Lime Wood

Designed for pure leisure and pleasure, this Georgian New Forest lodge is run as a glamorous yet relaxed country house hotel for today’s savvy guest. ‘It really does encapsulate laid-back luxury at its best,’ says a Guide insider. Neutral-tone rooms are ‘romantic, some tucked away up towers, with open fire and wood floor’. The simplest, under the eaves, have garden and forest views. There are two-storey suites, pavilions with a lounge and private terrace, and a cabin by the lake with outdoor bath. Public rooms are beautiful, but ‘none as enticing as the light-filled Courtyard bar, with glass-ceiling’, marble bar and leather chairs. Sunbathe on the herb-planted roof of the spa, order small plates from an all-day menu, or dine on modern Italian fare from Luke Holder and Angela Hartnett (maybe ‘particularly good truffle ravioli’, or crab risotto with orange and fennel). ‘Staff are so well trained that when 
a spider crawled on me in the restaurant, the waiter leant over and calmly palmed it, then stood and chatted to me with it in his hand.’ You can borrow boots to head into the forest, with trails from the door. (JK)