The Credentials:
Located within a short drive, train or heli journey from London, the five-star hotel is part of the Leading Hotels of the World collective and is known as London’s cosmopolitan country estate – it was once used for lavish weekend parties for Queen Victoria and her posse. Within the 300 acres, there’s an 18-hole championship golf course, the award-winning Sequoia Spa, a walled garden and woods. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the estate provided inspiration for George Stubbs, who painted the horses in the stables.
Dine:
There are three restaurants, four lounges and a library looking out onto the formal gardens. The best-known restaurant is the three AA Rosette-rated Collette’s, but we took a golf buggy to the buzzy former stable block, The Stables which has a warm, rustic New England design and an open kitchen. The brasserie-style food is homely and our purple sprouting broccoli and the herbs were home-grown – not bad for our late winter visit. There are plenty of wines available by the glass, but we went for a bottle of Hellfire Bay chardonnay recommended by our friendly (and perhaps biased) Australian waiter. Before we left, we overheard a couple being declined a golf cart to their car as they weren’t staying at the hotel. Perhaps they’d gone for the 8oz Scottish rib-eye.
Before the getaway, a friend had said The Grove’s breakfast buffet in The Glasshouse is a treat. She wasn’t wrong. From pretty, sweet pastries, cheeses and cereals to fresh fruit and a full English – the chefs regularly top up the buffet or your plate from the open kitchen, so nothing sits around for long – the only problem is deciding what to have.
Sleep:
The members’ club-style corridor – think heavy velvet curtains, aubergine walls and art by the likes of Volker Kühn – led to our superior mansion king room in the eaves of the oldest part of the building. We loved the free-standing bath overlooking the formal gardens, marble fireplace and the gift of chocolates. Our elegant room had the obligatory king-size bed, 42-inch plasma screen TV, sitting area and top-notch marble bathroom stocked with The White Company goodies.
Who Goes There?:
Who doesn’t? Families on a half-term break; a mother with a couple of teenage girls who looked like they should be on Snog, Marry, Avoid (where did they get that fake tan from?); couples and a group of guys on a golfing break were all spotted during our visit.
Out & About:
‘You’re going to Watford,’ the boyfriend teased before I left. Borrow a bicycle, play tennis, book a massage, pack the kids off to Anouska’s Kids Club… Who needs to leave the estate anyway? If you must, Knebworth House, Whipsnade Zoo, Thorpe Park and Legoland are all within a 40-minute drive.
The Best Thing:
If you’re a keen golfer, it would probably be the course (Tiger Woods won the World Golf Championship here in 2006), but for my girly trip, it was definitely the spa. I enjoyed an hour in the ozone pool – housed in a beautifully lit exposed wood beamed former stable – when I arrived, plus an hour in the gym the following morning while ducks wandered past the window.
The Worst Thing:
The Crystal Maze-style walk to the spa. We also thought the bar, adjoining the lobby, could do with a bit of style inspiration – it was completely lacking in atmosphere – and the lilac staff uniforms reminded us of the PC World staff uniforms.
The Details:
Rooms start at £295 for bed and breakfast.
The Grove, Chandler’s Cross, Hertfordshire, WD3 4TG; www.thegrove.co.uk; 01923 807 807
