settling in we were greeted by pubic hairs on the dirty bedspread. we were surrounded by peeling, aged wallpaper with mysterious stains and tears, stuck on bizarre, lumpy walls (added real `character` to the room, best not to ask I suppose!). No bedside lamp, just a chintzy ceiling lamp - that and most the other tatty furniture looked like something from a dead granny`s house clearance. Straggly cables hung down from the ceiling to the badly-tuned tv.

On the plus side, at least the sheets and towels were very clean, a breakfast was included , there was TV and tea and coffee stuff in the room and location is good: it was in easy walking distance of the centre. The owner seemed friendly enough. Clearly a mountaineer judging by the photos in the main house. Maybe this guest house stuff is just a stop gap between expeditions? Maybe he was recreating basic primitive living conditions found outdoors? Guess we`ll never know!

romko (Unverified), 14/08/08

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What a horrible place. I am actually writing this review as I sit guarding the door on top of the covers of a bed at Nanford. The fact that I can do this reveals what I consider to be the only good thing about this dump - free wireless internet.
We arrived here late at night with luggage in tow, tired and weary. We knocked on the slightly askew door and waited, it seemed that no one would come, but finally a ghost of a man in worn paint-smeared work clothes appeared from the gloomy interior. When told who we were he said we'd be in the building next door and mumbled something about a key. He disappeared for another prolonged amount of time and popped out the neighboring door. He then proceeded to lead us up a few flight of crooked, decaying stairs while the smell of mice and mildew built to a crescendo. He handed us the key to our room and we proceeded to try and unlock the door - for about ten minutes at which point he tried for 3 or so further mins. before going down the stairs to retrieve a screwdriver and a new handle. One room only stays closed when locked with a key the other may lock us out at any time.

The rooms are nothing more than cramped boxes full of jumbled up mis-matched furniture. The walls and ceilings are flimsy, chipped, warped, and water-stained. There are gaps around all of the baseboards and the wild-patterned wall paper is peeling or gone. The carpet pattern is scary enough, but this may be a clever ploy to distract you from the sheer filthiness of it. I guess they think it is just too hard to carry any hoovers up the stairs. I wear my socks in one of the rooms so I don't have to walk on that carpet. One of the en-suites is so small it is difficult to close the door when using the loo. One room has a refrigerator full of mold in it. The covers are all old and mismatched. The good thing is most of the beds are clean and all of the matresses are soft.

There are no bugs here apart from one extra large spider perched menacingly in the corner of the shower.

The breakfast is large and has a good variety of items, though the sausage smelled as strong as haggis and I couldn't bring myself to eat it. I, however didn't see where it was made and am now having second thoughts about eating it.

Due to the circumstances we have not been able to find anywhere else to stay in Oxford and will be here for three nights.

We have stayed in budget accommodations the whole time: 60 pounds a night for a nice 5 bed apartment in Edinburgh, 100 pounds a night for a lovely bed and breakfast in Inverness, and 300 pounds for a week in a quaint but cozy apartment in Bridge outside Canterbury. This place is costing 100 pounds a night for five.

Don't stay here if you can possibly avoid it.

A (Unverified), 11/07/08

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I used to travel in the jungle in Africa and soemtimes happend to sleep in very remoted and poor villages. The standard of the Nanford is quite similar, the differences is that African forests are much cleaner and do not smell as the Nanford does. One may say that it is fare for what you pay (20£ per night), but is not. For this price you expect basic basic accommodation, not dirty dirty accomodations.

However the owner was very nice. After I saw the room and realised that the linen were full of hairs and dirty I went down in the kitchen/reception/wardrobe and ask for clean sheets to make the bed my own. the old man told me "mmm I dont have clean sheets. the only sheets we have are on the beds".Ah1 good answer. I said "come on mister you are joking" So he quite apologise and gave me the keys of the suite and told me that was up to me to go there, for the same price. The suite was large with double fridge and 3 large beds full of hairs! bigger but as dirty as the other one. So I gave him back the keys and returned to my crappy room and slept with my clothes on and did not cathed fleas. But Towel were clean. I did not dare to have breakfast, but I saw that there was fresh melon and strawberries!

If you want to feele yourself Indiana Jhones is a good place. Otherwise I suggest a bench at the railwaystation.

Omar (Unverified), 15/05/08

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Ditto the above reviews. The building is delapidated, the rooms are dirty and some of the residents noisy. DO NOT under any circumstances stay here unless you have a desire to stay in low budget accommodation. I would compare it to a backpackers hostel in the Far East but at B&B prices.

SkyBlueBoy (Unverified), 25/11/07

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Words can't describe how awful the Nanford 'Guest House' turned out to be in reality. Judging only from the Nanford's own website, we expected basic accommodation, not anything luxurious - especially for £40 - but what we found in reality was nothing short of squalid.
The room was overstuffed with beds, the furniture was broken, the floor filthy, the shower held on the wall with a hair band - yes really.
We couldn't bring ourselves to stay the night, we even relinguished our £40 as the landlord/owner was unwilling to return it. It was worth £40 NOT to stay there. We ended up at a chain hotel on Oxford's business park which was just fine.
Not having visited Oxford before we didn't expect that a £40 room would be unacceptable - where we live you can find a decent, honest B&B accommodation for that money.
Never in our lives have we been faced with a place so grotesque, filthy and messy. I didn't even want to sit on the bed, never mind get in it. The view from the room was another shock, rubbish bins, cats, bikes, a noisy laundry room with several people coming and going with bed linen and a pile of various old sanitary ware.
The 'safe' parking was amongst this lot - a definite no-go for us. We couldn't risk our car or its contents in such a place.

disgruntled (Unverified), 19/11/07

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How can a place so awful be a part of such a beautiful city? As soon as we pulled up outside and looked at the dirty, holey curtains hanging like rags behind the stinking glass of the rotting windows we should have turned and run. But we were tired, time was getting on and everywhere else was fully booked, the 'Vacancies' sign in the window should have told us something. Anyway we chanced it! What a mistake! The room was tiny and stank, as did the rest of the building. It was a combination of cats, mould, rot, damp, the local petting farm and a pair of Zoo Keepers' wellies. The carpets were worn and dirty, the shower was mouldy, the toilet cistern was cracked and dirty, the paper was peeling off the ceiling, the furniture was old and brown and literally falling apart. We went out early and stayed out as late as we could manage. Next morning we were up and out, didn't have breakfast as we saw the state of the kitchen when we parked the car around the back in 'Steptoes' yard! Which was not only full of junk but also half the cat population of Oxford, who incidentally, made themselves very at home by laying all over my car. For those of you that can remember the TV show Rising Damp, imagine that only 100 times worse. The only thing missing was that jovial landlord Rigsby! I'd like to say "Nanford, rot in hell" but I think it already has! NEVER EVER AGAIN.

Itchy and Scratchy (Unverified), 08/10/07

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Hellish... Damp, filthy, dingy, run-down. Mouldy showers, leaking loos, rotten woodwork, peeling, filthy wallpaper, damp smell in corridors, filthy kettles, expired milk, painful beds, ancient feather pillows. Nails protruding through floors, exposed carpet gripper on stairs, broken sash windows would not stay open, and window glass broken. Room door would not lock. No bedside lights for reading.

Advertise veg / vegan, but even after specific request, breakfast just meant leaving all meat products off the plate, no extra effort made.

A few plus points are offroad parking, clean sheets (but full of holes) and the breakfast was surprisingly good (fresh strawberries, fruit, cereals, etc.) Cooked breakfast good but greasy. Convenient for centre and good eating on nearby Cowley Road (KasBar for great Morroccan/Spanish Tapas.

But Nanford, never, ever, again.

Nosmo King (Unverified), 05/09/07

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