Devon
England


The Experience

To experience the natural beauty of the British Isles without making a trip to remote Scotland, pay a visit to this superb hotel in Dartmoor National Park. Rolling moorlands surround this spectacular Edwardian mock-Tudor mansion on a hilltop. Built in 1906, it evolved into one of the grandest country estates in Britain during the '20s and '30s before being neglected. Brought back to life in 2004, it's a place that today is especially recommended for golfers (the course was designed in the '20s to rival Gleneagle and Turnberry) and hikers. But with the '20s' heyday cued by a collection of vintage cars parked out front, it's also ideal for anyone who loves old-fashioned elegance à la the Orient Express.

The Rooms

The lushly elegant rooms are decorated with framed Vogue magazine covers from the '20s and feature Hollywood-glamorous black-and-white bathrooms. Yet they're also spacious, light and traditionally furnished with the same good taste you'd find in a Belgravia townhouse -- think lots of chintz, fringe and thick-pile Axminster carpets. And speaking of good taste, you'll find touches like homemade fudge and sloe gin on your night table at turndown. The best rooms are in the front of the house, since they have superb views of the surrounding gardens, with forest and rolling moors beyond. Otherwise, the staterooms once occupied by the Hambledon family are particularly atmospheric and come with special touches; the Easdon Suite (No. 18), for example, has a wood-burning fireplace and a private terrace.

The Service

Happily forsaking the old stuffed-shirt Jeeves idiom of British country-house service, the style here is young, friendly, professional and earnestly obliging, a reflection of the fact that the hotel is a popular getaway for well-heeled young couples from London.

The Highlights

Unless you're already part of aristocratic English country-house circles, Bovey Castle is about as close as you can get to the real McCoy. And in many ways this hotel is a huge improvement over the private lodges, which tend to be austere. Bovey is a jolly sort of place too, and one with so many different activities -- you can fly fish, ride, hunt with a falcon, learn to keep bees or make sloe gin -- that it's perfect for a real vacation. The alternative, of course, is to ignore this menu of diversions, sleep late and have breakfast in bed, spend the rest of the morning in the Elemis Spa, followed by a late lunch, high tea and a late dinner in the dining room with its gorgeous hand-painted Chinese wallpaper. End the day over a single malt with the cheery crowd in the piano bar, or by going on a Heathcliff-like walk on the grounds.

-- Alexander Lobrano

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