Mr & Mrs Smith

Babington House

Somerset, United Kingdom

The launch of the country cousin of media hangout Soho House kick-started the march of metropolitan cool into the countryside. At this impressive manor house in the rolling Somerset countryside, hip staff greet you at the door, not a uniform in sight. The truly relaxing do-what-you-want atmosphere is Babington House's real feat; others can imitate, but it's the service that makes the difference.

Need to know

• Rooms 32 rooms, including 11 in the Main House, three in the Spa, five Family Rooms in the Stable Block, and the Lodge, a three-bedroom cottage at the top of the drive.
• Rates Double rooms from AU$415.34 (£267), excluding tax at 20 per cent.
  The price shown represents the lowest nightly rate for a double room available at this hotel over the next 21 days. Any price conversions from the hotel's local currency (£267) have been conducted using today's exchange rates from xe.com.
• More details Rates exclude breakfast: choose from Continental (£7.50) or Full English (£16).
• Facilities Gardens, Cowshed Spa with indoor and outdoor pools, gym, sauna and steam room, library, pool room (with a stash of cigars), 45-seat cinema, croquet lawn, tennis courts, cricket pitch and DVD selection, free WiFi throughout. In rooms: LCD TV, DVD player, CD player, radio, iPod dock, Playstation 3 console, minibar, bathrobes, slippers, Cowshed bath products, hair straighteners, free bottled water.
• Poolside Babington’s two heated swimming pools are open between 7am and 10pm. The outdoor infinity pool, overlooking the lake, is lined with cushioned, wooden loungers. The indoor pool forms part of the spa complex.
• Check-out 12 noon. Earliest check-in, 3pm.
• Children Very welcome in the Stables Block family rooms. There’s the free Little House crèche for kids aged one and up, and there are designated children’s hours at the pool during the week. Babysitting can be arranged, and there’s a menu for wee ones. More...
• Also There’s a minimum two-night stay on Friday and Saturday nights. Family rooms and the Lodge are normally booked up a year in advance. Weddings are held most Thursdays.

Food and drink at Babington House

• Hotel restaurant

  There are three dining areas: the airy and elegant Orangery, the adjoining made-for-banquets Log Room, and the casual Deli Bar. All serve a self-assured menu of tasty brasserie fare: at the Orangery, indulge in mains such as organic salmon with samphire, lentils and sorrel sauce, or sate carnivorous urges with a selection of grills, including steak, pork chops and cuts of lamb. Sandwiches, pizzas, Babington burgers and house fish ’n’ chips typify the Deli Bar menu.

• Dress code Barefoot or ballgown.
• Top table By day, sit at the edge of the Orangery overlooking the lawn; at night, ask for a restaurant view.
• Last orders The restaurant closes when last guest leaves. Bar open until 2am, later for residents.
• Room service When only grazing on the sofa will do, order from a menu of sandwiches, salads, pizzas and comfort-food mains such as fish and chips any time between 7am and 11pm.
• Hotel bar

  On the ground floor, the House Bar is a curvaceous, high-ceilinged, French-windowed picture of country elegance, where guests hunker down on turtle-green Chesterfields and velvety lilac armchairs.

Also worth knowing

• Weddings This property is suitable for weddings. More...

Babington House Babington House, Nr Frome, Somerset, Northeast Somerset, BA11 3RW