Buyagift has kindly gifted me their Luxury Escapes Smartbox for 1 night at a hotel of my choice. The Smartbox is a voucher worth of 99£ to spend on a luxury gateway across the UK and several locations around Europe. It is the ultimate gift for your loved ones, what better than a lovely weekend away?!?
Buyagift has handpicked hundreds of luxurious hotels, country houses, seaside properties and B&B to choose from. When I first looked at the list I knew I am facing a hard decision. Should I go for a seaside break? Cornwall? Bath? Maybe even Europe…
Finally, I’ve made my pick and chose the Heythrop Park Resort located on the edge of the Cotswolds. What attracted me to the hotel was its beautiful surroundings and I was very excited to visit the Cotswolds for the first time.
THE HOTEL- Heythrop Park Resort
Heythrop Park Resort is a luxurious 4-star accommodation surrounded by beautiful nature with a golf course, fancy dinning options and high class facilities.
THE HISTORY OF HEYTHROP PARK
The majestic Heythrop Park was built between 1707 and 1710 by Charles Talbot – the 12th Earl and 1st Duke of Shrewsbury. Charles commissioned the architect Thomas Archer to design a house at Heythrop in Roman Style.
After Charles’ death, the ownership of the Heythrop property moved to his cousin Gilbert Talbot and he was the one who developed the interiors. It was kept in Gilbert”s family and was passed through various generations until a fire in 1831 destroyed its interior.
Thereafter, the house was passed from family to family until 2000 when it was bought by Firoka Ltd – with the aim of restoring the house to its former glories and establishing and luxury hotel and a country club.
Heythrop Park was then refurbished and made into a series of lounges and meeting rooms, along with guests bedrooms.
Since then, the hotel has been sold to Warner Leisure Hotels and is operating successfully as a resort and a country club.
MY EXPERIENCE
This beautiful hotel is where old meets the new. I especially loved the 18th-century interior in the Manor House which along its stunning green surrounding gives it the ‘wow factor’. Guests truly get to experience a calming and breathtaking atmosphere.
What I loved the most is not only getting to stay at a property with such rich history, but also its position within the park. It felt like a truly authentic experience being able to look at the stunning greenery views from the front of the building and then talking a walk at the huge park.
Heythrop Park is what I consider as one of the most beautiful traiditional hotels in the UK.
OUR WEEKEND AT THE COTSWOLDS- ITINERARY
We took advantage of the hotel’s location and explored that area of the Cotswolds. I’m happy to share with you our itinerary so that you can enjoy it too.
DAY I: Blenheim Palace
On our way to the hotel, we decided to make a stop at the breathtaking Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire. The palace was built in 1722 and it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I’ve wanted to visit Blenheim Palace for along time now after looking at its beautiful photos and I finally had a chance.
The palace is surrounded by beautiful gardens and has amazing views and walking paths. we could have easily spend the whole day there walking around and exploring the majestic gardens.
If the palace suspiciously looks similar to you to the hotel we stayed in, that is because they were both made by the same architect, Archer. This fact definitely may account for the similarities between the two properties. It was so cool to find out that we just visited the palace and now we are going to stay at a hotel designed by the same architect.
We then drove to our hotel to check in and spent a relaxing evening.
DAY II: Bourton-on-the-Water
The next morning we explored the hotel’s surroundings before checking out and driving to the lovely Cotswold village Bourton-on-the-water.
Bourton-on-the-Water is a village in the rural Cotswolds area of south central England. The River Windrush is crossing the village creating beautiful canals. It is due to the canals that the village earned its nickname as the ‘Venice of the Cotswolds’.
There are various attractions in the village like Birdland, the Model Village, Dragonfly Maze and the Motoring Museum; All of which makes this charming Cotswolds village to be one of the most touristic places in the Cotswolds.
Me and my fiancé loved exploring the village: walking on the low bridges, taking photos with the traditional stone houses and having a break at a local tea house.
We ended the day exhausted but content and made the 3 hours drive back home with a taste for more. I definitely hope we can go back to the Cotswolds again for another lovely and romantic weekend.
PHOTO GALLERY
- Disclaimer: the voucher was gifted to me by Buyagift but I was not paid for this post.
