They’re the hotels that make for a well-earned mid-winter break – where you can hunker down after a walk in the crisp outdoors and enjoy that Danish cosy ‘hygge’ feeling.
Even better, rates remain at an all-time low for most of February and the remainder of January. A warm welcome awaits…
Lake District Chalet Chic
It feels as if you’re in a hip ski chalet at Brimstone in the Langdale Valley, which features an indoor/outdoor vitality pool (pictured)
The Yan is a bistro and restaurant with beds located just a few steps from Grasmere – you can also climb Helvellyn from its door
Pictured is The Chalet, the new slate and wood dining space at The Yan, which serves up ski classics such as cheese fondue and tartiflette
It feels as if you’re in a hip ski chalet at Brimstone in the Langdale Valley, with its contemporary furnishings amid acres of wood, and fires in most rooms. For a relaxing stroll, borrow wellies or waterproofs from our kit room before heading to the spa. The spa has an indoor/outdoor pool as well as thermal cabins. Be sure to plunder the complimentary drinks and snacks in the reading room as well as walking to the resort’s Wainwrights’ Inn for its speciality of slow-cooked lamb with mash and veg. A spa suite allows you to end the evening with a large bath by the fireside, and your patio doors are open to the starry night. B&B doubles from £332 a night (brimstonehotel.co.uk).
The Yan is a bistro that has beds and evokes a chalet atmosphere. It’s located just a few minutes from Grasmere. The Chalet is the new slate-and-wood dining area that overlooks Helm Crag. Chef Will Manley has spent many years running chalets in France. You can climb Helvellyn right from the door, then return to sit by the wood-burner before spending the night in one of seven pared-back, affordable rooms, from £130, room-only (theyan.co.uk).
Yorkshire: A stripped-back look
You can’t go wrong with this: A warm bedroom in a wooden cabin of The Alice Hawthorn Inn
The Coniston: Enjoy the stunning views from one of the two infinity pools outdoors on the property.
There’s plenty of Scandi-chic at The Alice Hawthorn Inn, with four stripped-back stylish rooms above the pub, and eight in modern timber buildings outside. Found in the village of Nun Monkton between Harrogate and York, the hotel has superb walks from the door, including an eight-mile yomp through fields that takes in the Monk’s House, where Anne Bronte and her artist brother Branwell lived. The pint will come with a tasty meal of local meat or fish, served by a warm fire. B&B doubles from £120 a night (thealicehawthorn.com).
The Coniston has more options for winter walking. This time, it is in the Yorkshire Dales. It offers both biking and four-wheel-drive offroading. Enjoy the stunning views from two of the outdoor infinity pools, as well as the indoor and thermal experiences, and then snuggle around the outdoor fire pits. B&B doubles from £139 a night (theconistonhotel.com).
Star-gazing in the Midlands… from your bath
Pictured are the treehouse-style rooms with lakeside views and outdoor tubs big enough for the whole family at The Tawny in Staffordshire
Take a look at the beautiful grounds of The Tawny with your boots, and then take a swim in the heated outdoor pool.
The inside of one of The Tawny’s boathouse suites is seen in the picture. B&B huts for two cost from £230 per night
It’s hard to choose between the cabins in the woods with star-watching skylight, sofa by the wood-burner and outdoor artisan tin bath, or the treehouse-style rooms with lakeside views and outdoor tubs big enough for the whole family at The Tawny in Staffordshire. You can borrow boots and explore the grounds. After a swim in the heated outdoor pool, you’ll be ready to warm up at the Plumicorn restaurant. There are amazing meals, drinks, and many games. B&B huts for two from £230 per night (thetawny.co.uk).
Look no further for a pub that offers views across Dovedale in Derbyshire than the The Duncombe Arms.
With candles and cushions, sheepskins and solid wood tables, it’s the perfect pitstop for exploring the Peak Disrict. The property offers country-chic rooms and smart dining as well as open fireplaces and low ceilings. B&B doubles from £195 a night (duncombearms.co.uk).
Wales is a place that will warm your heart
Brown’s Hotel in Laugharne features Welsh wool beds and chic rooms with exposed brickwork
The bar in Brown’s Hotel is shown, where Dylan Thomas once frequented.
The Welsh answer to hygge is cwtch (pronounced ‘kutch’), whose meaning roughly translates as a warming hug for the soul. A special guide entitled Cwtch Up In Carmarthenshire (discovercarmarthenshire.com) features warming winter breaks, including one at Brown’s Hotel in Laugharne, with its Welsh wool beds, chic rooms beneath beams with exposed brickwork, and a bar once frequented by Dylan Thomas.
Take a coast foraging class with Craig Evans while you’re there. Craig will take you on a hunt for crabs, cockles, and other sea creatures. Then, head to a cave, where Craig will prepare your treasures over a candle-burning stove. B&B doubles from £130 a night (browns.wales), foraging courses from £80pp (coastalforaging.co.uk). The Bear Hotel, Crickhowell in The Brecon Beacons also has a resident fly-fisherman. You can join him, or the local walking guide to discover the hills and return to the coaching inn. B&B doubles cost from £130 a night (bearhotel.co.uk).
Cornwall offers shelter from the elements
Darkly tasty: The Pig at Harlyn Bay has a cozy, wood-burner-equipped snug.
Storm-watching doesn’t get much better than in Cornwall, and one of the best places to gaze at 30ft breakers gusting in from the Atlantic is the Headland Hotel in Newquay. The hotel’s Victorian Main Building is located above Fistral Beach. It also has Storm Watching Cottages made of clapperboard with ocean views and double-ended baths. Some cottages have wood-burning stoves while others are four-posters. Six indoor and six outdoor swimming pools are part of the Headland’s spa. There is also a hot tub overlooking the ocean. Cottages cost from £200 a night for two (headlandhotel.co.uk).
The Pig in Harlyn Bay lies just a few minutes further along the coast. This is because of its dark and cozy interiors. You are greeted by a moody atmosphere as soon as you step through the doors into a room featuring a wood-burner and inky blue walls. It’s just as beautiful in the rest of the house, which has some rooms overlooking the ocean, a charming bar, and dishes that are based on seasonal produce within a 25-mile radius. Doubles from £155 a night, room only (thepighotel.com/at-harlyn-bay).
Cotswolds herbal teas or hot chocolate
Grand: The Manor House at Castle Combe is shown here, with Michelin-starred food.
Each room in the Manor House has four-posters, fireplaces and a television. B&B doubles cost from £190 a night
The Thyme Garden Rooms in Southrop, Gloucestershire have an outdoor fire pit that is perfect for roasting marshmallows and then you can enjoy a cup of hot chocolate while taking a dip in the roll-top tub. The Botanical Bothy is a new facility that offers herbal spa treatments by the fire pit. You can spend the whole day learning to cook pasta or French-style food, and then browse through the Tithe Barn’s photographic collection of winter gardens. The Ox Barn offers warming foods such as confit-guinea fowl. B&B doubles from £320 a night, garden rooms from £600 (thyme.co.uk).
Castle Combe, further south, is the home of the 14th Century House. The rooms feature four-posters as well as fireplaces. For traditional pub food or Michelin-starred cuisine, you can walk down to Castle Inn. B&B doubles from £190 a night (exclusive.co.uk/the-manor-house/).
Norfolk’s big skies and windmill sails are the perfect place to relax.
You can bathe under the stars on the private patios of the new Orchard Cabins at Congham Hall near King’s Lynn
You will be warm in your Orchard Cabins, which are equipped with heating underfloor and a king-sized bed.
The wall of windows in each of the five new Orchard Cabins at Congham Hall near King’s Lynn is designed to bring the outside in, while you stay toasty in a room with underfloor heating, king-size bed and a rolltop bath. Outside, you can also take a dip in the pool and soak under the stars on your private patio. Binoculars provided. You can relax in the Georgian Mansion and take a seat by one of the open fireplaces. You also have the option to head to Secret Garden Spa, where you can warm up in the hot tub or indoor pool overlooking the parkland. A night’s dinner with B&B in a cabin from £399 (conghamhallhotel.co.uk).
If you’d rather cuddle up on the coast, the Wheel Room in Cley Windmill is the place to do it. To access the room you will need to complete a waiver. This involves climbing up a ladder with a carpeted surface. There is a fourth poster upstairs, as well as four windows that allow for views out to the ocean. B&B doubles from £179 a night (cleywindmill.co.uk).
South of the border, candlelit corners and cask ales
Lime Wood (pictured) is an excellent base for exploration of the New Forest.
Lime Wood has half of its country-style rooms with open fireplaces and wood-burners. Above is the Forest Cottage master bedroom.
The picture shows a bunkbed in Lime Wood’s Forest Cabin. Doubles cost from £405 a night
Brick and flint Ram Inn is located in South Downs National Park. Each of the main rooms has an open fireplace, so you can dine and wine in the candlelit nooks.
Enjoy the Firle Estate’s cask ale with game and meat from local farms.
The cosiest of the pub’s six rustic-chic bedrooms are under the eaves. B&B doubles from £130 a night (raminn.co.uk).
Lime Wood is a great base to explore the New Forest, especially for those who have more money.
You can cycle to The Pig in the Forest and then return glowing with the beauty of the spa.
In the evening, sample some of Angela Hartnett’s renowned truffle dishes before retiring to the country-style rooms, from eaves rooms to forest lodges and cabins, half of which have open fires or wood-burners. Doubles from £405 a night, room only (limewoodhotel.co.uk).
Highland hospitality and Irish wildlife
Kinloch Lodge on the Isle of Skye can arrange for both fishing and foraging.
Kinloch Lodge, the home of the Macdonalds of Skye is filled with Highland hospitality. It has a firepit out front and roaring fireplaces in the interior.
A spa that boasts a Roman bath, called the Relaxation Burrow, will be opening in Antrim’s Rabbit Hotel on March 1.
Kinloch Lodge is a great place to forage and fish, but you may rather enjoy the magnificent views of Loch Na Dal from the bottom of your garden.
The Macdonalds of Skye family home is full of Highlands hospitality, with a firepit out front and roaring fireplaces in the interior. You can book a room that has a view of the loch and offers a roll-top tub where you can relax under goose feather duvets. B&B with dinner from £160pp per night (kinloch-lodge.co.uk).
Lough Neagh is a significant bird sanctuary in Western Europe, and the Rabbit Hotel can be found close to Antrim. Inside, it’s all Scandi-inspired style, from small attic rooms to larger ones with outdoor bath tubs and wood-burners. The Relaxation Burrow, a spa featuring a stunning Roman bath, will open in March. B&B doubles from £175 a night (rabbithotel.com).