Our Favorite Hotel Stay of the Month: Coworth Park
With royal wedding fever sweeping the globe, JS editor Chelsea Stuart snuck in a quick trip to the UK to scope out everything related to Meghan and Harry's nuptials. Here, she gives us the lowdown on the Dorchester Collection's ultra-luxe Coworth Park, where the betrothed made their first public appearance together at the estate's polo club last May.
Just forty-five minutes from Central London, bordering Windsor Great Park in Ascot, this Berkshire country estate is every bit the picture of a pastoral English escape. Dating back to 1776, the Georgian mansion has been passed back and forth between Lords and Ladies, including the Earl of Derby who owned it for half of the 19th century. Now a part of Dorchester Collection, the 240-acre property shines as one of the UK’s most stunning stays—sans the stuffy pomp and circumstance you’d likely associate with a royal-frequented hotel.
Though it’s undeniably English in design, Fox Linton Associates, Coworth Park’s designers, ensured the hotel would avoid the clichés of typical country house decor. Rather than overwhelming florals and farmhouse tables, the property’s 70 suites and rooms—split between the main Georgian mansion and nearby converted stables and cottages—are kitted out with English smoked oak flooring, wool, cashmere, mohair, and linen textiles, bespoke rugs, ornate four-poster beds, and free-standing copper baths. Meanwhile, the estate’s signature suite and crowning jewel—The Dower House—features similar decor as well as its own dining room, lounge, kitchen, and garden with a stream that’s home to Coworth Park’s family of swans.
Of course, one of the property’s main calling cards is its polo fields which are managed by the Guards Polo Club—an organization closely linked to the British Royal Family as Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh has been its president since 1955 and Prince Harry and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge are known to partake in their events. Whether you’re a weathered polo player or more of a joy rider, the property also has an equestrian center with 30 horses which are available for jaunts around the estate.
When it comes to fine dining, the hotel also has you covered. Award-winning executive chef Adam Smith serves up modern British dishes—think slow-cooked short rib of beef and roasted monkfish—at the Michelin-starred Restaurant at Coworth Park which, from behind expansive French doors, looks out over the rose terrace, croquet lawn, and rolling meadowland. For something a little less formal, there’s also The Drawing Room, which offers English afternoon tea and pastry service from chef Lucy Jones, The Barn, which offers a rustic brasserie-style menu, and The Bar which pours a new seasonal cocktail every month.
Over at the eco-friendly spa—a largely glass building with a living roof that emerges from the estate’s hillside—guests will find tranquil treatments that use luxe products from Carol Hoy London, Kerstin Florian, and Aromatherapy Associates. Post-massage or facial, relaxation continues in the Spatisserie, a peaceful, light-filled cafe that serves healthy snacks, fruit smoothies, and indulgent flutes of champagne.
When you’re done drooling over photos of the manor, get to planning your own royal escape! Who knows—you could run into Harry and Meghan post-wedded bliss.
Want more?
- Royal Wedding Guide: What to See and Do in Windsor
- Ireland’s Most Charming Bed and Breakfasts
- 12 Versatile Women’s Jackets That Will Take You Through Spring
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