Bay Tree Hotel

SET IN THE HEART OF BURFORD, The Bay Tree positively heaves with history and a sense of occasion. Behind its pretty wisteria-clad walls and centuries-old Cotswold stone, rich drapes, heavy oak doors and a well trodden wooden staircase lead to opulently furnished bedrooms. This super Cotswolds hotel not surprisingly scooped the Small Hotel of the Year accolade in the 2011 Enjoy England Awards.

Covered with rich quilted spreads, The Bay Tree's big oak beds are occasions in their own right, in rooms where bedtime is to be savoured. Classic ground-floor rooms look out onto a walled rose and herb garden, with the heady scent wafting in through open windows in summer.

Antiques and grand tapestries are deftly mixed, ensuring that the feel is country house that glows with Cotswolds chic. In winter, relax by a lazy log fire after exploring the pretty market town of Burford. In summer, sit on the terrace sipping a Pimms as you count the butterflies and plan a drive out to Blenheim Palace.

Cutting-edge cuisine

Cosy up by the ingleook fireplace in The Bay Tree's oak-panelled Woolsack bar, then step into the award-winning restaurant whose candles are reflected in polished window panes overlooking the rose garden. Old flagstone floors and antique dressers contrast with cutting-edge British cuisine celebrating the best of local produce. Don’t miss the lavish Cotswold teas either.

Polished bedrooms glow with good country taste and florals. Antiques, oak staircases and exposed beams are reminders that guests have been cosying up here for a couple of hundred years. The Oak master suite is a leap through centuries of luxury – a weekend in its own right.

Oxford’s dreaming spires and the million photo opportunities of the Cotswolds are not far away, not to mention the antique and art shops of Burford itself.

© Room for Romance