Taking a tour through Round & About county, here the Good Hotel Guide invites you to explore 10 of the top hotels in Oxfordshire.
Offering warm and welcoming places to rest, relax, wine and dine as we head into the autumn months, from pubs with rooms to Michelin Star dining destinations, romantic trips to getaways with friends, here’s to hotel stays from picturesque villages to the city centre.
The Feathered Nest, Chipping Norton
The Feathered Nest Country Inn – Cotswolds Pub, Restaurant & Rooms (thefeatherednestinn.co.uk)
Sitting proudly overlooking the Evenlode Valley, The Feathered Nest is an enchanting restaurant-with-rooms in a former 18th-century malthouse. The gastropub-with-rooms is well known for its food courtesy of newly promoted head chef Rene Pinedo, who takes inspiration from his Caribbean roots with a special focus on seafood and open grill cooking. Interiors offer a cosy atmosphere is keeping with the best of pub experiences, with a crackling fire to enjoy when the weather is cold. Guests staying overnight are treated to welcoming details including home-baked biscuits, an espresso machine and Bramley toiletries and individual style.
The Double Red Duke, Bampton
Double Red Duke | Cotswolds | Country Creatures
The Double Red Duke is owned by Georgie and Sam Pearman – a 17th-century Cotswold stone inn turned pub-with-rooms. The Duke combines heritage architecture with country-chic style, including carefully designed rooms that feature luxurious fabrics, hand-blocked wallpaper and wooden furniture. Food is not your average pub grub – they grill meat and fish over charcoal, cherry and apple wood to add that little extra flourish.
Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons, Great Milton
Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons | Raymond Blanc, Oxford (belmond.com)
The 15th-century manor house where Raymond Blanc has held two Michelin stars since 1984, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons is the epitome of good taste. Now with a green star for sustainability as well, it’s surrounded by magnificent gardens where many of the ingredients for their cooking are grown. The hotel is an enchanting honey-stone building framed by lavender-fringed pathways. The grounds are delightful and inside the rooms are opulent details that range from four-poster beds to silk wallpapers and a decanter of Madeira. The menu is an ever-changing feast of gastronomic delights – with dishes such as roast pigeon, celeriac and prune ketchup or Jerusalem artichoke, leek and truffle.
The Old Parsonage Hotel, Oxford
Old Parsonage Hotel | Luxury 5-Star Hotel in Oxford
In a 17th-century stone manor house, the Old Parsonage is an intimate hotel that sits behind historic gates and welcomes you with open arms. Inside guests find sophisticated and immaculate interiors, with some rooms featuring a Juliet balcony or private terrace. There’s always a hand-written welcome note and a beautifully presented collection of stories by the shortlisted entrants to the annual Mogford Prize, as well as details such as a marble-clad bathroom with under-floor heating and Noble Isle toiletries. At meals, settle into the cosy restaurant and dine on sophisticated dishes such as crispy potato terrine or lamb rump with wild garlic sauce.
The Lamb Inn, Burford
https://www.cotswold-inns-hotels.co.uk/the-lamb-inn
The Lamb Inn is located in the historic market town of Burford on the River Windrush, and has been welcoming guests since the 1750s. Once a collection of 16th-century cottages, it retains plenty of nods to the property’s history with mullioned windows and a log fireplace sitting alongside beautiful interiors that envelop you as you walk in. Luxury touches such as artisan coffee and Molton Brown toiletries are ready and waiting in your room. Meanwhile, food and drink range from a sumptuous dinner menu to light bites throughout the day, sharing platters and a delectable afternoon tea.
Artist Residence Oxfordshire, South Leigh
https://www.artistresidence.co.uk/oxfordshire
An idyllic retreat at the gateway to the picture-perfect Cotswolds, the Artist Residence Oxfordshire is part of the boutique Artist Residence collection of destinations serving up immaculate and individual style. Fun and welcoming, at first it appears as a classic pub, but on entering you discover a world of original inglenook fireplaces and flagstone floors flanked by House of Hackney wallpapers and contemporary art. Food and drink consist of pub grub and a ready supply of local ales, all served under an unassuming thatched roof.
The Wild Rabbit, Chipping Norton
The Wild Rabbit: Award-Winning Restaurant, Pub Rooms & Cottages
An award-winning pub-with-rooms, The Wild Rabbit is an enchanting destination that’s been tastefully styled. Warm and welcoming but with an undeniable elegance, food is at the heart of the experience, serving up seasonal fare on an ever-changing menu depending on which produce is fresh from Daylesford’s organic market garden. The bar and terrace are popular places to relax with a drink, while guests staying overnight can enjoy creature comforts in the stylish rooms above the inn. The colour palette draws on the natural world outside, featuring soothing hues such as a bay-coloured bridle leather and rust-coloured hemp and linen.
The Old Bank Hotel, Oxford
Old Bank Hotel | Luxury Five Star Hotel in Oxford
Close to the Bodleian Library, this five-star boutique hotel is beloved for its high standards and lively restaurant. A three-story stone building in a converted bank, it cuts an impressive figure on the Oxford landscape, delivering unrivalled views of the city’s world-famous landmarks, while inside are high ceilings and an art collection including works by Stanley Spencer. The sense of traditional grandeur is juxtaposed by inherently modern hospitality and aesthetic updates. Amongst its many noteworthy features is the Quod restaurant, a lively ground-floor hub serving up European classics, afternoon teas, and sundowners on the Italian garden terrace.
The Harcourt Arms, Witney
The Harcourt Arms – The Ultimate Village Pub Experience
A charming 17th-century inn, close to Oxford and on the cusp of the Cotswolds, The Harcourt Arms serves award-winning food and is wonderfully stylish. The social hub of the villages, visitors instantly feel a sense of conviviality, whether popping by for dinner, to visit the deli or to enjoy a drink. Contemporary updates are offset by retained historic features and for all its elegance it’s also warm and welcoming. Some elements are particularly grand, like the four-poster bed and a stand-alone copper bath in The Blenheim Suite. The restaurant meanwhile serves pub classics alongside its more elaborate offerings, and it’s surrounded by a half an acre of gardens, so you can sit outside with your drink when the sun shines or simply enjoy the view.
The George Inn, Banbury
The George Inn | Barford St Michael | Near Oxford (thegeorgebarford.co.uk)
In a honey-coloured stone, well off the beaten track, The George Inn is a renovated 17th-century thatched inn turned gastropub-with-rooms. A hub of the community, with eclectic style, it combines beams, inglenook fireplaces and flagstone floors with Buddy Holly prints, fifties film posters and an image of George V in ermine. There are three chic bedrooms above the pub and six in converted stables, complete with underfloor heating, a coffee machine, handmade truffles and botanical toiletries. Dining at the inn is a sensory feast, with details ranging from delicious home-made brownies to breakfasts of fresh pastries, butcher’s sausages, sourdough toast, local jams, porridge with Transylvanian acacia honey.
Explore more hotels in the Cotswolds
