Hygge, the Scandinavian way of life that’s implicit of all things good, wholesome, life affirming, and, in cold dark months, cosy as well, is the latest Scandi phenomena to fascinate the wider world just in time for Christmas, and we know a hotel or two that epitomise all of those things. So here are ten of the Good Hotel Guide’s cosy hotels in the U.K and Ireland, or hotels for hygge!
Top cosy hotels in the UK
Little Barwick House - Midweek Sparkler Offer
Barwick
‘We could not have asked for better.’ ‘We have never been disappointed.’ ‘Our fourth visit. It seems to get better every time.’ There is a chorus of praise this year for Tim and Emma Ford’s restaurant-with-rooms, in a Georgian dower house down ‘a narrow road that could well have led to the Hobbits’ Shire’.
Lewtrenchard Manor - September Treat
Lewdown
Admirers of Sue and James Murray’s ‘characterful’, ‘beautiful old manor’ continue to sing its praises. ‘It is uniformly excellent, with high standards of hotel-keeping, comfort and service,’ says a guest this year.
From £155 per night
Montagu Arms - Autumn Gourmet Dining Break
Beaulieu
‘Pretty much perfect for country lovers’, this ‘very special’ hotel in the New Forest national park ‘charms’ with its ‘relaxed’ ambience and ‘excellent’ food.
Glenfinnan House Hotel - Three nights for Two Special Offer
Glenfinnan
There’s a touch of magic and romance on the ‘idyllic’ shores of Loch Shiel, where stands the MacFarlane family’s ‘lovely, traditional’ hotel.
From £140 per night
Bank House
King's Lynn
Glance up at the statue of Charles I as you pass through the wrought iron gateway to this popular Georgian town house hotel on the quayside.
From £85 per night
Llwyndu Farmhouse - Two Night Special Offer
Barmouth
At the end of a jiggledy single-track road up a steep hill, Paula and Peter Thompson’s ‘very family-friendly’, ‘super little hotel’ stands out for its simplicity and personable, folksy charm.
From £110 per night
Borrowdale Gates - New Year Lakeland Break
Grange-in-Borrowdale
In wooded grounds, Jo Bester’s Lakeland hotel near Derwentwater is liked for its ‘good position’, ‘helpful staff’ and ‘tasty food’.
The Old Railway Station
Petworth
Train buffs make tracks for this ‘quirky’ B&B, occupying a handsomely restored timber-built late Victorian station and four refurbished Pullman carriages on the disused railway line.
From £100 per night
The Star Inn
Harome
There’s a 'congenial’ ambience at this 14th-century inn on the edge of the North York Moors, the whole bolstered by intriguing modern meals and unabashedly rustic elements – stuffed birds, antlers, ‘a stag’s head of some size’.
From £150 per night
Losehill House
Hope
At the end of a leafy lane, this ‘beautiful’ hillside spa hotel has winning views across the Hope valley.