COUNTRY COOL
CHEWTON GLEN, New Forest
Timeless Chewton Glen is one of the best country-house hotels in Britain. The grounds are a delight, with an outdoor pool and poolside bar, tennis courts and croquet lawn, walled gardens and woodlands. Stroll through them and you’ll find yourself at the beach (and the hotel can arrange sailing). The spa is superlative. Rooms are scattered throughout the estate, from the elegant 18th-century manor house to the knock-out, architecturally designed treehouses.
Doubles from £730; chewtonglen.com
LINTHWAITE HOUSE, Lake District
L’Enclume may be booked up for months, but you can still taste the essence of Simon Rogan’s superb cooking, and the ingredients from his Cartmel farm, in his restaurant at Linthwaite House. The Edwardian mock-Tudor house is on a hilltop with fabulous view of Windermere from the vast terrace and gardens, within which is a croquet lawn, boules pitch and the hotel’s own private tarn, where guests can fish or take out rowing boats. Rooms are pale and modern; the most peaceful and private are six standalone chalet-type suites in the grounds.
Doubles from £360 B&B; linthwaitehouse.com
THE CROWN, AMERSHAM, Buckinghamshire
Within easy reach of London (about 45 minutes by car, tube or train) is the Crown, an Elizabethan coaching inn, with a stylish look and unexpected restaurant. There’s a sense of its Tudor roots in the low-beamed ceilings, casement windows and cobbled courtyard, though the Ilse Crawford-designed rooms (whose previous projects include Soho House New York) are thoroughly up to date, all grey tones and clean lines. Hawkyn’s restaurant is at the heart of the hotel and has a pubby feel, which makes its interesting Indian fusion dishes (think beef short ribs with kale aloo) a surprise.
Doubles from £120; thecrownamersham. com
THE ANGEL & BLUE PIG, Lymington, New Forest
The excellent Angel & Blue Pig inn, on the high street of this market town, makes a great base ’twixt forest and coast. Sibling to the Huntsman of Brockenhurst, the 13th-century pub has had a tasteful 21st-century makeover in similarly modern tones; and here again the highlight of the kitchen is the Josper-grilled steaks.
Doubles from £80 B&B; angel-lymington.com
STORRS HALL, Lake District
This Georgian mansion-house hotel is set in 17 acres of verdant gardens in the quintessential heart of the Lake District: on a shore of Windermere itself. Both William Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter came here on social occasions, and the sense of occasion continues today, in the formal dining room and at afternoon tea, accompanied by the tinkling of the baby grand.
The 30 bedrooms in the main house are classic in style, while six new contemporary Lakeside Suites, dotted around woodland beside the water, allow for a more spatially distanced escape.
Doubles from £410 B&B; storrshall.com
CAREYS MANOR HOTEL, Brockenhurst, New Forest
This 18th-century redbrick manor house, not far from Brockenhurst, is all about wellness.
The extensive SenSpa has a hydrotherapy pool, various thermal rooms, a Rhassoul steam chamber, and an Alphasphere (google it) along with 18 treatment rooms and a focus on Thailand, from massage to food.
Doubles from £200; careysmanor.com
Laura Fowler and Emma Beaumont