We have been collecting all the best getaway venues: B&Bs, hotels and other places to stay. All great destinations for a weekend away or a bit longer.
Special features
This hotel is a veritable treasure. It is located right in the middle of the New Forest and has the charm of an old country estate. Its interior is cozy and has many very comfortable sitting areas, furnished with old leather sofas, beautiful floor rugs, bookshelves piled with books, and stuffed animals. The whole hotel exudes a kind of shabby chic. In the long hallway a whole row of rain boots (‘wellies’) stands at the ready, for guests to take their pick for a walk in the woods. And everywhere there are blankets to protect you from chills in the cold season. The rooms are small but charmingly decorated. Beautiful tiling in the bathroom, a good bed, a 1950s radio, heaps of magazines and a fantastic drench shower.
What’s for breakfast?
Hotel The Pig is known for having the very best sausage rolls in England, made with organic meat. If this is too rich for you early in the morning, you can select your breakfast from the delicious buffet with organic bread, homemade granola, farmer’s yoghurt, great cold cuts and lots more.
Our tip
The New Forest is a wonderful place to go for a walk. Some parts of the woods still have wild ponies running free. There are also cute little cafés where you can stop for a drink. You can also drive (45 minutes) to visit Jane Austen’s house and see the little table at which she wrote her famous books.
Good food
You won’t be going out in the evening, because the dinners are magnificent at the hotel’s beautiful restaurant. The tables are set with a medley of flea market treasures. All ingredients are locally sourced or from the hotel’s own kitchen garden. They also have a great al fresco spot where they bake pizzas in a wood-fired oven. Wrapped in a blanket you can stay outside until the wee hours.
Good to know
At the head of this restaurant is a very impassioned chef. He often walks into the woods to find things to eat, and guests are welcome to go with him if they are interested. You are also allowed to take a stroll around the fabulous walled-in kitchen garden, complete with greenhouse, pot-bellied pigs and chickens.
Rooms at £ 139 per night excluding breakfast. Not the cheapest of places, but well worth the money.
