Summer Lodge

In an attractive Dorset village, this luxury country house hotel (Relais & Châteaux) is owned by the Red Carnation group; Charles Lötter is the hands-on manager. 'The rooms are immaculate, almost extravagantly posh, and the food is of a high standard as it should be at these prices,' is a comment this year. In extensive grounds, the house was built as a country retreat for the Earl of Ilchester (it was enlarged by Thomas Hardy). The public rooms and bedrooms are furnished with rich fabrics, antiques, patterns and heavy drapes. In the dining room, the chef, Steven Titman, serves a seasonal menu of modern dishes with French influence (eg, gateau of Portland crab and lobster; roast loin of lamb and braised shoulder shepherd's pie). In warm weather, meals can be taken on a terrace. One of Hardy's original rooms is now a suite with an open fireplace. A visitor this year 'greatly enjoyed' borrowing a bike to explore the local countryside. The Acorn Inn in the village is also owned by Red Carnation, as is The Montague on the Gardens, London (see entry). (Richard and Sheila Owen, and others)

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Boomers offer

Guests of 60 and over can enjoy 25% off our Best Available Rate.  This applies to Room and Breakfast rates, and to all rooms in which the occupants are eligible. And for all ages. Three nights for the price of two.  Full English breakfast daily and complimentary use of the Spa and Health Club.

 

To benefit from this offer, please mention The Good Hotel Guide.

  • Trying to be grand. Staff friendly, but lack of English-speaking staff. Food fussy.

    Julia de Waal, 04/09/2011

Have you been there? Send us your review of this hotel.

Boomers offer

Guests of 60 and over can enjoy 25% off our Best Available Rate.  This applies to Room and Breakfast rates, and to all rooms in which the occupants are eligible. And for all ages. Three nights for the price of two.  Full English breakfast daily and complimentary use of the Spa and Health Club.

 

To benefit from this offer, please mention The Good Hotel Guide.

Local attractions

Abbotsbury Swannery
This is the only place in the world where you can walk through the heart of a colony of nesting mute swans.
Stonehenge
A prehistoric monument at the centre of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including several hundred burial mounds.
Hardy's Cottage
Thomas Hardy was born in this small cob and thatch cottage.
The Acorn Inn
A 16th-century coaching inn that Thomas Hardy called 'The Sow & Acorn' in 'Tess of the d'Urbervilles'.

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Discount Vouchers

This hotel accepts the following discount vouchers:

  • Online vouchers

    These entitle readers to a 10% discount off their normal B&B rate for a single night's stay

    Print voucher

Boomers offer

Guests of 60 and over can enjoy 25% off our Best Available Rate.  This applies to Room and Breakfast rates, and to all rooms in which the occupants are eligible. And for all ages. Three nights for the price of two.  Full English breakfast daily and complimentary use of the Spa and Health Club.

 

To benefit from this offer, please mention The Good Hotel Guide.

Contact Details

Summer Lodge

9 Fore Street EVERSHOT Dorset England DT2 0JR

Telephone

01935 482000

Website

www.summerlodgehotel.com

Discount Vouchers

This hotel accepts discount vouchers which entitle readers to a 10% discount off their normal B&B rate for a single night's stay

Further Information

Bedrooms

24, 9 in coach house and courtyard house, 4 in lane, 1 on ground floor suitable for disabled.

Open

all year.

Facilities

ramps, drawing room, lounge/bar, restaurant, indoor swimming pool (11 by 6 metres), civil wedding licence, 4-acre grounds (garden, croquet, tennis).

Background music

'contemporary' in lounge/bar.

Children

all ages welcomed.

Dogs

allowed in some bedrooms, some public rooms.

Credit cards

all major cards.

Prices

[2011] B&B £140-£280 per person, D,B&B £180-£320, full alc £75, website offers, Christmas/New Year packages, 1-night bookings refused some weekends July-Oct, some bank holidays.