Hoteliers' Hotels Top 100: Number 11 – 20
11 Gravetye Manor
Near East Grinstead, West Sussex
www.gravetyemanor.co.uk
Number of bedrooms 17
AA rating Four red stars
Owner and operator Saphos Hotels
Rooms start at £260
2016 ranking 9 ▼
This beautiful 16th-century manor house is set in 1,000 acres of parkland and gardens created in the late 1800s. In 1958, it became one of the first country houses in Britain to open its doors as a hotel. Gravetye remains the epitome of the classic country house, refined and sophisticated with a strong emphasis on hospitality.
Fiona Duncan, writing in The Telegraph, said: "If you appreciate proper, ungimmicky hotels in sensational locations, where service comes first, you will find a rare jewel. There's no spa here, and no plans for one, thank goodness."
12 Rosewood London
London WC1
www.rosewoodhotels.com
Number of bedrooms 306
AA rating Five red stars
Owner CTF Development
Operator Rosewood Hotels & Resorts
Rooms start at £507
2016 ranking 13 â–²
The 1914 Grade II-listed building opened as a hotel in 2000 as the Renaissance Chancery Court, under the management of Marriott. In 2013, it was transformed into the Rosewood London with an £85m renovation to strip the property back to the bare bones of its Belle Epoque heyday.
The designers worked with English Heritage to retain original features, such as the original carriageway entrance and the marble staircase rising over seven storeys. The faÁ§ade and the interiors' dark mahogany and rare marble were also preserved and can be seen in the Holborn Dining Room and Scarfes Bar.
On her visit, Jemma Page of the Nottingham Review was entranced by the hotel's "dramatic copper corridor", adding: "The ultra-luxurious hotel, which blends English heritage with contemporary sophistication, still manages to escort you into a dream world." The hotel has 11 event spaces, including a ballroom for up to 435 guests. Leisure facilities include a spa and a fitness suite. The hotel's top suite - the Manor House - has its own street entrance (and postcode), with six bedrooms and 6,318 sq ft of living space.
In 2017 it scooped the Hotel of the Year - Group accolade at the Catey Awards.
13 Cliveden House
Taplow, Berkshire
www.clivedenhouse.co.uk
Number of bedrooms 48
AA rating Five red stars
Owner L+R (leased from the National Trust)
Operator Iconic Luxury Hotels
Rooms start at £445
2016 ranking 10 â–¼
Cliveden, the historic stately home of princes and dukes, has been a luxury hotel since 1985. L+R bought a 77-year lease in 2012 and undertook a three-year, £20m refurbishment, including a makeover of the former Terrace restaurant, which was relaunched by executive chef André Garrett as an eponymous fine-dining restaurant. It has subsequently been awarded and retained three AA rosettes.
In addition to the 48 sumptuous bedrooms and suites, there is a freestanding summerhouse in the 376-acre grounds that sleeps up to six. Guests can relax in the newly launched spa, limber up in the gym, snooker room, indoor and outdoor tennis courts and squash courts - or nip down to the boathouse with its three
boats. Needless to say, there is a helipad.
14 Babington House
Frome, Somerset
www.babingtonhouse.co.uk
Number of bedrooms 33
AA rating Not listed
Owner and operator Soho House
Rooms start at £245
2016 ranking 14 â-†
A magnet for media types and celebrities, Babington is a prototype for the hip, savvy country house hotel for people who don't do chintz. It offers relaxation and understated luxury, with polished oak floors, abaca rugs, antique tiles and artworks by Tracey Emin.
There's plenty to keep guests in the grounds, including a games room, a child-free library, an all-day Deli-Bar and the Orangery restaurant, which transforms from casual, bright and airy in the day to intimate, romantic and sophisticated in the evening. There is also a 45-seat cinema, indoor and outdoor pools, a gym, cricket pitch, walled garden and grass and hard tennis courts in the grounds, plus a spa.
15 Ham Yard
London W1
www.firmdalehotels.com
Number of bedrooms 91
AA rating Not listed
Owner and operator Firmdale Hotels
Rooms start at £450
2016 ranking 15 â-†
Open since 2014 in a peaceful courtyard in the midst of bustling Soho, this luxury hotel has an uberchic design that places it apart from its competitors. As well as an airy restaurant and bar with outdoor dining and drinking, there is a drawing room, library and orangery, a spa, a 190-seat theatre, and original 1950s bowling alley imported from Texas. To top it off, there's a leafy rooftop garden with views across London, plus a gym and a hypoxic studio. Needless to say, Ham Yard has also won a string of awards, most recently a Hotel Catey Revenue Award 2016 for operations manager Olga Sommer. It is the first hotel to trial Sky's newest technology, the Sky Bright Box, providing a premium selection of HD channels.
16 The London Edition
London W1
www.editionhotels.com
Number of bedrooms 173
AA rating Five stars
Owner Abu Dhabi Investment Authority
Operator Marriott International
Rooms start at £285
2016 ranking 26 â–²
This city-slick, uber-cool hotel in the heart of Fitzrovia combines innovative design and cutting-edge dining and entertainment with personal, friendly, modern service. Bedrooms and suites have wooden floors and panelling and are described as having a "cabin-like feel akin to that of a private yacht".
Michelin-starred chef Jason Atherton oversees the two-AA-rosette restaurant, Berners Tavern, which serves up seasonal, contemporary British cuisine. Guests can also order bespoke cocktails in the Lobby bar and Punch Room bar.
There is also a nightclub, a fitness centre and meeting rooms. The aim is to create a dynamic social hub where guests and visitors can work, relax, socialise and dine under one roof.
Alexandra Kirkman, writing for Forbes, said the London Edition is "the city's hottest - and coolest - hotel, and arguably the jewel in the crown of the Edition portfolio".
17 Lucknam Park
Colerne, Wiltshire
www.lucknampark.co.uk
Number of bedrooms 42
AA rating Five red stars
Owner Lucknam Park Hotels
Rooms start at £360
2016 ranking 7 â–¼
Lucknam Park has it all: spa and wellness centre, 500-acre estate, stables, tennis courts, croquet lawn, football pitch and a cookery school, along with the Michelin-starred restaurant run by Hywel Jones and the less formal two-AA- rosette Brasserie, plus a cookery school.
The man behind the hotel's success for the past 20 years is Harry Murray, an industry mover and shaker with 50 or more years in hospitality under his belt. In 2013, he swapped his role as managing director for that of chairman of the hotel's board, with Claire Randall stepping into his former shoes.
Over the past 15 or so years more than £20m has been spent at Lucknam Park on refurbishing all the bedrooms and public areas, and building "the best hotel spa in the country".
18 Brown's
London W1
www.roccofortehotels.com
Number of bedrooms 115
AA rating Five red stars
Owner and operator Rocco Forte Hotels
Rooms start at £475
2016 ranking 24 â–²
This swish Mayfair hotel flies the flag for British values. The English Tea Room is a sought-after venue for afternoon tea, while the elegant, yet informal, two-AA- rosette Hix Mayfair restaurant serves popular British dishes. Even the walls are lined with works by leading British artists such as Tracey Emin and Bridget Riley. Certainly, Brown's is one of London's most established luxury hotels. Rocco Forte Hotels took over in 2003 and the bedrooms were subsequently given a contemporary makeover by designer Olga Polizzi.
Facilities include a spa, gym, six meeting rooms and the Donovan cocktail bar. There are always tweaks - last autumn, Polizzi merged two suites and redesigned the resulting two-bedroom suite as a homage to Rudyard Kipling, who wrote The Jungle Book at the hotel.
19 The Langham
London W1
www.langhamhotels.com
Number of bedrooms 380
AA rating Five red stars
Owner Langham Hospitality Group
Rooms start at £360
2016 ranking 22 â–²
The Langham London has been a favourite of kings, politicians, writers and 21st- century style icons such as Lady Gaga. In 2015, it celebrated its 150-year anniversary with a multi-million pound refurbishment. This included the
Palm Court, famous for its afternoon tea, the award-winning Artesian Bar and the Roux at the Landau Restaurant. It also saw the opening of 40 additional grand executive guestrooms and suites, the launch of the Langham Club Lounge and the decadent six-bedroom Sterling Suite. This year will see a new Terrace Suite.
The hotel has also stepped up its relationship with Albert Roux and his son, Michel Roux Jr, who have overseen the hotel's two-AA-rosette Roux at the Landau restaurant. This arrangement now extends across the hotel's F&B portfolio, including the Palm Court, the 14 banqueting and private dining rooms, the ballroom, the Courtyard marquee and room service. This summer, Michel Roux Jr is to open the Wigmore pub, which will have its own entrance on Regent Street and be a luxury take on the traditional British pub.
20 Pennyhill Park
Bagshot, Surrey
www.pennyhillpark.co.uk
Number of bedrooms 124
AA rating Five red stars
Owner and operator Exclusive Hotels and Venues
Rooms start at £256.50
2016 ranking 37 â–²
This stylish country house hotel, set in 120 acres, offers impressive leisure facilities, including a jogging trail and a golf course, but is best known for its award-winning, state-of-the-art spa with its thermal sequencing experience, ozone-treated swimming and hydrotherapy pools, and a dazzling array of therapies and treatments. As well as the spa restaurant, there is the Matt Worswick at the Latymer restaurant, which has three rosettes, and the two- AA rosette Brasserie at Pennyhill Park.
- Click here to see the hotels that made our list from 1-10
- Click here to see the hotels that made our list from 21-100
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