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5/5 Paws
Treat your dog to a welcoming and playful stay in the glorious Cotswold countryside; Whatley Manor is gorgeous dog-friendly country house and spa, set in nature with 12 flourishing-acres of gardens and grounds.
Your four-legged friend will feel spoilt for sniffs and exciting areas to discover, kicking at your heels in tranquil surrounds.
The hotel is something of a hot-spot in the area – offering a quintessential countryside retreat with Michelin-starred dining – situated in Malmesbury, on the edge of the beautiful Cotswolds. The dog-loving property is set within beautifully kept grounds, with sustainability at the root of everything; home to a revamped Gaia spa, offering tailored treatments using Sothy’s – an innovative Parisian brand.
Bedrooms are spacious and beyond comfortable; we stayed in a gorgeous ground-floor suite, just off the courtyard with original stone walls, exposed wooden beams and a striking archway where Partridge was welcomed with a pampering pack including a dog bed or basket (depending on your dog’s size), Bob & Lush wet food, a towel, bowl and feeding mat, a toy and a welcome letter, along with some Ramble Routes, the hotel’s garden map and some useful information surrounding places to visit. There are seven dog-friendly rooms available, comprising one classic, two Superior, one Junior Suite, two Suites and one Deluxe Suite, some with their own private entranceway and garden to relax in. A poo-bin is situated outside the courtyard rooms and there are treat stations positioned around the grounds.
We love to walk at Westonbirt Arboretum, just a seven-minute drive from the hotel, heading here for the expanse of ground you can cover, with myriad paths and trails under stunning trees that offer plenty of shaded areas for your friend. Visit during autumn when the leaves are changing for the most incredible display of colour.
We also enjoy a walk through the Duke of Beaufort’s estate on this easy circular walk in the Cotswolds, starting in Great Badminton, you can head to Little Badminton through Badminton Park. There’s also Bathhurst Estate, a private estate with a range of landscapes including open parkland to intimate woodland. And if you’d like to keep it super local, just walk from the bottom of the hotel’s gorgeous sloping gardens where you will find a gently flowing river – from here, head across the fields to the Fosseway.
Within the hotel grounds, it was a dream to explore the lush seasonal gardens and follow the meandering paths down to the river, through acres of manicured lawns and hedgerows, surrounding beautifully scented rose gardens, rare poppies, lily pad ponds, an aged-orchard and thriving kitchen garden.
Guests are welcome to dine with their dogs in the Bar, Drawing Room and the Reception Hall, Terraces, Kitchen Garden and Courtyard for breakfast and lunch. There is also the opportunity for your pal to join you for breakfast and dinner in Grey’s restaurant during quieter week days. Grey’s offers a relaxed setting to enjoy an ever-changing menu, reflecting the hotel’s commitment to sustainable dishes that evolve with the seasonal availability of produce from local suppliers and home-grown ingredients from the kitchen garden.
Kick off your evening with delicious sourdough, whipped butter and olive oil, zingy pickled and salt-baked beetroot with sweet and sour pear and wonderfully fresh Loch Duart salmon with sea vegetables and seaweed-butter sauce. Mains include delicately- flavoursome roast Cornish Ling with baby gem-roasted lettuce and citrus sauce, crispiest Middlewhite pork belly with the sweetest date puree, Wiltshire lamb, served with black olive, cucumber and wild garlic and Wye Valley asparagus with a creamy mushroom ragu.
To keep things sweet, finish up with the lightest strawberry and tonka bean parfait and just-the-right-side of rich chocolate marquise. If your dog is happy to relax in the bedroom, then fine dining is also offered from Ricki Weston in the Michelin-starred The Dining Room.
There’s also a pretty spectacular afternoon tea set up including spinach and broad bean quiche, a selection of finger sandwiches, indulgent patisseries and fluffiest scones with clotted cream and jam.
If you’d prefer to eat out locally, then there’s a couple of great gastro-style pubs and restaurants in the area. We particularly rate The Potting Shed, just is a ten-minute drive away from Whatley Manor, serving creative British seasonal dishes, home to a gorgeous garden area. There’s also The Rattlebone in pretty Sherston, a classic country pub oozing with character, serving modern interpretations of pub classics and The Cat & Custard Pot Inn, a traditional English pub and Italian Chalet offering authentic Italian cuisine and classic pub fare with a modern twist. We also adore The Angel – a cute café-with-rooms set up with a pretty courtyard offering specialty-roasted coffee, yummiest homemade cakes, a great breakfast menu and light bites until 3pm – a great stop-off on our way to-and-from Whatley Manor.
There’s an additional charge of £30 per dog, per night for your dog to stay too.
I was bow-wowed by the expansive grounds of Whatley Manor, with the freedom to run and play down by the river – the most pawfect setting for us four-legs as well as our humans. The staff are incredibly friendly and I was happy to dine with my pack in the restaurant with a comfy bed placed by the table. The sniffs don’t get much better than the Michelin-starred dishes and the breakfast sausage 100-paw-cent made my day! Whatley offers us dogs so much comfort and space, there’s a lot to wag about!
5/5 Paws
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