Log fires, character defined over the centuries, warm and friendly service and excellent food, country house hotels have a particular charm all of their own. Expect homemade, food, local produce, antiques and four poster beds, not to mention some of the most glorious country views around. Here is our Editor’s Choice for the best country house hotels.
2018 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Gravetye Manor - Classic British Escape
East Grinstead
‘Every comfort is anticipated’ at this ‘classy, tasteful’ Elizabethan manor house, from the garden flowers in the public rooms to ‘the most extensive cheese trolley we’d ever seen’.
Lewtrenchard Manor
Lewdown
‘It’s up there with the top hotels we’ve stayed at,’ writes a reader this year of Sue and James Murray’s romantic rebuild of a Jacobean manor house, surrounded by parkland.
Chewton Glen - 4 Nights for 3
New Milton
‘Superb’, ‘excellent’, ‘impressive’, ‘delightful’ – on the edge of the New Forest, this model of a country house hotel and spa is on top form, having celebrated its golden anniversary.
Gilpin Hotel and Lake House - Indulgence Afternoon Offer
Windermere
‘Nothing compares to this special place,’ says a Guide reader in 2017 after a return visit to the Cunliffe family’s glamorous country house hotel.
Farlam Hall
Brampton
‘A quintessential country house hotel.’ The Quinion family’s creeper-covered manor house in mature grounds ‘combines the familiar features and decor of an earlier age with exceptional service’, writes a Guide reader, a frequent guest, in 2017.
Longueville Manor
St Saviour
There are ‘plenty of smiles’ at the Lewis family’s centuries-old manor house standing in extensive grounds – and not just from the ‘professional, attentive’ staff.
Currarevagh House
Oughterard
‘The wonderful views of Lough Corrib, combined with warm, easy-going hospitality, make this a place in which we could stay for ages.’
Hilton Park
Clones
At the end of a mile-long drive through ‘an estate of great tranquillity and beauty’ stands Fred and Joanna Madden’s Italianate mansion.
Glenapp Castle
Ballantrae
Drive through the ‘splendid’ wrought iron gates and up a ‘beautifully wooded’ path: in ‘meticulously tended’ grounds stands this ‘impressive’ 19th-century Scottish baronial castle.
The Grove
Narberth
In ‘flourishing gardens’ near the coast, Neil and Zoë Kedward’s ‘beautifully quiet’ hotel is ‘a real haven – particularly when you arrive in the dark after a long drive’.
2017 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Hambleton Hall - Summer Breaks in Rutland
Hambleton
‘Tim and Stefa Hart’s country house hotel is consistently outstanding, with service I have yet to see bettered: courteous, attentive, unintrusive. And Aaron Patterson’s Michelin-starred cooking never fails.’
Lewtrenchard Manor
Lewdown
‘It’s up there with the top hotels we’ve stayed at,’ writes a reader this year of Sue and James Murray’s romantic rebuild of a Jacobean manor house, surrounded by parkland.
The Lake - Champagne escape offer
Llangammarch Wells
Approached via quiet lanes bordered by hedgerows and dark-limbed trees, Jean-Pierre Mifsud’s Victorian hunting lodge-turned-country house hotel stands in extensive grounds stretching to a lake on the River Irfon.
Marlfield House - Two Night Break Special Offer
Gorey
In woodland and extensive formal gardens, the Bowe family’s ‘beautiful’ Regency-style mansion has been providing ‘prompt and attentive service’ for more than 35 years.
Gilpin Hotel and Lake House - Indulgence Afternoon Offer
Windermere
‘Nothing compares to this special place,’ says a Guide reader in 2017 after a return visit to the Cunliffe family’s glamorous country house hotel.
Judges - Bubbly Spring and Summer Rates: £125
Yarm
‘It’s the little touches’ that make the Downs family’s Victorian country house a ‘lovely, charming place’, confirm Guide readers in 2017.
Askham Hall - Midweek Special Offer
Penrith
‘We felt we were staying at a grand house rather than a hotel,’ say regular Guide correspondents this year of Charles Lowther and his family'’s Grade I listed ancestral home, built around a medieval pele tower and brimming with the owners’ personality.
Ardanaiseig
Kilchrenan
Swing round a winding, single-track road to this turreted, Jacobean-style baronial mansion ‘beautifully situated’ on the shores of Loch Awe.
Hilton Park
Clones
At the end of a mile-long drive through ‘an estate of great tranquillity and beauty’ stands Fred and Joanna Madden’s Italianate mansion.
Lords of the Manor
Upper Slaughter
‘Croquet on the lawn is a must’ at this honey-stone former rectory surrounded by ‘beautiful, magical’ gardens – but that’s not all of it.
2016 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Gravetye Manor - Classic British Escape
East Grinstead
‘Every comfort is anticipated’ at this ‘classy, tasteful’ Elizabethan manor house, from the garden flowers in the public rooms to ‘the most extensive cheese trolley we’d ever seen’.
Rothay Manor
Ambleside
New brooms Jamie and Jenna Shail have refreshed this Georgian manor house since taking over in 2016, but traditional values have not been swept away.
Chewton Glen - 4 Nights for 3
New Milton
‘Superb’, ‘excellent’, ‘impressive’, ‘delightful’ – on the edge of the New Forest, this model of a country house hotel and spa is on top form, having celebrated its golden anniversary.
Glenapp Castle
Ballantrae
Drive through the ‘splendid’ wrought iron gates and up a ‘beautifully wooded’ path: in ‘meticulously tended’ grounds stands this ‘impressive’ 19th-century Scottish baronial castle.
Lime Wood
Lyndhurst
Think of anything you might want from a luxury hotel – ‘friendly, professional staff’, ‘well-appointed bedrooms’, ‘delightful’ public spaces, a ‘memorable’ breakfast with peerless granola.