Brooks Country House introduces vintage horseboxes as stylish glamping option.
Brooks Country House, the Georgian manor house hotel which opened between the pretty town of Ross-on-Wye and the cathedral city of Hereford last summer, will be introducing a glamping option just in time for spring. This month, three vintage Bedford horseboxes will open as alternative guest accommodation in the hotel grounds, each custom designed and renovated to an exceptionally high standard. Sleeping 2-4, the horseboxes are perfect for romantic breaks and fun family adventures.
Prices are available from £99 per night based on two sharing the smaller vehicle on a B&B basis and increase to £139 per night based on up to four sharing the largest vehicle on a B&B basis. For further information or to book, visit www.brookscountryhouse.com
This will be the first rural glamping location for the established Brooks Hotel brand, which already has a number of airstream caravans up on the roof of Brooks Bristol Guesthouse, overlooking the rooftops of the city. Each of the coach built Bedford horseboxes (two are from the 1960s, with one slightly newer 1980 model) have been refurbished to a very high specification with ‘metro tiled’ wet rooms, Hansgrohe power showers, flushing toilets, LED lighting, memory foam mattresses, goose down pillows, fabric from Designers Guild and flat screen TVs and classic Roberts radios. The vehicles have been clad with a deeply polished mahogany and trimmed with Brooks’ signature navy blue. Each has its own private glass-sided terrace with fuchsia painted corner stilts, foliage screening and courtyard views.
Horsey guests are sure to enjoy the extra design details that the owners have added to give a nod to the boxes’ equestrian heritage; from vintage horse prints on the tongue and groove walls to knotted lead ropes tying up the bunk beds and bookshelves housing kids classics such as National Velvet and Black Beauty.
The smaller box (approx 80sqft) sleeps two comfortably in a double mezzanine bed, whilst the other two vehicles both sleep up to four (two adults and two pre-teen children aged under 12) with a large living area (approximately 140 sqft) featuring fold down bunk beds and the double bed in the Luton over the cab.
The glamping area is situated in the courtyard of the hotel, adjacent to the coach house and a short walk from the main hotel, the swimming pool and relaxed terraced areas. Although the vehicles are fixed to the ground, young guests will enjoy climbing into the cab to do some pretend driving, whilst couples and parents are sure to enjoy the convenience of the hotel’s facilities just a short walk away – including a restaurant, bar, children’s games room, gym, Swedish barrel sauna (with bucket shower) and outdoor swimming pool.
The hotel itself is located at Pengethley Manor , which previously operated as a hotel before closing down in March 2015 and since then has undergone major renovation to combine the charm of the original house with some fun and modern additions. Interiors boast Cole & Son wallpaper, paneling from the original Tudor house, antiques and paintings from one of the owners’ grandmothers (who was a contemporary of Henry Moore) as well as bold Graham & Greene lighting and Philippe Starck ghost chairs.
Although surrounded by 13 acres of parkland, landscaped gardens, meadows and its own vineyard, the hotel is just an hours’ drive from Cardiff, Bristol, Birmingham and just two and a half hours from London, within easy striking distance of the M4/M5/M50 as well as Hereford train station, which is 20 minutes away.
For reservations or more information, visit www.brookscountryhouse.com or call 01989 730211.