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25 Best Hotels in the United Kingdom
Rich Beattie December 8, 2006
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From the bustling cities of London and Glasgow to the refined countryside, the UK has an impressive array of hotels and resorts worthy of being called “world’s best.”
That’s the judgment of the expert panelists who chose the best hotels in the UK for Forbes Traveler.
Which is #1? Forbes Traveler didn’t rank them; instead, we had our panel choose the overall best places, based on factors such as room quality, service, décor and location. We wanted to make our compilation much more than a list—we wanted it to be a real resource, a place travelers could turn to find the absolute best places to stay. So not only did we choose them, but we also had professional travel writers who have stayed in these hotels review them, offering an in-depth look at the rooms, service, and other highlights. And since these writers didn’t accept a complimentary rate, they could provide an honest assessment.
See our slideshow of the 25 best hotels in the United Kingdom.
What did we find? Not surprisingly, London features a full complement of top-notch accommodations. In fact, our panel voted in 15 properties, edging out New York as the city with the highest number of selections. The luxury chains—like the Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental—are represented, of course. But London also has its share of small hotels more reminiscent of a gentleman’s club: the family-run, 71-room Goring; the 81-room Stafford; and the 65-room Cadogan, which opened its doors back in 1887. History lives on at the Ritz Hotel as well; its 100 years of operation have only made it better.
Get outside the city and be swept back into Jane Austen’s era at places like Lucknam Park, complete with an elegant Drawing Room and English croquet lawn. Or take a more contemporary approach: Oxford’s Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons, a 17th-century manor house, may look positively proper, but rooms—with names like Opium and Rouge et Noir—ooze style and sensuality (and don’t miss the restaurant and its two Michelin stars). Up the contemporary quotient even more at Cowley Manor, where lime-green couches and cowhide chairs bring Alice in Wonderland to mind (and indeed, Lewis Carroll stayed here). Manchester, too, offers a contemporary option: the chic Lowry Hotel from Sir Rocco Forte.
But the Forbes Traveler experts also love England’s traditional luxury as well, like Bovey Castle in Dartmoor National Park, a 1906-era country estate set among rolling moorlands that are perfect for golf and hiking. Another “world’s-best” option: the Georgian-style Royal Crescent in Bath, full of 18th-century antiques. If your travels take you north into Scotland, the Forbes Traveler experts recommend the contemporary One Devonshire Gardens in Glasgow as well as the Edwardian Balmoral in Edinburgh. And of course, a stay at Gleneagles is de rigueur for any upscale traveler, especially golfers. This 850-acre estate has three courses (with the Old Course at St. Andrews nearby), while the hotel itself is a 1924-era gem where you can pursue pastimes like falconry and clay-target shooting.
See our slideshow of the 25 best hotels in the United Kingdom.
