Live like a king at Swinton Park hotel
Nobody does castle-luxe like the British, and Yorkshire’s Swinton Park hotel is one of the most romantic
A resident buck at Swinton Park Hotel
It’s the time of year when we want to cosy up by the fire, and there’s no finer place to do it than a beautiful country house hotel. We’ve picked our list of 10 Great British escapes, but it was a tough choice. If you’re looking for more, Swinton Park is another of our favourites.
An ivy-swathed Victorian castle, Swinton Park stands in the midst of woods, moors, lakes and gardens, halfway between the Yorkshire Dales and North Yorkshire Moors, and an hour from Leeds Bradford Airport. You enter the grounds of Swinton Park long before you see the castle, perhaps glimpsing the handful of mystical white deer mingling with their tawny brothers and sisters.
Live out your princess fantasy in the three-floor Turret Room, where you can play Rapunzel from the vast top-floor bathroom. But if your bank balance is less than regal, you’ll still be spoilt in any of the castle’s other 29 bedrooms, all tastefully decorated in a contemporary, aristocratic style.
You can easily lose a weekend here, ambling the grounds (look out for a secret Druids Temple and stone-built bothy huts on your walks – but avoid the heart-rending Bird of Prey centre, where majestic creatures spend hours in cages), dining on gourmet food in the restaurant, reading magazines by the fire in the traditional lounges, and being pampered in the small spa.
Stay a week to get a real taste of Yorkshire, exploring the Dales, Moors and picturesque villages.
Doubles from £175, B&B.
01765 680900, swintonpark.com
