Londonjetsetter
Apr 26, 12, 5:01 am
I spent a long weekend at these properties earlier in the year.
Whatley Manor
This place reminded me of Aman in some respects. Really excellent service at all times. The public areas are very spacious, so lots of places to sit and relax in front of the fire. Extraordinary gardens leading down to a pretty stream. Must be wonderful in the summer, but we found it very atmospheric even in the winter.
Huge thermal area with lots of different whirlpools/saunas etc. I think this is starting to look a bit dated though.
Wonderful 2* Michelin dinner with unbelievably slick service. We were dining for over 4 hours, but the time flew by.
Slight negatives are the rooms, which are very traditional in style and not enormous (we had a deluxe room, any smaller would be a problem IMO). Also, even though the food at Le Mazot is fine, the Swiss Alpine decor feels very odd in the context of a Cotswolds country house hotel. Considering that this is the only place to have breakfast, it needs to be re-thought.
Barnsley House
This is a much trendier place than Whatley Manor. The decor is very modern and clean and this instantly appealed to us. The public spaces are more cramped, so expect to be sharing your fireside space with other people.
We loved the restaurant for Sunday lunch. Some of the best roast beef I have ever had.
Sevice was generally good, although not quite on the level of Whatley Manor.
Our room was a duplex junior suite which was huge and really tastefully decorated. Better than we had expected and far superior to the room at Whatley (for a similar price). Full sized Aromatherapy Associates products.
The spa is small-ish but modern with a nice outside heated pool. I had a great massage there.
Very pretty gardens, although on a smaller and less formal scale than at Whatley. Good easy walks nearby.
The nice thing about this property is that Barnsley village is stunning and the Village Pub is also owned by the hotel, so the food there is delicious. Nice to have another option nearby.
The crowd at Barnsley House seemed to be comprised almost entirely of residents of Kensington and Chelsea in large groups, meaning that in some respects it did not feel like much of an escape from London.
I would happily go back to either hotel.
Whatley Manor
This place reminded me of Aman in some respects. Really excellent service at all times. The public areas are very spacious, so lots of places to sit and relax in front of the fire. Extraordinary gardens leading down to a pretty stream. Must be wonderful in the summer, but we found it very atmospheric even in the winter.
Huge thermal area with lots of different whirlpools/saunas etc. I think this is starting to look a bit dated though.
Wonderful 2* Michelin dinner with unbelievably slick service. We were dining for over 4 hours, but the time flew by.
Slight negatives are the rooms, which are very traditional in style and not enormous (we had a deluxe room, any smaller would be a problem IMO). Also, even though the food at Le Mazot is fine, the Swiss Alpine decor feels very odd in the context of a Cotswolds country house hotel. Considering that this is the only place to have breakfast, it needs to be re-thought.
Barnsley House
This is a much trendier place than Whatley Manor. The decor is very modern and clean and this instantly appealed to us. The public spaces are more cramped, so expect to be sharing your fireside space with other people.
We loved the restaurant for Sunday lunch. Some of the best roast beef I have ever had.
Sevice was generally good, although not quite on the level of Whatley Manor.
Our room was a duplex junior suite which was huge and really tastefully decorated. Better than we had expected and far superior to the room at Whatley (for a similar price). Full sized Aromatherapy Associates products.
The spa is small-ish but modern with a nice outside heated pool. I had a great massage there.
Very pretty gardens, although on a smaller and less formal scale than at Whatley. Good easy walks nearby.
The nice thing about this property is that Barnsley village is stunning and the Village Pub is also owned by the hotel, so the food there is delicious. Nice to have another option nearby.
The crowd at Barnsley House seemed to be comprised almost entirely of residents of Kensington and Chelsea in large groups, meaning that in some respects it did not feel like much of an escape from London.
I would happily go back to either hotel.