The Good Hotel Guide is the leading independent guide to hotels in Great Britain & Ireland, and also covers parts of Continental Europe. The Guide was first published in 1978. It is written for the reader seeking impartial advice on finding a good place to stay. Hotels cannot buy their way into the Guide. The editors and inspectors do not accept free hospitality on their anonymous visits to hotels. All hotels in the Guide receive a free basic listing. A fee is charged for a full web entry.
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Country house hotels for Christmas
Country house hotels across the UK and Scotland have something particularly majestic about them and at no time is that more magical than at Christmas. Here are some of our favourite country house hotels for Christmas.
Headlam Hall, Darlington
Featured Hotels with Special Offers
Homewood
Bath, Somerset
'Complimentary Night' Special Offer
The yellow submarine in the grounds and a hedge sculpture of a giraffe set the scene at this playful, quirky hotel, in a traditional honey-stone building that is both family and dog friendly.
Bishopstrow
Warminster, Wiltshire
Christmas 2026 Package 10% Discount GHG Reader Special Offer
The Cottage in the Wood
Malvern Wells, Worcestershire
Exclusive GHG Reader Christmas Stay Special Offer
Dukes Bath
Bath, Somerset
Three Nights for the Price of Two Special Offer
The latest member of Ian and Christa Taylor’s Kaleidoscope group, this hotel occupies two fine Georgian townhouses on a handsome and historic boulevard. The traditional interiors, with antique and hand-crafted wallpapers, are infused with some of the group's signature playfulness and vibrancy.
The Montagu Arms
Beaulieu, Hampshire
Dog Friendly Special Offer
Middlethorpe Hall & Spa
York, Yorkshire
'Autumn and Winter Break' Special Offer
Ty Mawr
Brechfa, Carmarthenshire
'Winter Escape' Special Offer
The Devonshire Arms
Skipton, Yorkshire
'Spring Escape on the Estate' Special Offer
A former 17th-century inn, which is part of the Duke of Devonshire's 30,000-acre estate at Bolton Abbey, is today an impressive country-house hotel, with fine dining and a spa.
Hartwell House
Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire
'Three Nights for the Price of Two' Special Offer
Lords of the Manor
Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire
'Lords Fireside Retreat' Special Offer
Widbrook Grange
Bradford-On-Avon, Wiltshire
'Stay & Savour' Special Offer
Bodysgallen Hall and Spa
Llandudno, Conwy
'The Great Half Price Break' Special Offer
The Cavendish
Baslow, Derbyshire
'Chatsworth Experience' Special Offer
Hambleton Hall
Oakham, Rutland
'Winter Break' Special Offer
Forss House
Thurso, Highland
'Whisky Away' Special Offer
Shieldaig Lodge
Gairloch, Highland
'Whisky Lovers' Special Offer
Knockinaam Lodge
Stranraer, Dumfries And Galloway
10% Discount Special Offer
The Priory
Wareham, Dorset
'A Night To Remember' Special Offer
The Eastbury Hotel & Spa
Sherborne, Dorset
'Seasonal Getaway' Special Offer
Plumber Manor
Sturminster Newton, Dorset
Winter D,B&B Special Offer Special Offer
Cringletie House
Peebles, Scottish Borders
'Summer in the South of Scotland' Special Offer
Storrs Hall
Bowness-On-Windermere, Cumbria
January/February Sale Special Offer
With an enviable position on Windermere, this Georgian hall has a relaxed country house feel, with formal and casual dining options, and bedrooms ranging from family friendly to seriously swanky.
Mallory Court
Leamington Spa, Warwickshire
'Ultimate Tasting Experience' Special Offer
Congham Hall
King's Lynn, Norfolk
'January Sale' Special Offer
The Traddock
Settle, North Yorkshire
Yorkshire Gourmet Break Special Offer
Cavens
Dumfries, Dumfries And Galloway
Winter Special Offer
'Visiting Cavens is like stepping back in time to a traditional country-house hotel,' writes a reader of Angus Fordyce's Georgian mansion, set in open countryside close to the dunes and salt marshes of the Solway coast.
Wrea Head Hall
Scarborough, Yorkshire
'Dinner, B&B plus Free Cream Tea' Spring Special Offer
A splendid Victorian-gothic mansion in parkland, minutes' drive from Scarborough, Wrea Hall has been repurposed as a luxury hotel with very characterful bedrooms and a fine-dining restaurant.
The Farmhouse at Redcoats
Hitchin, Hertfordshire
Foodie Staycation Package Special Offer
With many features dating from the 15th century, this well-restored old farmhouse stands in large, landscaped gardens amid serene countryside. The hotel and restaurant, part of the Nye family's Anglian Country Inns, have intimate sitting areas and warming fires in inglenook fireplaces.
More Country house hotels for Christmas
The Bailiffgate Hotel
Alnwick, Northumberland
There are mesmerising views of medieval Alnwick Castle from the Duchy of Northumberland's new hotel, occupying the Georgian Commissioner's house and former school, with further rooms in a modern extension, and 'top-notch' cooking in the restaurant.
Langar Hall
Langar, Nottinghamshire
Everything is peachy at this apricot-hued Georgian country house in the Vale of Belvoir, at the end of a long avenue of lime trees, transformed from a family home into a delightful, idiosyncratic and much-loved hotel.
Brockencote Hall
Chaddesley Corbett, Worcestershire
If you're looking for affordable luxury, this Victorian mansion in parkland, remodelled in the style of a French château, has spacious bedrooms, opulent suites, and a choice of small-plates dining or a tasting menu.
Gilpin Hotel and Lake House
Windermere, Cumbria
Lakeland luxury at its finest comes courtesy of Gilpin, with its Michelin-starred dining, private hot tubs in the majority of its indulgent rooms and attentive staff. Its flagship rooms are extravagantly large glass-cube spa suites that extend over a pond and offer private garden, spa room and circular bath.
Kilcamb Lodge
Strontian, Highland
Summer Lodge
Evershot, Dorset
Country-house luxury abounds at this child-friendly, dog-friendly hotel, a Georgian mansion in ‘well-maintained gardens a huge joy to visit’.
Rothay Manor
Ambleside, Cumbria
Watersmeet
Woolacombe, Devon
'An exceptional seaside hotel', with views from the rooms and terrace to secluded Combesgate beach below, this family-friendly hotel is a former Edwardian gentleman's retreat.
Gravetye Manor
East Grinstead, West Sussex
Old Church Farm
Bristol, Gloucestershire
In the heart of the Gloucestershire countryside, this one-time Saxon hunting lodge, rebuilt over centuries and rich in Tudor detail, is an intimate B&B, with large and characterful bedrooms, welcoming hosts, and a Cordon Bleu dinner cooked by arrangement on Fridays and Saturdays.
Corse Lawn House
Corse Lawn, Gloucestershire
A beautifully proportioned Queen Anne-style mansion overlooking a duck pond, this much-loved traditional hotel has a new owner, but, after 48 years, Baba Hine remains, overseeing restaurant, bistro and well-equipped, spacious bedrooms.
Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons
Great Milton, Oxfordshire
For more than 40 years, Raymond Blanc has held two Michelin stars at this beautiful country-house hotel 'and in our opinion, it's a travesty that he hasn't been awarded three', say Guide insiders.
The Middleton Lodge Estate
Richmond, Yorkshire
Leave the fuss and fret of the AI(M) at Scotch Corner to reconnect with the land at this idyllic hotel, centred on a Georgian coach house amid gardens, parkland and woodland.
Chewton Glen
New Milton, Hampshire
Goldstone Hall
Market Drayton, Shropshire
The gardens are the great glory of John and Sue Cushing's Georgian manor house deep in dairy country, with abundant home-grown produce featuring on menus, and light summer lunches served on the rose garden terrace.
The Dabbling Duck
Great Massingham, Norfolk
They have all their ducks in a row at this wisteria-decked gastropub with rooms overlooking the green in a village where mallards glide on old abbey fishponds.
The Alfriston
Alfriston, Sussex
Heckfield Place
Hook, Hampshire
Life is attuned to nature at this country-house hotel in a Georgian mansion on a working estate. with walled garden, biodynamic farm, luxury spa, and two restaurants that celebrate seasonality and provenance.
Biggin Hall
Buxton, Derbyshire
The Pheasant
Helmsley, Yorkshire
In a former smithy, shop and barns overlooking the village duck pond, this popular hotel and restaurant is undergoing refurbishment and expansion under new owners the Rockliffe Hall Group.
Fischer's at Baslow Hall
Baslow, Derbyshire
An Edwardian homage to 17th-century style, this beautiful manor house with rich Jacobean-inspired interiors is run as a luxury hotel with fine-dining restaurant where you can enjoy a 'truly memorable meal'.
Augill Castle
Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria
Ilsington Country House Hotel & Spa
Newton Abbot, Devon
In wooded grounds with Dartmoor National Park on the doorstep, the Hassell family's country-house hotel and beautiful spa impresses with a warm welcome, great service, and a choice of dining venues.
Mansion House Llansteffan
Llansteffan, Carmarthenshire
Swinton Park
Masham, Yorkshire
A neo-Gothic fantasy castle in glorious pleasure grounds and parkland, the Cunliffe-Lister family's hotel offers a taste of country-house living, with opulent interiors, spacious bedrooms and suites, estate-to-plate dining and a spa.
Orestone Manor
Torquay, Devon
In sub-tropical gardens with views over Lyme Bay, this family-run hotel offers a wide choice of accommodation, and imaginative, locally sourced food.
Sopwell House Hotel
St Albans, Hertfordshire
A favourite hangout of the England football team, the former home of Lord Louis Mountbatten has contemporary bedrooms, cosseting suites, a good choice of eating and drinking spaces, and a magnificent spa.
Boringdon Hall
Plymouth, Devon
Steeped in romance, this Elizabethan manor-house hotel is a place of contrasts, blending history with modern amenities, from the Great Hall lounge and four-poster bedrooms, to Scandi-style wellness rooms with outdoor hot tub, a state-of-the art spa, a Michelin-starred restaurant and more informal brasserie.

Douneside House
Tarland, Aberdeenshire
Eligible military guests receive a discount at this Edwardian gem of a Scottish revival country house in beautifully maintained gardens, owned by a charitable trust and filled with family mementoes, where bedrooms blend classic and contemporary style and tasting menus feature produce from the walled kitchen garden.

The Holcombe
Somerset
Trained chefs Caroline Gardiner and Alan Lucas have transformed this former village inn into a restaurant offering sustainably sourced menus of beautifully presented food with rustic-chic bedrooms and lodges, making it the perfect place for a country retreat.
Country house hotels across the UK and Scotland have something particularly majestic about them and at no time is that more magical than at Christmas. Here are some of our favourite country house hotels for Christmas. From castles to vast estates, romantic adult-only retreats to family-friendly escapes, between the roaring fires and the country walks, these are the places that turn the holidays into a true Christmas cracker. Christmas conjures many images, but perhaps chief amongst them is a nostalgic idea of historic country houses and Dickensian Britain. Well, while no one will be looking to emulate the ghost of Christmas past, the UK's country houses do give us a postcard perfect setting in which to enjoy the festive season, and most probably a prize turkey to go with it. Think log fires and sky high Christmas trees, sumptuous food and historic gardens to roam in wearing mud caked wellies and warm woolly jumpers, whisky by the fire sitting in wingback chairs, sumptuous food and plenty of carol sinking. Like something out of a storybook, country house hotels have a delicious ability to make everyday rituals into a special occasion. The spa hotel where a facial is followed by afternoon tea; the lakeside mansion with its own organic walled garden for fruit, herbs and vegetables; or the estate with its own vineyard. Invariably, it's the combination of history (maybe this is the former home of a Prime Minister or an aristocrat's former country pile), grounds (perhaps you will wake to horses grazing in the fields outside), style (four-poster beds maybe) and customer service (where nothing is too much trouble), that herald a truly classy joint.













































































































































































