The best country house hotels in Britain for 2023

It's that time of year – escaping to a roaring fire deep in the countryside should be top of your 2023 mini-break wishlist

The British country house hotel was born in 1948, brought to us in the pink and frilly shape of Sharrow Bay, overlooking Ullswater in the Lake District. Presided over by a splendid couple, Francis Coulson and his partner Brian Sack, it came complete with a gargantuan afternoon tea, and Sack's famous Icky Sticky Toffee Pudding and Coulson's bedtime poems on the pillow. People adored it. There had been leisure hotels in the countryside before, of course, but this was the first where you could be assured of being personally pampered in beautiful rural surroundings, with a committed owner at the helm offering a warm welcome, decent food, peace and quiet.

Hundreds of characterful country estate hotels have followed, and today there's a bewildering amount from which to choose. Here we present the cream of the crop. While some continue to offer no more than the pleasures of a beautiful old house, a roaring fire and a cup of tea, others cater to our increased demands: for spas, cookery courses and activities such as foraging. These are the best country house hotels in Britain, sharing in common comfort, excellent food and the joys of the countryside.

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A country house hotel tends to be located (as the name clearly suggests) in a rural environment or on the edge of a suburb. Traditionally, they are old stately houses that have been converted into hotels and endevaour to retain that sense of a 'home' – perhaps with British classics like a grand roaring fire in the corner of a plush living room, a help-yourself library or afternoon tea served in fine bone china. Because of their situations, guests can usually take part in lots of outdoor activities such as horse riding, walking, archery, cycling, fishing, golf or tennis.

Sharrow Bay, which opened in 1948, has always been described as the first ever country house hotel, as coined in an advertisement by Francis Coulson who presided over the Ullswater mansion with his partner Brian Sack. The hotel closed in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

9 Telegraph expert rating

9 Telegraph expert rating

9 Telegraph expert rating

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