The three Historic House Hotels are now part of the National Trust and offer guests exceptional gardens with many seasonal highlights. All three properties are accessible to the public as hotels and warmly welcome guests to stay, to dine in the restaurants and to enjoy afternoon tea, and to book spa treatments. All paying guests are welcome to walk in the gardens and parks, with themed garden tours taking place throughout the year..
Hartwell House Gardens, Buckinghamshire – It has a remarkable history: its most famous resident was Louis XVIII, exiled King of France, for five years from 1809. In 1938 the house and estate were acquired by Ernest Cook, an early hero of the conservation movement.
Designed at the start of the 18th century and landscaped by a follower of Capability Brown, one Richard Woods, the gardens at Hartwell House spread across 94 acres, offer guests plenty to explore. Guests can spend hours discovering the grounds which include a Gothic Tower, a Statue of Hercules, a Bridge which comprises the central arch of James Paine’s Kew Bridge, Lime Avenue; a mile-long double avenue of limes and the Canal Temple home to 10,000 daffodils. A kitchen garden used by the chefs features apricot, peach, pear and plum trees. Guests can follow a trail around the grounds with a copy of their Tree Map, to identify 10 prize specimens, from a Horse Chestnut and a London Plane tree to a Giant Sequoia.
To do: dine in the 2 AA Rosette restaurant, enjoy a spa treatment and spa facilities including the indoor swimming pool, take afternoon tea in a historic room and look out for the unique staircase.
B&B is priced from £315 at Hartwell House per room per night.
Middlethorpe Hall Gardens, York – Middlethorpe Hall is a perfect William and Mary country house built in 1699-1701 of beautifully laid mellow red brick with limestone dressing and panelled interiors of excellent joinery.
Set within 20 acres of gardens and parkland, which have been extensively restored and replanted since the 1980’s. Walks were re-created with urns providing eye catchers and paths allowing guests to discover wildlife including roe deer, beehives and various nesting birds around the lake. The walled kitchen garden produces not only a beautiful display of flowering shrubs, magnificent herbaceous borders but holds herb beds and has been planted for fruit: apples, pears, plums, peaches and greengages, all of which are used by the chef to create wonderful puddings. The team of Gardeners has also created an organic ‘potager’, producing a wide selection of vegetables. Guests can follow a special tree trail around the grounds of Middlethorpe Hall, with a copy of their ‘The Gardens and Trees of Interest’ Guide and Map.
To do: Dine in the 2 AA Rosette restaurant, enjoy a spa treatment and spa facilities including the indoor swimming pool, take afternoon tea in a historic room and look out for the hidden wine cellars.
B&B is priced from £289 at Middlethorpe Hall per room per night.
Bodysgallen Hall Gardens, Wales – Bodysgallen Hall has gradually evolved over the centuries from modest hamlet to a large and comfortable country house, surrounded by one of the finest Arts and Crafts gardens in Wales.
Bodysgallen Hall has Wales’s greatest gardens in a hotel spread across over 220 acres of gardens and parkland. Featured are the rare C17th parterre of box hedges filled with sweet smelling herbs, natural limestone outcrops, a rockery with cascade, walled gardens, a lily pond and several follies. There is also a formal rose garden and a variety of well- established specimen trees and shrubs, including medlar and mulberry. Several woodland walks enhance the outdoor experience, including a dramatic terrace to the South of the main garden with wonderful views of river, mountain and castle. Another highlight is the kitchen garden which provides the freshest of ingredients for the table, with an abundance of seasonal foliage for in house arrangements.
To do: dine in the 3 AA Rosette restaurant, enjoy a spa treatment and spa facilities including the indoor swimming pool, take afternoon tea in a historic room and look out for the views of Conwy Castle and Snowdonia.
B&B is priced from £275 at Bodysgallen Hall per room per night.
Regular guided garden tours take place at each hotel hosted by the head gardener. Dates are available throughout the year and prior booking is required. Each tour is seasonally themed.
For more information or to book, visit www.historichousehotels.com
