Barnsley House

Set down a quiet lane in the country village of Barnsley, this hotel is the perfect city escape at just 90-minute drive from London. Unnecessary airs and graces are out; instead Barnsley House offers warm yet discreet service in a beautiful setting. The ambience is very much home-away-from-home, albeit with immaculately designed rooms and helpful staff on hand to cater to your every whim.

Fancy dinner in the garden on a balmy summer's evening? Or hosting your own private party for two in the cosy cinema? Or simply relaxing with a well-earned glass of red in front of a roaring fire after a bracing autumnal country walk? Barnsley House offers it all.

With a head chef hailing from London’s Caprice and Chez Bruce, The Potager Restaurant is a real treat, overlooking the gardens and with an accompanying terrace perfect for al fresco dining in summer, afternoon tea or evening aperitifs. For a change of scenery The Village Pub in Barnsley Village, a short walk from the hotel, offers hearty fare and an excellent selection of local ales.

Barnsley House's beautiful rural backdrop is too good not to explore and the hotel loan Wellington boots for just such a purpose. After all there is nothing more satisfying than a walk in picture-perfect Cotswolds countryside, followed by a hard-earned pub lunch or a relaxing afternoon of pampering in the hotel's spa. If you like your afternoons more refined, Cirencester Park and Beaufort Polo Club are just down the road.

No two rooms at Barnsley House are exactly the same, although common features of wooden floors and beams blended with contemporary furnishings run throughout. Some rooms have traditional stone fireplaces, others twin bath tubs or a private terrace. There are only 18 rooms in total and each one has views of either the gardens or the meadows - or both.

Children over 14 years old are welcome at Barnsley House, but really this is a place for couples.

The Potager Restaurant has a contemporary feel which blends with the traditional Cotswold stone features of the hotel. The menu is centerd on local, seasonal produce and serves British dishes with an Italian influence. As well as inside dining, there is a pretty terrace for dinner or evening drinks during the summer months. Lunch and afternoon tea is also served. For something less formal, The Village Pub across the road from the hotel serves excellent food in a relaxed atmosphere.

You may find it difficult to tear yourself away from the comfortable rooms and pretty gardens, but when you do want to explore, the staff are more than happy to arrange a picnic or help book a horse back ride through the countryside. Hot air balloon rides, clay pigeon shooting and fishing are also available locally.

It is very difficult to predict the weather in the United Kingdom - in the summer from May to late September is generally seen as the most pleasant time to visit. Rainfall is difficult to predict - but the UK does not receive as much as many are led to believe! In the winters, temperatures do fall, but there is nothing better than finding a remote pub with a roaring fire to sit beside after a long walk in the country.