The Manor House Hotel, Castle Combe - as English as it comes.

Castle Combe, is one of the loveliest of English villages but it’s just so pretty it looks like a film set. No surprise then it’s been the location for many films (e.g. War Horse, Wolfman, Poirot, Dr Doolittle).  But take away the hoards of tourists visiting every day, and it’s rather dead. Like a film set you half expect the rear of the quaint cottages to be just wooden supports.

Consistent with this “chocolate box” village, the Manor House hotel is also a pin up for the tourist industry. Arrival by car is the best approach as automatic entrance gates smoothly open to entice you along a short parkland drive to reveal a magnificent English Manor House, complete with union jack flag fluttering from a pole on a perfectly mown stripped lawn.

Understandably, this stunning setting means the hotel is a somewhat of a wedding factory, and if your arrival is on afternoons from Thursdays to Sundays, expect to rub shoulders with noisy wedding parties competing for photos shots at the entrance.

Inside the main building, open fireplaces, wood panelling, flag stones, antique furniture (some tatty) all add to the ambience, and although the main bar is small there are other period rooms to sit and sip your Sherry.  No one can fault the setting of this quintessentially English hotel.  But that’s where the English bit stops as most of the front of house staff come from other parts of the world.

The Manor House Suites and Cottages are sumptuous but the Mews cottages are really just medieval themed motel rooms crammed full with too much furniture.
The big Nooooooooo! was the ghastly pink soft toy pig strategically placed in the bedrooms.
This naff cousin of Miss Piggy is obviously meant to replace the traditional “Do No Disturb” sign, but seriously could this luxury 5* hotel not think of anything more classy?

The Manor House hotel boasts a Michelin star for cuisine, and having previously experienced bizarre food and mean portion sizes from other holders of this accolade, I was wary or their culinary offerings.  My worries were totally unfounded.  Dinner was excellent and the amuse bouche the best I ever tasted to date.

To be picky, I don’t really like waiters giving you lengthy dish explanations of the food just served.  Firstly, it rudely interrupts your conversation with your fellow dinners and secondly, if English isn’t their first language the result is total confusion – I never found out exactly what post war cheese was!