The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
Hotel Endsleigh Not as dull as I thought…
Returning for the first time in nearly 20 years, Mark C O’Flaherty now declares this ‘one of the best hotels in Europe’
I don’t recall the year I last went to Hotel Endsleigh, but it was a husband ago and I didn’t love it. My then companion definitely shaped that impression, and a rough calculation suggests it must have been not too long after it first opened, in 2005. A lifetime ago. I am not the same person now but I feel like it has been waiting for me.
I remember how much attention interior designer-turned-hotelier Olga Polizzi had received, transforming an early 19th-century cottage orné in Devon into a low-key fabulous retreat with views across the River Tamar to Cornwall. On that first visit, however, I thought it a bit dull. Staying there this year, with very much the right person, I understood the nuance.
The place was originally conceived as a modest getaway for the Duke and Duchess of Bedford, who lived most of the time in giddy opulence with their 13 children at Woburn Abbey. Olga and her daughter Alex rolled the dice on what could have been a money pit on a whim, tackling the refurb of the Grade I-listed building and turning it into what I now realise is one of the best hotels in Europe.
There is no buzzy bar scene here, and to pull out a laptop anywhere would feel ridiculous (the Wi-Fi is patchy anyway, and there is no phone signal). At Endsleigh there is an easy silence, interrupted only by the crackle of burning logs in a variety of fireplaces, or the tap, tap, tap of a large hound’s manicured claws as it walks across a wooden floor. Every chair is comfortable, every wood-panelled room a beauty. When someone brings you a martini, as you read one of the PG Wodehouse novels from various shelves, it is easy to imagine that this is the life for you. Leave the city and buy a cottage immediately, you think.
When I went for a walk after a breakfast of boiled eggs with soldiers, I headed through the gardens, into the forest, along the river and up to the waterfall and had that very thought. And I am a devout town mouse. I hate the countryside. But the chimera of a beautiful day at Endsleigh, with those amazing grounds, gorgeous interiors and lovely staff replenishing your glass, is irresistible.
Every ornate leaded window panel, every architectural folly and grotto outside, every antique map hanging in the hallway and every framed botanical artwork behind a velvet sofa… all contribute to something as pleasurable as a first cold sip of really good champagne.
I was staying in the new Lady Olga Suite, in what was originally the stable block. I didn’t realise, when we first arrived, that the whole space was ours. It felt like the stairs would lead to several suites – but the bedroom, kitchen, lounge and bathroom with giant slipper tub and upholstered furniture (a true sign of luxury) were all Lady Olga.
This is the house you dream of for that life in the country, with green paint and leaf-print wallpapers, and a bed with a cushioned end covered in a yellow peony-print fabric housing a hidden television. Every detail of the interior is a joy, from the colourful mugs by the coffee maker to the antique garden statues and busts that now live inside. The gardener puts wildflowers into vases around the rooms daily and the whole place smells gorgeous, like the most potent but moreish country manor-scented candle.
When I was staying, I posted some images on social media of early 19th-century hand-blocked wallpaper with birds and branches, as well as shots of a 1970s-style fabric that had been hung to stop draughts at the front door (a textile that Olga apparently found as a remnant in London). I received a flurry of direct messages, each saying the same thing: “You are at my favourite hotel in the country!”
Having had so many disappointing and largely pretentious meals in otherwise fine country hotels in England, I was amazed at how good everything was that came from the kitchen at Endsleigh (apart from a coffee and a so-so croissant): pork belly for lunch, with super crunchy elements that played against the fat (and a dreamy pinot noir); and the vast but artfully arranged plate of Creedy Carver chicken for dinner, with glazed Jerusalem artichokes (and several glasses of buttery chardonnay).
Every few seconds, I found something surprising to enjoy – including the silver teapots with spouts that look like dinosaur necks. Nothing here is too pristine, either. The patina is on purpose. The choice of every object at the house – its colour, texture and provenance – has been laboured over. I am disappointed in myself that I didn’t understand all this before. This is what truly great interior design and service is about – and what a grown-up luxury hotel should aspire to be.
Doubles from £270 per night, B&B. There is one fully accessible suite. Mark C O’Flaherty travelled as a guest of GWR (gwr.com), which runs regular services from London Paddington to Exeter St Davids from £29 each way, with the fastest service taking two hours.
The hotel gardener puts fresh wildflowers into vases daily and the whole place smells like a potent but moreish scented candle