From Sussex To The Cotswolds: The Ultimate British Road Trip

Rosalyn Wikeley sets off on a road trip designed by B Corp-accredited Exclusive Collection, from Sussex vineyards to the Cotswolds 

Review: An Exclusive Collection Road Trip With Polestar

The problem with a British staycation is, in my humble opinion, that it’s over too quickly. One minute you’re rattling down the M3 or the M40 towards some Georgian beauty with croquet and spa ambitions; next – poof – you’re sitting on your case again, squashing in the tennis-swimming-lounging kit for check-out, wondering how two days of garden martinis and walks can whip by at breakneck speed. 

An increasingly popular solution to this is to take more time off and map out a road trip. Conveniently, upmarket country stay connoisseur, Exclusive Collection, has sprinkled its hotels across England’s most bucolic patches, from Sussex to the Cotswolds and beyond. 

I’m joining the dots between four properties – or more correctly, the enormous screen of our Polestar 3 is. Much to my two small daughters’ delight, a scenic zig-zagged road trip has been mapped out to take in swimming in Sussex vineyard country, a Surrey spa stay, a cookery school at a country house hotel outside Winchester, and finally a postcard-perfect Cotswolds village of rose-smothered cottages and old pubs, of which The Castle Inn is Exclusive Collection’s very own. The hotels are all well-equipped with charging stations for the Polestar, and play to the unique character of the building and landscape they occupy. 

South Lodge

None more so than South Lodge, where curved timber and steel lodges The Reeds overlook a lake (which brave guests swim in) and vines grown in partnership with Ridgeview sparkling wine. These are then harvested for South Lodge’s signature vinotherapy treatments and products made exclusively with Pelegrims. The wine is delicious, actually – best enjoyed, it turns out, from a hot tub, overlooking the lake, in the rain. Something close to euphoric. 

South Lodge’s big draw is its wild swimming pools, incorporated into its impressive spa with a freshwater pool (reeds, algae and all) as well as the lake we’re hovering over while tucking into a Famous Five-esque breakfast hamper delivered through a cubby-hole. We load up on warm pastries, eggs (with clever cooking devices stocked in the blonde-wooded kitchen) and local orchard jam on toast in preparation for a morning rally on the tennis court. 

Following a spanking-fresh kitchen garden lunch at the spa’s dairy-free and zero waste Botanica restaurant and a brief vineyard mooch, my daughters are excited to be back in the car, staring at the large screen, anticipating her next trick. Organising our next route via my vocal instruction was an easy win. ‘Hurry, Polestar already said she’s ready to go.’ 

(c) Rosalyn Wikeley

We zoom northwest via Bagshot train station to scoop up my husband. He’s here for the UK hotel hopping, but also crucially to allow me to clock off and fully sink into the sprawling spa complex we’re bound for. Pennyhill Park sits conveniently just outside the capital, three miles south of Ascot in leafy Surrey, luring those in need of a soak and a stew in its various tubs, steam rooms, saunas and salt rooms. On reflection, the four-course Sunday carvery at Hillfield – featuring an oyster station, Ottolenghi-style salad buffet, enormous hunks of prime steak and spicy pork belly, plus classic English puddings – should have rounded off a spa session rather than preceding it. 

Stuffed, we’re relieved to discover a woodland trail that winds through Pennyhill’s leafy grounds via fruit orchards, giant oaks and sweet meadows carpeted with cowslip and wild daisies. While my husband mans the sprogs I hotfoot it to the many therapy pools outside, dunking myself in and out of hot tubs (complete with waterfall jets) and cold plunges before flopping onto a sun lounger to soak in the afternoon rays. 

Next stop, Hampshire. The Polestar is a thrilling mix of comfort, agility and power, giving it a teleporting quality as if you’ve dozed off in business class and woken up in a new land, or listened to a podcast in Bagshot and bam – found yourself in Winchester. 

Lainston House (c) Amy Murrell

We swing into Lainston House. This magnificent Georgian property sits in acres of manicured gardens and emerald grounds, and is known for its superb cooking school, Season, where you can learn everything from barbecuing with a Big Green Egg or Gozney oven to cooking with star chefs. One of them, Tom Hamblet (winner of MasterChef: The Professionals 2023) runs the hotel’s fine dining restaurant, The Avenue. But after reading the papers and exploring the pretty, topiary maze of gardens bursting with roses and lavender, we head to the more easygoing The Wellhouse. 

Tucked in a charming conversion with gnarled beams and exposed brick, The Wellhouse exclusively (and sensibly) smokes, or plonks, its produce over a wood fire. We tuck into kitchen garden beetroot, carrots and richly marinated mini pork belly as the children (who’ve polished off their cod and those thick, fluffy pub chips) inspect the estate’s original well, encased in glass with an eerie light glowing faintly in the murky depths. 

The evening rolls on far too late for little people as we revel in the balmy weather and Lainston House’s soft, watercolour gardens. It all feels rather idyllic – ye olde England against a backdrop of the main house’s wisteria-browed and rose-freckled façade.

I can’t decide if I’m more impressed by the elaborate mahogany four-poster in our Walnut room, the TV screen by the bath, or the small but-mighty detail that the minibar snacks and drinks are complimentary (available in certain rooms). Peak luxury, surely? To sneak a few squares of chocolate – or, god forbid, sparkling water – without the £15 sting. One of many details Exclusive Collection has clearly really thought about. No one, no matter how successful, enjoys being hoodwinked into a pricey minibar. 

After a greedy, locavore breakfast in the grand salon (with its contemporary, salmon pink twist) the following morning, we head to our last destination: the Cotswolds. 

The biblical rain clears as we glide through the North Wessex Downs, then float high above the picturesque valleys surrounding Bath. Sunlight stencils its way through a thick wood, and the lanes narrow as we approach Castle Combe. In this postcard-pretty village – where roses climb old stone cottages and frenzied spaniels cool down in sequin rivers – sits our final stop in the Exclusive Collection road trip. 

The Manor House

The Manor House is an imposing 17th century pile wrapped in soft lawns, fountains and tiered Italianate gardens reminiscent of those in Lake Como. Behind them lie charming cottages where guests can hunker down, while still enjoying all the spoiling hotel facilities. 

It’s all quintessentially English: croquet on the lawn, deck chairs by white, wrought iron pavilions and afternoon tea on the terrace. The latter, much like The Manor House’s gardens, is a tiered delight – a feast of just-baked scones lathered in clotted cream and jam, cucumber and dill finger sandwiches, and sweet fancies. 

We walk off the cream with a game of giant chess, a competitive croquet match and a breathy traipse up the mottled stone staircase via statues, rosebushes and beds ablaze with foxgloves, lavender and dahlias. 

Michelin-starred Bybrook seems a fitting spot for the last supper. A seasonal, best-of-British tasting menu sprinkled with road-trip anecdotes from the last few days. The verdict is overwhelmingly positive – and as I sit on my suitcase squashing in all our stuff, there’s still time for one last garden martini. 

Exclusive Collection is a B Corp-accredited hotel group with eight country house hotels and estates across England. Doubles from £315 B&B, exclusive.co.uk