The gradual refurbishment of the Barnsley House Hotel continues. The famed Cotswold garden in which it sits, provides much inspiration to the designers, Fox Linton, in their quest to update the rooms. Set among the simple new furnishings, one is likely to find watering cans or garden implements, providing reminders of the hotel’s location. One room is even dominated by a witty flowerpot chandelier, while walls are adorned with prints of garden plans and pressed flowers.
Some of the best rooms are even to be found in the garden itself. The “Secret Garden” suite is a surprisingly modern building set within a modern walled garden. The building is approached across a tranquil pool, by means of rectilinear stepping stones. The cool grey interior echoes the garden, while also giving a nod to the design scheme elsewhere in the hotel.
Beyond the formal lawns and herbaceous borders of the main garden, lies the potager, where much of the fruit, vegetables and herbs, served in the hotel’s dining room, are grown. At one end a path leads to the romantic and secluded “Potting Shed”. One can only hope romance doesn’t turn sour, as it is here that the walls are adorned with garden “weaponry”!
Perhaps the most impressive suite, with its own magnificent conservatory is the “Rosemary Verey” suite, named after the former owner and creator of the gardens. Although part of the main house, this suite is accessed through its own private courtyard.
A stay at the Barnsley is a treat, not least for a garden lover, and everywhere there are views and glimpses which make it so special.
But perhaps the loveliest view is that to be found in room number 4.
