The Grove

Key features:

• Urban beach in the walled garden
• Ozone-filtered pool
• Natual Bisse Treatments
• 18 hole golf course
• 300 acres of grounds
• Award-winning spa

Billed as London’s country estate and voted one of the top 10 UK Spas by Conde Nast Traveller, Vogue once described The Grove as: “almost too close to home to be safe from temptation mid-week”. The hotel and spa are surrounded by 300 acres of Hertfordshire countryside and the gardens have been beautifully styled, brimming with periodically changing art installations and sculptures, and it even including their own urban beach to rest your deckchair on if the sun comes out. Walk, run, swim, cycle, play golf and eat – it’s just the pick me up to set you up for summer.

The Sequoia Spa is a subterranean haven within the grounds and very much a jewel in its crown. It’s slight separation from the hotel itself makes it perfect for a day spa as well as an overnight break. Favourite features include its ozone-filtered, black mosaic-tiled pool and the exclusive Natura Bissé products, rich in active ingredients and offering a top tip in treatment choices. A special mention goes to The Orangery Experience, which makes you feel like a citrus soufflé and proves an invigorating precursor to a day spent walking around the expansive grounds, culminating in a glass from the restaurant’s excellent wine list.

Please note: the outdoor pool is open between April and September (weather permitting)

The Grove is a Hertfordshire country house that had a complete renovation in 1996 that would transform it into the hotel it is today. A mere 18 miles from London, it was once a country retreat of Queen Victoria. Rumour has it that the monarch would visit with other aristocrats who would turn out in their finery for lavish parties. These days, the parties continue as the hotel is a favourite wedding destination and favourite celebrity haunt. With views across the golf course and perfectly manicured gardens, the grounds are peppered with modern art and sculptures that make it uniquely elegant and interesting. While the architecture of the hotel is traditional, the interior design is all luxurious and contemporary hospitality. The 26 phenomenal Mansion House rooms and suites in the Grade II listed property take in views of the pristine golf course, blending period style and original modern art and furniture - they are the very essence of a romantic spa break. Guests can also stay in the West Wing where the hotel stretches through gardens towards Sequoia Spa and a further 189 spacious, luxury rooms that are perfect for luxury family escapes as well.

Food at The Grove is available in a variety of guises, from fine dining to leisurely brunches. As such, there are a number of restaurant options to choose from. Colette’s is the most formal of the restaurants, still relaxed but more for dinners and special occasions. There are exquisite lounges for afternoon tea, lunches, teas and coffees, all of which have a sense of gentility served on beautiful china and with a sense of ceremony. There’s a homely, rustic feel for informal breakfast and lunches in The Stables - especially popular with golfers before a round. Meanwhile, for an international theatre of cooking, there is The Glasshouse complete with garden views, kinetic sculptures and bountiful food stations.