Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2024

Ty Mawr

Ty Mawr

Brechfa, Carmarthenshire

A 17th-century country house on the edge of Brechfa Forest receives high praise for the warmth of the welcome, its ambience and top-notch, locally sourced food.

Viewfield House

Viewfield House

Isle Of Skye, Highland

With porte cochère, crenellated tower and fine Victorian interiors, this country house overlooking Loch Portree is redolent of the history of the Macdonald family, who have lived there for more than 200 years.

Langar Hall

Langar Hall

Langar, Nottinghamshire

Everything is peachy at this apricot-hued Georgian country house in the Vale of Belvoir, at the end of a long avenue of lime trees, transformed from a family home into a delightful, idiosyncratic and much-loved hotel.

Lastingham Grange

Lastingham Grange

Lastingham, Yorkshire

Old-fashioned and nurturing, the Wood family's hotel in flower-filled gardens on the edge of the moors inspires devotion among those who know it.

Mallory Court

Mallory Court

Leamington Spa, Warwickshire

A romantic Elizabethan-style Edwardian mansion, built for a Manchester cotton bleacher and set in landscaped gardens, is the epitome of a well-run country-house hotel.

The Priory

The Priory

Wareham, Dorset

There's certainly nothing monastic about this much-loved 'olde-world hotel with charm in abundance', in a 'wonderful building with a cleverly added glass dining room' looking out over gardens bordered by the River Frome.

The Old Rectory Hotel

The Old Rectory Hotel

Martinhoe, Devon

Guests are invited to join hosts Huw and Sam Rees-Prosser for aperitifs and canapés before an imaginative dinner of locally sourced produce at this former rectory in an isolated hamlet on the edge of Exmoor National Park, where bedrooms mix contemporary and period style, and have spring water on tap.

Enniscoe House

Enniscoe House

Ballina, Co. Mayo

Solitary Nephin, Ireland's highest stand-alone mountain, provides a dramatic backdrop to this classic, pink-washed Georgian country house in wooded grounds on Lough Conn.

Warwick Hall

Warwick Hall

Carlisle, Cumbria

Every bedrooms is special at this impressive red-sandstone mansion, home to a dog-friendly, country-house guesthouse on a wooded estate overlooking the River Eden, where at night in the elegant dining room, guests sit down to a home-cooked dinner of locally sourced produce.

Gidleigh Park

Gidleigh Park

Chagford, Devon

A single-track lane winds its way to this Tudor-style country house, in gardens and woodland on the banks of the Teign and the edge of Dartmoor National Park. It has panelled public rooms, open fires, beautiful bedrooms, Michelin-starred dining and a cosseting ambience.

Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2023

Special
offer

Middlethorpe Hall & Spa

Middlethorpe Hall & Spa

York, Yorkshire

'Autumn and Winter Break' Special Offer

Just over a mile from York, this imposing William and Mary country house in 20 acres of beautiful gardens and parkland offers 'first-class food and service'.

Ees Wyke Country House

Ees Wyke Country House

Ambleside, Cumbria

Spectacular views over Esthwaite Water, walks from the door and easy connections by ferry to explore the Lakes makes this 'a recharging of the batteries kind of place', reports a trusted reader. Other readers add that the friendly service and excellent food helps to make it 'one of the very best hotels'.

Hazel Bank

Hazel Bank

Keswick Rosthwaite, United Kingdom

Readers return time and again to Gary and Donna MacRae's small, adults-only country-house hotel in woodland gardens, with immaculate bedrooms, fell views, and outstanding nightly set-price dinner, preceded by aperitifs and canapés in the lounge.

Plumber Manor

Plumber Manor

Sturminster Newton, Dorset

For more than 50 years, the Prideaux-Brune family have welcomed guests to their ancestral Jacobean manor house in an English country garden with the Divelish stream skipping through.

Knockinaam Lodge

Knockinaam Lodge

Stranraer, Dumfries And Galloway

Where the road ends and the Irish Sea begins, this former Victorian hunting lodge with a private cove is secluded, unapologetically traditional and rich in comforts and good food.

Bodysgallen Hall and Spa

Bodysgallen Hall and Spa

Llandudno, Conwy

This Tudor Gothic-style Elizabethan mansion, extended over centuries, overlooks parkland with a rare 17th-century parterre, walled rose garden, cascade, lily pond and follies.

Cringletie House

Cringletie House

Peebles, Scottish Borders

It's worth the expense to stay and eat in this 'lovely and historic house with delightful staff', conclude readers. Relaxed and easygoing, the Victorian Scottish baronial hotel on a 28-acre estate has plenty of comfy seating around log fires in bar and lounges.

Currarevagh House

Currarevagh House

Oughterard, Co. Galway

A long, winding drive leads to Henry and Lucy Hodgson's country house on an estate on Lough Corrib, with its lakeside sauna, old-fashioned interiors, warm hospitality, and great home-cooked food.

The Old Rectory Hotel

The Old Rectory Hotel

Martinhoe, Devon

Guests are invited to join hosts Huw and Sam Rees-Prosser for aperitifs and canapés before an imaginative dinner of locally sourced produce at this former rectory in an isolated hamlet on the edge of Exmoor National Park, where bedrooms mix contemporary and period style, and have spring water on tap.

Farlam Hall

Farlam Hall

Brampton, Cumbria

Hrishikesh Desai's innovative, Michelin-starred cooking is just one of the attractions at this luxury country-house hotel in beautifully maintained gardens deep in the Cumbrian countryside.

Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2022

Kinloch House

Kinloch House

Blairgowrie, Perth And Kinross

From the oak-panelled hall and portrait gallery to the commodious bars and lounges, this Victorian country house abounds in solid traditional charms, with hunting, shooting and fishing on offer, and local and home-grown produce on the menu.

Tudor Farmhouse

Tudor Farmhouse

Clearwell, Gloucestershire

The rustic-chic bedrooms in farmhouse, cider house and barn at this rural Wye valley retreat in the Forest of Dean are all excellent, but the cooking is a still-greater attraction.

Summer Lodge

Summer Lodge

Evershot, Dorset

Country-house luxury abounds at this child-friendly, dog-friendly hotel, a Georgian mansion in ‘well-maintained gardens a huge joy to visit’.

Hotel Endsleigh

Hotel Endsleigh

Tavistock, Devon

Olga Polizzi's beautifully styled Georgian fishing lodge, built for the Duke of Bedford and scandalous Duchess Georgiana, stands in a picturesque designed landscape with the River Tamar running through.

Hambleton Hall

Hambleton Hall

Oakham, Rutland

The epitome of country-house luxury with gourmet dining, Tim and Stefa Hart's hotel stands on a peninsula, overlooking beautiful gardens and the shining expanse of Rutland Water.

Langar Hall

Langar Hall

Langar, Nottinghamshire

Everything is peachy at this apricot-hued Georgian country house in the Vale of Belvoir, at the end of a long avenue of lime trees, transformed from a family home into a delightful, idiosyncratic and much-loved hotel.

Pen-y-Dyffryn

Pen-y-Dyffryn

Oswestry, Shropshire

A walker's paradise on the Welsh border, the Hunter family's very dog-friendly hotel, in a Georgian former rectory with a 'beautiful garden and views', is much beloved by readers.

The Grasmere Hotel

The Grasmere Hotel

Grasmere, Cumbria

The River Rothay runs past the back garden of this small country-house hotel with attractive, individually styled bedrooms and good food.

Llangoed Hall

Llangoed Hall

Brecon, Powys

The former home of the late Sir Bernard Ashley and his wife, the designer Laura Ashley, dating from the 1600s and remodelled in Edwardian Lutenesque style, is replete with country-house comforts, and is home to Sir Bernard's significant art collection and to a fine-dining restaurant.

The Millstream

The Millstream

Chichester, West Sussex

In rose-filled gardens approached by a bridge across a stream, the Wild family's hotel, converted from three 17th-century cottages a stroll from its own quayside, has well-equipped, country-classic bedrooms, and both formal and informal dining in restaurant and brasserie.

Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2021

Kinloch House

Kinloch House

Blairgowrie, Perth And Kinross

From the oak-panelled hall and portrait gallery to the commodious bars and lounges, this Victorian country house abounds in solid traditional charms, with hunting, shooting and fishing on offer, and local and home-grown produce on the menu.

Headlam Hall

Headlam Hall

Darlington, Co. Durham

The real charm of this grand country house, with sweeping gardens, terraces, oak panelling and swish spa along with a convenient location in a hamlet a few miles from the A1 lies in its warm and informal atmosphere.

Gravetye Manor

Gravetye Manor

East Grinstead, West Sussex

Amid 1,000 acres of historically important gardens, pleasure grounds and woodland, this romantic Elizabethan manor house, built by an ironmaster for his bride, forms an impressive backdrop for Michelin-starred cuisine.

Corse Lawn House

Corse Lawn House

Corse Lawn, Gloucestershire

A beautifully proportioned Queen Anne-style mansion overlooking a duck pond, this much-loved traditional hotel has a new owner, but, after 48 years, Baba Hine remains, overseeing restaurant, bistro and well-equipped, spacious bedrooms.

Grove of Narberth

Grove of Narberth

Narberth, Pembrokeshire

Down a tree-lined drive, amid meadows and mature garden, this romantic and secluded Georgian country house has cosseting bedrooms with a modern touch, suites in cottage annexes, two with a glass-box lounge, and both a fine-dining restaurant and a brasserie.

Currarevagh House

Currarevagh House

Oughterard, Co. Galway

A long, winding drive leads to Henry and Lucy Hodgson's country house on an estate on Lough Corrib, with its lakeside sauna, old-fashioned interiors, warm hospitality, and great home-cooked food.

The Newt in Somerset

The Newt in Somerset

Castle Cary, Somerset

Koos Bekker and Karen Roos have brought to Somerset the vision behind their hotel on a Dutch Cape wine estate, creating an idyll around Palladian Hadspen manor house, with farm-to-fork dining, dreamy spa, unique rooms in converted outbuildings, beautiful gardens – and a Roman villa as well as two interactive museums.

The Torridon

The Torridon

Torridon, Highland

In a sublime setting on a wooded estate on Loch Torridon, this baronial-style hunting lodge appeals to sybarites and sporty types, with amazing views and luxurious bedrooms, tasting menus sourced from the kitchen garden and farm, and a brasserie.

Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2020

Hambleton Hall

Hambleton Hall

Oakham, Rutland

The epitome of country-house luxury with gourmet dining, Tim and Stefa Hart's hotel stands on a peninsula, overlooking beautiful gardens and the shining expanse of Rutland Water.

Lords of the Manor

Lords of the Manor

Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire

Guests to the manor born find a welcome escape from the Cotswolds' tourist honeypots at this historic country-house hotel, extended in the 1800s for the Witts family, rectors and later Lords of Upper Slaughter.

Hartwell House

Hartwell House

Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire

A grand country house with both Jacobean and Georgain sides, Hartwell gazes over an 18th-century landscape, with Ionic temple, obelisk, and a lake spanned by an arch from the old Kew Bridge.

The Priory

The Priory

Wareham, Dorset

There's certainly nothing monastic about this much-loved 'olde-world hotel with charm in abundance', in a 'wonderful building with a cleverly added glass dining room' looking out over gardens bordered by the River Frome.

Hotel Endsleigh

Hotel Endsleigh

Tavistock, Devon

Olga Polizzi's beautifully styled Georgian fishing lodge, built for the Duke of Bedford and scandalous Duchess Georgiana, stands in a picturesque designed landscape with the River Tamar running through.

Bodysgallen Hall and Spa

Bodysgallen Hall and Spa

Llandudno, Conwy

This Tudor Gothic-style Elizabethan mansion, extended over centuries, overlooks parkland with a rare 17th-century parterre, walled rose garden, cascade, lily pond and follies.

The Mustard Seed at Echo Lodge

The Mustard Seed at Echo Lodge

Ballingarry, Co. Limerick

Guests' happiness is paramount for host John Edward Joyce at his characterful, eclectically furnished country house with charming bedrooms and exquisite but unstuffy fine dining in the Mustard Seed restaurant.

Douneside House

Douneside House

Tarland, Aberdeenshire

Eligible military guests receive a discount at this Edwardian gem of a Scottish revival country house in beautifully maintained gardens, owned by a charitable trust and filled with family mementoes, where bedrooms blend classic and contemporary style and tasting menus feature produce from the walled kitchen garden.

Lime Wood

Lime Wood

Lyndhurst, Hampshire

A New Forest bolthole, this country-house hotel has an easy glamour, romantic and family-friendly rooms, heart-warming Italian food and top-notch spa.

Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2019

Askham Hall

Askham Hall

Penrith, Cumbria

With a Michelin-starred restaurant, Grade II listed garden, 17th-century pele tower and French drawing room, Askham Hall sounds as if it might be very formal; not a bit of it. 'The most homely stately hotel we have ever stayed in,' reports one reader.

Gravetye Manor

Gravetye Manor

East Grinstead, West Sussex

Amid 1,000 acres of historically important gardens, pleasure grounds and woodland, this romantic Elizabethan manor house, built by an ironmaster for his bride, forms an impressive backdrop for Michelin-starred cuisine.

Langar Hall

Langar Hall

Langar, Nottinghamshire

Everything is peachy at this apricot-hued Georgian country house in the Vale of Belvoir, at the end of a long avenue of lime trees, transformed from a family home into a delightful, idiosyncratic and much-loved hotel.

Brockencote Hall

Brockencote Hall

Chaddesley Corbett, Worcestershire

If you're looking for affordable luxury, this Victorian mansion in parkland, remodelled in the style of a French château, has spacious bedrooms, opulent suites, and a choice of small-plates dining or a tasting menu.

Llangoed Hall

Llangoed Hall

Brecon, Powys

The former home of the late Sir Bernard Ashley and his wife, the designer Laura Ashley, dating from the 1600s and remodelled in Edwardian Lutenesque style, is replete with country-house comforts, and is home to Sir Bernard's significant art collection and to a fine-dining restaurant.

Lympstone Manor

Lympstone Manor

Exmouth, Devon

Occupying a Georgian mansion overlooking the Exe estuary, Michelin-starred chef Michael Caines's hotel is a foodie destination with an ambience of soft-spoken luxury, suites with a balcony or a terrace with fire pit and marble soak tub, and shepherds' huts for nights of bucolic bliss.

The Hare and Hounds

The Hare and Hounds

Tetbury, Gloucestershire

Built by the founder of Westonbirt arboretum next door, this Victorian Renaissance-style Cotswold stone manor house is now a dog-friendly Fuller's hotel in its own lovely gardens and woodland. It exudes an easy charm, with a relaxing bar and drawing room, interesting bedroom choices and varied options in the restaurant.

Temple House

Temple House

Ballymote, Co. Sligo

A private drive loops through native woodland and pastures to this classical mansion overlooking a ruined Knights Templar castle and teeming fishing lake in W B Yeats country.

Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2018

Chewton Glen

Chewton Glen

New Milton, Hampshire

Following a stunning redesign, this family-friendly, luxury New Forest hotel and spa continues to set the standard for country-house comfort, romance, fun and superb food.

Gravetye Manor

Gravetye Manor

East Grinstead, West Sussex

Amid 1,000 acres of historically important gardens, pleasure grounds and woodland, this romantic Elizabethan manor house, built by an ironmaster for his bride, forms an impressive backdrop for Michelin-starred cuisine.

Gilpin Hotel and Lake House

Gilpin Hotel and Lake House

Windermere, Cumbria

Lakeland luxury at its finest comes courtesy of Gilpin, with its Michelin-starred dining, private hot tubs in the majority of its indulgent rooms and attentive staff. Its flagship rooms are extravagantly large glass-cube spa suites that extend over a pond and offer private garden, spa room and circular bath.

Lewtrenchard Manor

Lewtrenchard Manor

Okehampton, Devon

Reopened in July 2025 after a £3 million refurbishment for the Original Collection, this extraordinary Jacobean-style manor house in landscaped gardens, the work of an eccentric Victorian squire and parson, has country-house style bedrooms and fine-dining restaurant, dogs and children welcome.

Glenapp Castle

Glenapp Castle

Ballantrae, South Ayrshire

A tree-lined drive leads to this splendid Victorian Scottish baronial pile and luxury hotel in landscaped grounds, where guests have a choice of opulent suites, and can opt to dine from tasting menus in the dining room looking out to Ailsa Craig or on home-grown produce in a 19th-century glasshouse within the walled kitchen garden.

Grove of Narberth

Grove of Narberth

Narberth, Pembrokeshire

Down a tree-lined drive, amid meadows and mature garden, this romantic and secluded Georgian country house has cosseting bedrooms with a modern touch, suites in cottage annexes, two with a glass-box lounge, and both a fine-dining restaurant and a brasserie.

Farlam Hall

Farlam Hall

Brampton, Cumbria

Hrishikesh Desai's innovative, Michelin-starred cooking is just one of the attractions at this luxury country-house hotel in beautifully maintained gardens deep in the Cumbrian countryside.

Currarevagh House

Currarevagh House

Oughterard, Co. Galway

A long, winding drive leads to Henry and Lucy Hodgson's country house on an estate on Lough Corrib, with its lakeside sauna, old-fashioned interiors, warm hospitality, and great home-cooked food.

Longueville Manor

Longueville Manor

St Saviour, Jersey

In landscaped gardens with swimming pool, lake and specimen trees, this is a spoiling luxury hotel blending traditional and contemporary style. It serves inventive dishes, with good wines from its exceptional cellar.

Editor's Choice

Country House Hotels 2017

Gilpin Hotel and Lake House

Gilpin Hotel and Lake House

Windermere, Cumbria

Lakeland luxury at its finest comes courtesy of Gilpin, with its Michelin-starred dining, private hot tubs in the majority of its indulgent rooms and attentive staff. Its flagship rooms are extravagantly large glass-cube spa suites that extend over a pond and offer private garden, spa room and circular bath.

Hambleton Hall

Hambleton Hall

Oakham, Rutland

The epitome of country-house luxury with gourmet dining, Tim and Stefa Hart's hotel stands on a peninsula, overlooking beautiful gardens and the shining expanse of Rutland Water.

Lords of the Manor

Lords of the Manor

Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire

Guests to the manor born find a welcome escape from the Cotswolds' tourist honeypots at this historic country-house hotel, extended in the 1800s for the Witts family, rectors and later Lords of Upper Slaughter.

Askham Hall

Askham Hall

Penrith, Cumbria

With a Michelin-starred restaurant, Grade II listed garden, 17th-century pele tower and French drawing room, Askham Hall sounds as if it might be very formal; not a bit of it. 'The most homely stately hotel we have ever stayed in,' reports one reader.

Lewtrenchard Manor

Lewtrenchard Manor

Okehampton, Devon

Reopened in July 2025 after a £3 million refurbishment for the Original Collection, this extraordinary Jacobean-style manor house in landscaped gardens, the work of an eccentric Victorian squire and parson, has country-house style bedrooms and fine-dining restaurant, dogs and children welcome.

Lake Country House Hotel & Spa

Lake Country House Hotel & Spa

Llangammarch Wells, Powys

A Victorian mock-Tudor fishing lodge in wooded grounds on the River Irfon is today a spa hotel and foodie destination with a country-house ambience and views to the Cambrian mountains.

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.