Hotel chains can do a lot more than providing you with a comfy bed and functioning bathroom. Just because they run loads of hotels across the country, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t hold them to a high standard. And the chain that has just been named the best in Britain proves it.
Consumer choice group Which? has released it’s annual ranking of all of the UK’s large hotel chains. It asked more than 4,600 customer reviewers to rate each company on eight different criteria, including cleanliness, breakfast, bed comfort and how well the description of its hotels matches reality. Then it factored in how likely people were to recommend the chain to give each an overall score out of 100.
And with that, the best large hotel chain in Britain for 2025, according to Which? is The Coaching Inn Group (CIG). If you’re not familiar with CIG, it might be because it doesn’t plaster its logo all over its hotels like other chains. It’s branches tend to be in historical building in market towns or villages, like the Manor House in Blakeney, a 17th-century manor house and the Castle of Brecon in Wales, which was once a Norman fortress.
Which? gave CIG an overall customer score of 81 percent and five stars for customer service and description matching reality. It got a solid four stars in every other category. At an average of £128, we think that’s a pretty good deal.
Adam Charity, Chief Operating Officer at The Coaching Inn Group, said in response to the recognition: ‘We’re incredibly proud to be named Hotel Chain of the Year by Which?. Our ethos has always been to unlock the potential of locations, blending heritage and charm with modern luxury to create unique and memorable stays. Our inns are rooted in local communities and designed to offer hospitality from the heart, and it’s fantastic to see that recognised by guests themselves.’
Intercontinental was the second best hotel chain for 2025 with a customer score of 80 percent, though its price point is more than double that of CIG – an average night in one of its rooms costs £326. It was followed by previous winner Hotel Indigo, which earned a customer score of 79 percent.
At the other end of the spectrum, the ‘completely horrendous’ Britannia Hotels was named Britain’s worst hotel chain for an impressive 12th year in a row. You can find Which?’s study in full here.
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