The Best Hotels in Wales
By Guest Writer
2 years ago
Croeso i cymru a mwynhau eich arhosiad!
If it’s peace and quiet amongst the mountains and valleys you are looking for, cross that border and cease to ignore a country that is greater than the sum of its consonants (of which there are many). These are the best hotels in Wales right now.
Read the C&TH Responsible Tourism Guide
The Best Hotels in Wales
Some reviews are taken from this year’s Great British & Irish Hotels Guide. You can read the full reviews online or purchase your print Hotels Guide here.
The Felin Fach Griffin – Brecon, Powys
This is the first of Edmund and Charlie Inkin’s three wonderfully unpretentious and enjoyable establishments (see also The Gurnard’s Head and Old Coastguard). Set amid magnificent scenery between the Black Mountains and Brecon Beacons, the old inn has become a sanctuary for food lovers, walkers and bookish visitors to nearby Hay-on-Wye, famed for its annual Hay Literary Festival that takes place each spring. A brilliant base from which to explore the natural wonders of Wales.
BOOK
+44 (0)1874 620111 / felinfachgriffin.co.uk
The Bear Hotel – Crickhowell, Powys
The Bear and Crickhowell go hand in hand, like Welsh cakes and bara brith: hardly surprising when you know that the former coaching inn has been offering hospitality to the people of the delightful Brecon Beacons town and weary travellers alike since 1432. The Bear brims with character: low beams, antiques, roaring log fires and, most of all, bonhomie – you could not ask for more. Outside, the attractive white and black beamed building drips with hanging baskets, with a cobbled forecourt and archway into the inner courtyard. In the bar, a 19th-century stagecoach timetable is still on display.
BOOK
+44 (0)1873 810408 / bearhotel.co.uk
The Grove of Narbeth – Pembrokeshire
This striking country house was derelict before Neil and Zoe Kedward restored it in 2007. Today, The Grove of Narbeth is charmingly luxurious. There are 25 beautiful bedrooms – all have a view of the gardens, surrounding fields or Preseli Hills, while some of the cottage suites come with fabulous glass box garden lounges. Dinners in the Fernery restaurant, with stunning wallpaper made from ferns pressed by the team, are a highlight. For more relaxed dining, try the rustic-style Artisan restaurant, or go al fresco in the courtyard, surrounded by apple trees. Whichever you choose, the food is superb; executive chef Douglas Balish’s creations are imaginative, locally sourced and incredibly delicious.
BOOK
+44 (0)1834 860915 / thegrove-narberth.co.uk
Bodysgallen Hall – Llandudno, Conwy
Bodysgallen Hall is a dignified, gentle-paced oasis of calm, only a short distance from Llandudno’s famous promenade and beaches. Climb its tower – the medieval core of the fine 17th-century mansion was allegedly built as part of the outlying defences of Conwy Castle – and you’ll be rewarded with a panoramic view that includes the mountains of Snowdonia National Park. The Grade I listed house is filled with character, and boasts fifteen bedrooms and 16 postcard-pretty cottages within the estate’s 200 acres of wooded parkland.
BOOK
+44 (0)1492 584466 / bodysgallen.com
Gliffaes – Crickhowell, Powys
Standing above the River Usk and crowned by two quirky campaniles, the Italianate style Gliffaes was built in the 1880s. There are lovely grounds and, for fishermen, five salmon and trout beats along the river. Sitting on the wide stone terrace – with nothing but the sound of birdsong and the rushing river – is pretty unbeatable. There are 23 bedrooms, four of which have superlative views over the river and the sky-high hill that shoots up beyond it. With country house fabrics and comfortable bathrooms, the rooms are traditional and pretty. There are copious afternoon teas, James Suter’s knockout martinis and, in the dining room, satisfying dishes that hit the spot. A gem.
BOOK
+44 (0)1874 730371 / gliffaeshotel.com
Penally Abbey – Tenby, Pembrokeshire
This grand Welsh mansion exudes bonhomie, making you instantly relax and feel at home. Owners Lucas and Melanie Boissevain brought the lovely, late 18th-century Gothic house, with its romantic ogee-headed doors and windows, stunningly back to life in 2014. You enter a spacious hallway with wood-burning stove; there follows a bar opening onto a pretty conservatory, an elegant yet homely sitting room and a glamorous candlelit dining room filled with locally collected antiques.
BOOK
+44 (0)1834 843033 / penally-abbey.com
The Bell at Skenfrith – Monmouthshire
Contemporary and cosy rarely coincide, but this stylishly converted, 17th-century coaching inn convincingly combines the two. Since being fully-restored in 1999, the award winning The Bell has maintained a warm atmosphere, with oak beams, antique furniture and comfy sofas beside the fires inside, and a pretty garden terrace for warmer weather. In the candlelit, flagstone dining room, modern British dishes (with ingredients from the kitchen garden) are supported by a well-organised wine list. Monmouthshire is renowned for its miles of country walks and The Bell has created six of its own in and around the Skenfrith area – a brilliant way to explore.
BOOK
+44 (0)1600 750235 / skenfrith.co.uk
The Grove of Narberth – Narberth, Pembrokeshire
This striking country house in southwest Wales was derelict when Neil and Zoe Kedward restored it in 2007. Today, it’s a charmingly luxurious hotel. Of the two main façades, one is three storeys high, gleaming white and many-windowed; the other is gabled, with arts & crafts elements that continue inside. There are 25 beautiful bedrooms including six newly refurbished cottage suites by top interior designer Martin Hulbert. Some come with fabulous new glass box garden lounges; all have a view of the gardens, surrounding fields or Preseli Hills.
BOOK
+44 (0)1834 860915 / thegrove-narberth.co.uk
Featured image: Penally Abbey
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