Traditional Classics:5 English Country House Hotels

“Brandies in the drawing room and walks in the grounds your cup of tea? Try a stay in an English country house hotel. Around the English countryside are some exceptionally elegant and luxurious historic houses that have been welcoming guests from notorious aristocrats to rock royalty for years. If you want to relax with country pursuits in rural locations, these are the hotels for you. Here are five stately hotels that give you the quintessential English country house experience.

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Cliveden House, Berkshire
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A scandalous past surrounds this five-star, Grade I-listed stately home near Maidenhead. Cliveden House makes no secret of having been the place where the Profumo affair began, and has a long history in power, politics and debauchery. Today it’s an opulent place to meet and unwind, with rich velvets and oak panels aplenty. Be sure to take a walk in the immaculately maintained gardens and woodland, which have their own maze.

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Cragwood House, Cumbria
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Views of Lake Windermere are the icing on the cake at Cragwood House, a knockout country house hotel in the heart of the Lake District just 100m from the area’s biggest attraction. Sat on the shore of England’s longest lake, Cragwood House is an imposing Edwardian manor in its own 20-acre estate. If you’re planning a trip to the Lake District and want the real classic experience, this is the place, whether you’re after an active holiday or a relaxing escape. If you’re going full-on country and bringing your own gundog for a spot of shooting, the hotel is also dog-friendly (alternatively, you can bring your dog just to walk it).

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Stapleford Park, Leicestershire
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Forget pork pies – this place is the best thing about Melton Mowbray. Stapleford Park is a thoroughly luxury country house hotel, complete with its own championship golf course. Each room has its own distinctive décor, there’s a full-service spa, and even the gym has lovely views onto the courtyard. Set in the quiet Leicestershire countryside, Stapleford Park is perfect for a rural getaway to relax and recharge.

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The Grove, Hertfordshire&lt
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Footballers’ favourite the Grove is an icon of English country house hotels. The room interiors might feel more modern-boutique than stately home, but that’s all to the good – The Grove brings the classic country manor experience to the modern age with a mind-boggling array of dining and entertainment facilities in the hotel and its grounds. The Walled Garden area alone has an outdoor pool, croquet lawn, tennis courts and a beach in the summer season. You could stay a month here and still only scratch the surface. One of the most well-known country house hotels in the UK and rightly so.

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Luton Hoo Hotel, Bedfordshire&lt
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Luton Hoo was originally built in the 18th century; it’s undergone a few renovations since, but its pedigree in English country elegance is hard to match. Rooms are sumptuous and the hotel offers a range of classic country pursuits, including clay pigeon shooting. There’s even been a golf course onsite for over 100 years – though that, too, has seen some improvements since the original Victorian nine-hole. For a special stay, get the full effect with a suite, complete with four-poster bed. Warning: you may leave with an uncontrollable urge to wear tweed.”