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.
2020 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Little Barwick House - 'Midweek Sparkler' Special Offer
Yeovil
Afternoon tea by the fire or in the beautiful garden are among the joys at this family-run Georgian country house. They call it a restaurant-with-rooms, and dinner is a feast, but it’s not the entire raison d’être. Stay, be spoilt, unwind.
Hartwell House - £94.50 Per Person Per Night Special Offer
Aylesbury
Once home to French royalty in exile, this National Trust-owned mansion brims with antiques, paintings, tapestries. Despite the grandeur, it’s unstuffy. Play croquet. Dress down for the café/bar, dress up for fine dining.
From £200 per night
Hambleton Hall - Autumn and Winter Breaks in Rutland
Oakham
The superlative staff, outstanding cuisine and sumptuously appointed bedrooms have won unstinting praise this year for the Harts’ former hunting lodge turned hotel. Beautifully landscaped gardens are bordered by shimmering Rutland Water.
The Priory - The Ultimate Winter Escape Special Offer
Wareham
Flower-filled gardens border the River Frome from this 16th-century former priory. You can take lunch alfresco, afternoon tea by the fire in a cosy lounge, dine very well in the Garden restaurant. Some bedrooms are in the Boathouse on the riverbank.
Bodysgallen Hall and Spa - 'The Great Half-Price Break' Special Offer
Llandudno
Coats of arms adorn this 17th century mansion in magnificently restored gardens and parkland, run as a hotel and spa by the National Trust, with views of Snowdonia. Tea in a panelled lounge, fine dining and an aura of professionalism are hallmarks.
Lords of the Manor - Winter Stay and Dine Special Offer
Upper Slaughter
In a gentle Cotswold landscape, this cherished 17th-century manor house and former rectory is furnished with antiques, the walls hung with portraits of past rectors. You can take tea by the fire or in lovely gardens, dine formally or informally.
The Mustard Seed at Echo Lodge
Ballingarry
Flower-filled public rooms, elegant dining and the welcoming host win praise for this hotel, a fine 19th-century parochial house and former nunnery, in terraced gardens. Traditionally styled bedrooms have truly charming individual touches.
Hotel Endsleigh
Tavistock
A very special place, Olga Polizzi’s ducal fishing lodge stands in an Arcadian landscape with the Tamar running through. The relaxed chic style mixes contemporary touches with period furnishings, in perfect harmony with the historic building.
Lime Wood
Lyndhurst
Starry and glamorous yet relaxed, this rebuilt and extended Georgian lodge offers all you could look for in a country house hotel and spa. A perfect blend of traditional hospitality and 21st-century luxury, in a bucolic New Forest setting.
Douneside House
Tarland
The Edwardian interiors of this Scots Revival former holiday home of the MacRobert family have been lovingly preserved in a recent makeover. Furnished with antiques, it stands in beautifully landscaped gardens. At dinner Scottish ingredients shine.
2019 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Judges - Autumn and Winter Special Offer from £125 B&B
Yarm
Tried and trusted, this Victorian mansion is filled with antiques, books, oil paintings. Clubby armchairs are drawn up to roaring fires. From complimentary sherry and a teddy bear, to the turn-down service and morning cup of tea, here is pure, old- fashioned comfort.
Askham Hall - Midweek Special Offer
Penrith
The Lowther family’s Grade I listed ancestral home has a relaxed, house-party feel, with historic and personal touches – old photographs, a priest hole, perhaps a four-poster or antique bath, topiary garden and free-ranging livestock. Great food and wine, too.
Gravetye Manor
East Grinstead
A romantic Elizabethan manor house in well-tended gardens, Michelin-starred cooking in a dramatic glass-walled new dining room, log fires in comfy lounges, and every imaginable comfort combine at this perennial Guide favourite.
Temple House
Ballymote
Guests gather for drinks by a log fire before sitting down together to dine, house-party style, at this classic Georgian mansion in parkland overlooking medieval castle ruins. Antiques, hunting prints, a stag’s head and fossil collection make for interesting browsing.
Langar Hall
Langar
One of the Guide’s most characterful hotels, this apricot-washed Georgian mansion might be a private house, with its many idiosyncratic charms. Antique clocks tick. Walls are hung with artworks. Pretty, old- fashioned, individually styled bedrooms overlook magical grounds.
The Hare and Hounds
Tetbury
Wooded grounds surround this Victorian Cotswold stone house, built by the founder of neighbouring Westonbirt Arboretum. Interiors are stylish, but log fires, tweedy armchairs and a library of curios lend a private-house feel. Well-mannered hounds are welcome.
Brockencote Hall
Chaddesley Corbett
Guests drive through woodland to discover this château-style Victorian mansion with a romantic lake, fountain and ancient dovecote. Afternoon tea can be taken by the fire in a panelled library hung with oil paintings. Elegant bedrooms are supplied with all comforts.
Llangoed Hall
Brecon
The late Sir Bernard Ashley’s art collection still adorns this Jacobean mansion remodelled by Clough Williams Ellis. An Edwardian house-party atmosphere prevails, with fresh flowers, new-laid eggs from happy hens,
Ballathie House
Stanley
Country sports are a big attraction at this turreted Victorian country house and estate on the River Tay. Anglers are in their element. Deer roam the grounds. It is family run, filled with antiques, a pleasing mix of grandeur and comfort.
Lympstone Manor
Exmouth
Celebrity chef Michael Caines’s perfectionism is everywhere apparent in this beautifully restored Georgian mansion on the Exe estuary. From watercolours and water colours (an estuary-inspired palette) to Michelin-starred cooking, everything is tiptop.
2018 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Lewtrenchard Manor - Winter Warmer Special Offer
Okehampton
A ‘wonderful hotel’ with that ‘special feel’ of family ownership, Sue and James Murray’s manor house delights with its ‘history, beauty and style’.
Chewton Glen - 3 Nights for the Price of 2 Special Offer
New Milton
‘My four-year-old loves Chewton as much as I do, it’s always a struggle to leave.’ ‘We stayed to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary, and it exceeded expectations.’
The Grove - Three for Two Special Offer
Narberth
In a grove, indeed, surrounded by flower gardens, kitchen garden and meadows, with views to the Preseli hills, Neil and Zoë Kedward’s hotel is ‘a real haven’.
Gravetye Manor
East Grinstead
‘Whenever a special date crops up, we make a beeline for Gravetye and have never been disappointed.’
Currarevagh House
Oughterard
Opened as a sporting lodge by owner Henry Hodgson’s great grandfather in 1890, this Victorian country house is surely Ireland’s longest-standing hotel under family ownership.
Gilpin Hotel and Lake House
Windermere
‘Nothing compares’ with the Cunliffes’ ‘really special’ country house hotel and its glamorous satellite, Lake House, with spa, half a mile away.
Glenapp Castle
Ballantrae
Beyond ‘splendid wrought iron gates’, a ‘beautifully wooded half-mile drive’ leads to Paul and Poppy Szkiler’s towered and turreted Victorian pile, with a fountain ‘dominating the forecourt’.
Longueville Manor
St Saviour
Behind a 16th-century stone facade festooned with wisteria in springtime, this manor house hotel (Relais & Châteaux) in its own wooded valley abounds in modern five-star comfort.
Hilton Park
Clones
Reached by a mile-long drive, Fred and Joanna Madden’s grand Italianate country house stands in ‘an estate of great beauty’, with working farm, golf, lakes for fishing and wild swimming.
Farlam Hall
Brampton
‘You know what to expect and are never disappointed,’ writes a trusted reader after a return visit to this creeper-clad, late Georgian country house hotel (Relais & Châteaux), three miles south of Hadrian’s Wall.
2017 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Hambleton Hall - Autumn and Winter Breaks in Rutland
Oakham
‘I find it difficult to make any original comments,’ writes a Guide regular after this year’s visit to Tim and Stefa Hart’s much-loved hotel (Relais & Châteaux) with celebrated grounds reaching down to Rutland Water. ‘All the superlatives have been used by other guests.’
Lewtrenchard Manor - Winter Warmer Special Offer
Okehampton
A ‘wonderful hotel’ with that ‘special feel’ of family ownership, Sue and James Murray’s manor house delights with its ‘history, beauty and style’.
Lords of the Manor - Winter Stay and Dine Special Offer
Upper Slaughter
A golden stone Carolean manor house-turned-rectory in an ‘idyllic setting’ is run as a ‘welcoming, comfortable and relaxing’ hotel, under highly experienced manager Dorian Charlton.
Judges - Autumn and Winter Special Offer from £125 B&B
Yarm
‘Everything about Judges smacked of class and excellence.’ Readers this year loved this smart hotel on the edge of the North Yorkshire moors.
Askham Hall - Midweek Special Offer
Penrith
‘The warm welcome, beautiful setting and delicious food’ are ‘truly exceptional’ at Charles Lowther’s battlemented ancestral pile.
The Lake
Llangammarch Wells
‘In a beautiful setting’ in wooded grounds, with trout lake and the River Irfon running through it, Jean-Pierre Mifsud’s hotel is especially praised for its ‘location, ambience and welcoming staff’.
Marlfield House
Gorey
Approached through 40 acres of manicured grounds embracing woodland, lake and lawns, the Bowe family’s ‘ambitious, guest-centred hotel’ occupies an ‘imposing Regency house with sympathetic modern addition’.
Gilpin Hotel and Lake House
Windermere
‘Nothing compares’ with the Cunliffes’ ‘really special’ country house hotel and its glamorous satellite, Lake House, with spa, half a mile away.
Hilton Park
Clones
Reached by a mile-long drive, Fred and Joanna Madden’s grand Italianate country house stands in ‘an estate of great beauty’, with working farm, golf, lakes for fishing and wild swimming.
Ardanaiseig
KILCHRENAN
Ardanaiseig closed as a hotel at the end of November 2017. It will be relaunched in 2018 a venue catering for groups, weddings, and corporate functions.
2016 Editor's Choice Country House Hotels
Editor’s Choice Country House Hotels
Rothay Manor - 20% Discount Special Offer
Ambleside
The flower-bedecked balconies at this manor house hotel offer spectacular views to Wansfell Pike. Dating from 1823, it stands in wooded grounds on the edge of Ambleside.
Chewton Glen - 3 Nights for the Price of 2 Special Offer
New Milton
‘My four-year-old loves Chewton as much as I do, it’s always a struggle to leave.’ ‘We stayed to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary, and it exceeded expectations.’
Gravetye Manor
East Grinstead
‘Whenever a special date crops up, we make a beeline for Gravetye and have never been disappointed.’
Glenapp Castle
Ballantrae
Beyond ‘splendid wrought iron gates’, a ‘beautifully wooded half-mile drive’ leads to Paul and Poppy Szkiler’s towered and turreted Victorian pile, with a fountain ‘dominating the forecourt’.
Lime Wood
Lyndhurst
At the end of a long drive past rustic cabins, a helipad and a forest-fringed meadow, this 21st-century rebuild of a Georgian lodge is a ‘highly professional, near faultless’ modern country house hotel.
Related Pages
Best country house hotels in Cotswolds- Best country house hotels in Cumbria
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- Best country house hotels in Dorset
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- Best country house hotels in Ireland
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