AN INSPECTOR CALLS

He pays his way... and tells it like it is

ADMITTEDLY, the sun is shining. Spring lambs are scampering about and we’re aware that others have loved Callow Hall. But a gilded reputation does not always help. Heightened expectations can be dangerous. But not here.

Callow Hall, on the edge of the Peak District in Derbyshire, is a stylish but not stylised hotel where everyone can feel welcome. All-inclusive in the strict sense; bang on trend from an interiors perspective (Penny Morrison fabrics, Robert Kime wallpaper, Fermoie lampshades) and firing on all its new (it opened last year) cylinders.

The house dates back to the 1850s (and the cedar tree near the front door is 800 years old). It’s now the first project of a company called Wildhive, run by a couple of public schoolboys who managed to raise some £7million to transform not only the Grade II-listed house but also the surrounding woodland, where you can stay in treehouses and ‘hives’ built on stilts. Halfway down the drive is the Coach House, which is now the spa.

There’s yoga, a gym, map room and you can hire bikes (some electric) to explore the Peak District National park.

The 15 rooms come in three categories: Fabulous, lovely and cosy. I can’t speak for ‘fabulous’ or ‘lovely’, but our cosy is both fabulous and lovely in its teenyweeny way. It has red ticking wallpaper, Chelsea textiles bedside tables, supremely comfortable duvet and pillows, natty little shower room and a view of the cedar tree.

To wander around the ground floor before dinner, accompanied by a large Negroni, is a joy. One room, set up for private dining, features a mural of the countryside depicted in 18th century style; another serves as the library, where a family has gathered for drinks.

‘Everyone behaving themselves?’ I ask in a sergeant-major sort of way.

‘Yes, and that’s the problem,’ barks back the oldest member of the group, well into his 70s.

The big reveal is the glass box housing the restaurant and bar.

It’s a fabulous space broken up by four huge olive trees. They’re fake, but you would never know.

We flit between the Best of April and a la carte menu. Everything is delicious and we like how some Greek and Portuguese wines are sold by the glass. Callow Hall has had rave reviews. They are justified on all fronts.

Callow Hall Ashbourne Derbyshire DE6 2AA 01335 300900, wildhive.uk Doubles from £159, room only

★★★★★