Ford Abbey
Pudleston,
Midlands
by Sarah Shuckburgh
The family who own Ford Abbey describe it as a luxurious B&B
rather than a hotel, and it certainly has the feel of a
comfortable country house, with framed photographs, silver
and pewter ornaments, pictures and books. At breakfast in
the 15th century beamed dining room, orders are taken for
dinner - which is available for residents only. Five
evenings
a week (not Sunday or Monday), the chef prepares a set menu,
using the Abbey's own eggs, and meat and other produce from
neighbouring Willows Farm, which rears Herefordshire cattle
and Gloucester Spot pigs. Before dinner, guests can relax by
an open fire and help themselves to drinks from an 'honesty
bar' on the polished sideboard in the drawing room.
Over the last six years, the ancient buildings of Ford Abbey
have been restored and rebuilt with every mod con. The
original stone flags conceal underfloor heating; bedrooms
and bathrooms are immaculate; and an outhouse contains a
heated swimming pool, small gym and sunbed. A huge medieval
barn has been converted into four self-catering lodges
(sleeping 2-4, minimum stay two nights), each with high
ceilings, open plan kitchens and, upstairs, futuristic
bathrooms built into a central lozenge-shaped capsule.
Everything is extremely tidy: an electric gate seals the
entrance from the lane; tarmac drives connect the abbey,
lodges and other buildings, a flagged terrace overlooks a
brand new stream; and even the plants in the flower beds are
neat.
Monks lived at Ford Abbey until the 16th century, and there
are plenty of references to its ecclesiastical history, with
privet hedges in the shape of a Benedictine cross, bedrooms
with names such as Matins, Vespers and Sanctus. The lodges
are called Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. One beamed bedroom
(my favourite) is decorated with bees - bees on the blinds,
on cushions, on chairs, on the curtains of the four-poster
bed - reminders of the bees kept by the monks, for beeswax.
The ground floor Abbott suite is kitted out for disabled
guests, with remote control curtains, a specially adapted
bathroom, alarm cords which alert the hotel office, and wide
doors leading to the garden and the terrace.
Surrounding the abbey is lovely countryside (you can borrow
wellington boots). This Welsh Border country feels remote
and rural, but Hereford and Leominster are within easy reach
by car, as are the gardens at Eastnor Castle, Hampton Court,
Stockton Bray and Bryn's Ground.
First published by Travel Intelligence Ltd
©SarahShuckburgh |
