THE GROVE, HERTFORDSHIRE
It's difficult to believe, but this country-house-turned-hotel is so close to London that you can reach it by Tube (with a seven-minute cab ride at the other end). On the journey from Watford station a banal strip of suburban housing suddenly gives way to the rolling meadows of a 320-acre estate. The 227-bedroom Grove was transformed from the Earl of Clarendon's dilapidated pile into what now feels like the stately home of an eccentric with a penchant for modernist chandeliers, giant armchairs and huge contemporary sculptures and paintings. This, plus an 18-hole championship golf course and an exquisitely designed ESPA spa called Sequoia, makes it a perfect London escape.
The golf club is in a 19th-century stable block a few yards from the hotel. The course was created by Californian designer Kyle Phillips and is reminiscent of English classics such as Wentworth in Surrey. The club at The Grove is not run on a membership basis, so anyone can play, paying by the round. The spa can be accessed via a tunnel from the main house or through its own entrance. A bamboo- and moss-filled ornamental courtyard in the middle floods the whole building with natural light. Public areas are spacious and calming; walls are white. Chenille eau de nil banquettes line the juice bar, which dispenses Ginger Spice (carrot, apple,orange and root ginger) and Wigwams (grape, kiwi, pineapple and passion fruit). From here, bare-footed therapists lead you away to prepare for your treatment in one of the spa's 13 rooms. Hot stones are used in programmes from chakra balancing and manicures to detoxifying wraps.
It's not all bells and oil-burners, though: there are plenty of non-holistic treatments such as lifting and firming facials and Vincent Longo make-up lessons. The spa has a private dining room, two pools (one outdoor, and an indoor one lined with black mosaic tiles), two fitness studios and, best of all, a candle-lit relaxation room lined in burgundy velvet.
RECOMMENDED PACKAGE
The Sequoia Signature Ritual, £270, includes a consultation, a foot treatment, an ESPA Salt and Oil Scrub, lunch and a Purva Karma Four-Handed Synchronised Massage. Prices per round of golf: hotel guests from £60, non-guests from £65. Doubles from £282
CONTACT
The Grove, Chandlers Cross, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire (01923 807 807; fax: 01923 294 242; www.thegrove.co.uk)
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