Devon, United Kingdom

Bovey Castle

Price per night from$308.14

Price information

If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (inclusive of taxes and fees) available in the next 60 days.

Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (GBP229.00), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.

Style

Outdoorsy British beauty

Setting

Dartmoor parkland

The thoroughly British hotel that has everything covered for family holidays, baronial Bovey Castle near Dartmoor has waxed jackets and wellies at the ready for your moorland adventures en famille. The estate is vast, so there's plenty to do for Smiths of all ages with exhilarating outdoor activities, delicious dining in the award-winning restaurants and a place to pamper yourself in the luxurious Elan Spa. 

Smith Extra

Get this when you book through us:

A bottle of red wine; little Smiths (under 14) staying for more than three nights get a Bovey Bear

Facilities

Photos Bovey Castle facilities

Need to know

Rooms

60, plus 22 three-storey country lodges with kitchens.

Check–Out

11am, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in is 4pm, although you're welcome to arrive earlier and use the facilities, have lunch and make yourself at home before your room is available.

More details

Room rates are usually room only. Breakfast costs from £25 for an adult (£15 a child); if you've booked the lodge, breakfast hampers can be pre-ordered for delivery straight to your door.

Also

Within the main building, there are two accessible bedrooms, each with a level entry wet room for guests in wheelchairs or with limited mobility. There's a disabled toilet and an emergency alarm.

Please note

Great Western Grill will be closed from 10 to 18 November 2025 and 12 to 27 January 2026. 

At the hotel

Spa, indoor pool, restaurants, bar, family activities, helipad, 275 acres, gardens, woods, outdoor activities, golf course, driving range, tennis courts, putting green, free WiFi. In rooms: flatscreen TV, mini-fridge, kettle, free bottled water, safe, Temple Spa bath products, bathrobes and slippers. Lodges have fully equipped kitchens, a DVD player and utility room with washer/drier.

Our favourite rooms

The Valley Rooms take the win for us, courtesy of their sweeping Dartmoor views. All rooms from the Castle category up can take one extra bed or cot, but the Grand and Junior State rooms are much roomier – some have separate living spaces and dining tables – and they all have space for two extra beds. One of the Grand State rooms has a decked balcony directly overlooking the countryside. For bigger families, there are the 22 three-storey self-catering lodges dotted around the grounds; they each have three ensuite bedrooms and sleep a maximum of six adults and two children (with two extra beds). They also have a utility room, outdoor areas, enviably kitted-out oak kitchens with microwaves and dishwashers and a lounge and dining area.

Poolside

There’s a heated indoor pool which features a whirlpool at one end; it’s adults-only from 7am–9am and again after 5pm (until close at 8pm), but firmly family-friendly for the rest of the day. The area contains a steam room, sauna, a scattering of chic deckchairs and is utterly spotless with fine poolside views over Dartmoor National Park

Spa

The Elan Spa uses Temple Spa products in its relaxing and rejuvenating spa treatments; choose from a range of classic massages, body wraps, age-defying facials, aromatherapy and reflexology treatments, pre- and post-natal massages, and Jessica mani-pedis. The spa's service and attention to detail are excellent, and there's a gym too (open 7am to 8pm).

Pet‐friendly

One medium size dog can be accommodated in a single or Classic room and two dogs in a Castle room or above are welcome (£25 a night, for each dog) with advance notice. See more pet-friendly hotels in Devon.

Children

Very welcome. There are kid-friendly activities and designated family swim times (between 9am and 5pm). Cots, highchairs and stair gates can be provided and extra beds for under-14s are available for £20 per night.

Overview

Anything you can possibly think of, Bovey Castle has thought of it first (if it’s raining, they’ve even got a jacket for you) – from crolf (croquet mixed with golf), falcons and ferrets within the castle’s confines, to the parkland that lurks beyond. Wear out your little ones, so you can unwind over an Armagnac, spend a few hours at the spa, or hit the world-class golf course.

Best for

Kids of all ages.

Recommended rooms

The Castle Room, Valley Room, Junior State Room, State Room and Grand State Room can all fit an extra bed or two (for kids under 15) for £20 a child, each night).

Activities

Older children are welcome to join the adults for activities such as archery, clay pigeon and rifle shooting, and 4x4 off-road driving. For the younger ones, there's the Bovey Bears Den. The KidsZone opens daily for children aged 2–8; it contains craft materials, dressing-up chests, puzzles and games, and wooden kitchen sets. For the older kids (ages 8–18), the TechZone is equipped with an Xbox and games. For access to these areas, purchase a Playzone Passport at the activities desk for £15 a day for one child (£40 for the whole stay) or £25 a day for two children.

Meals

Children are welcome in both restaurants (over-5s only at Great Western Grill), and highchairs and menus are available.

Babysitting

Can be arranged in-house; book with the reception team.

Also

Letterboxing combines orienteering and puzzle-solving and there’s a trail within the grounds of the castle. Ask staff for details, but the basic aim is to locate hidden weatherproof boxes using clues, keeping a log of each one you find. The trail gives purpose to your walking and stops little ones getting bored.

Sustainability efforts

Bovey Castle has a silver award from Green Tourism for its sustainability initiatives, such as drawing all its water from the Bovey River, cleaning and purifying it before pumping it through the hotel.

Food and Drink

Photos Bovey Castle food and drink

Top Table

If you’ve got a babysitter, go for one of the tables by the Great Western Restaurant’s big windows for romantic, wistful views. If you haven’t, you can get some privacy at the front of the dining room, behind tactfully positioned planters.

Hotel restaurant

There are two restaurants: one formal, one less so. Inspired by the glamorous railway company that first opened the hotel, the Great Western Grill is an elegant art deco space with chandeliers, chinoiserie, champagne – the whole shebang. Specialising in afternoon tea, a meal that’s never overlooked by Bovey, guests can linger over sandwiches, scones and homemade cakes by the crackling fire, or overlooking the delicious estate on the terrace. Plus, children can do tea too. Smith's Brasserie is a more casual place to pull up a bucket chair for generously filled sandwiches or Mediterranean themed dishes; desserts are equally satisfying.

Hotel bar

The Oak Bar practically oozes cognac from the cracks of its wood panelling. It’s a sultry spot with high ceilings, huge views of the grounds, and an open fire. Behind the bar, there are 130 whiskeys, plenty of gins, malts and Armagnacs, Dartmoor ales and a long wine list. Children are allowed at any time, but it’s quite an adult setting.

Last orders

Afternoon tea at the Great Western is 1pm–4pm; dinner is until 9.30pm Wednesday to Saturday. Lunch and dinner at Smith’s Brasserie is until 9.30pm daily.

Room service

You can also phone down if you need milk to be warmed for your children. Room service runs from 7am-10pm and includes simple stalwarts such as soup, fishcakes, ploughman's and burgers. A limited selection of sandwiches and snacks is available overnight.

Location

Photos Bovey Castle location
Address
Bovey Castle
Dartmoor National Park
North Bovey
TQ13 8RE
United Kingdom

Bovey Castle is a grand country house hotel in Devon that sits within the boundaries of Dartmoor National Park. It’s in the northeast of the park, near the tiny town of Moretonhampstead, which is notable for having the longest one-word place name in Engla

Planes

The nearest airport is Exeter International (www.exeter-airport.co.uk), a 45-minute drive away.

Trains

Exeter St Davids train station is a 40-minute drive away. You can reach Exeter St Davids in just over two hours from Paddington with First Great Western, or in three and a half hours from Waterloo with South West trains.

Automobiles

The hotel is easy to get to from the M5 - it’s about a 30-minute drive once you exit the motorway. If you’ve got a SatNav, the postcode may throw you off-course, so enter ‘Bovey Castle Golf Course’ instead. Your room rate includes valet parking. If you want to hire a car from Exeter, there are rental booths near the train station and at the airport.

Other

There’s a helipad near the hotel. Call ahead to organise your arrival, and have your insurance documents ready. From here, the hotel will send a vehicle to meet you.

Worth getting out of bed for

There’s no cosier place to be on a rainy English afternoon. Take your afternoon tea by the fire and borrow a board game – there are three gorgeous communal rooms to while away the time in. Or, if you’re fond of the elements, borrow wellies and a wax jacket and do whatever you’d do if the sun was shining. Besides the golf and spa, there are lots of adult activities the hotel can help to arrange, such as cider and sloe gin-making in the barn, clay pigeon shootingarchery, and 4x4 off-road driving experiences.

The Dartmoor setting is bliss, and Bovey Castle puts you in prime position to enjoy it, even if you’re not usually very outdoorsy. You don’t need to travel very far away for an epic family adventure, whether it’s history, wildlife, the seaside or ice-cream that floats your brood’s boat. Dartmoor National Park is just outside, too. If you don’t want to go it alone, Bovey’s activities coordinators can plan a tour to suit you, whether you want to set foot on some lesser-trodden spots, or you like the idea of a War Horse Moor Walk, taking in some breathtaking filming locations. Speed to the good stuff (and spare a certain Little Smith’s feet) by turning your walk into a safari in Bovey’s Land Rover Defender. There are spectacular views from the top of Hound Tor, a jumbled granite outcrop overlooking the moor. Impress (or spook) the kids by telling them where the tor gets its name: according to local legend, it’s made of a pack of hounds, turned to stone. Feeling energetic? There are bikes to borrow  within the property for the whole family for a half day or a full day, complete with a helmet, bike repair kit and map.

For a family day out at the seaside, Bigbury on Sea is your best bet – the water is shallow, the sand is soft and the area is dotted with rock pools to keep your budding marine biologists entertained. There are bodyboards to hire and lifeguards on duty. Make an adventure of Burgh Island – accessible on foot at low tide, or by ‘sea tractor’ at high tide. 

If you’re not spotting enough animals at Bovey, there’s loads to see at Pennywell Farm, a 30-minute drive away, plus farm-themed rides, theatres and quad bikes. Watch out for the miniature pigs, which steal the show every time. 

Local restaurants

Pubs like The Horse Inn on George Street in Moretonhampstead are worth going on holiday for. The dining room of the ex-barn is beautiful, the food locally sourced – a bright, exciting menu might include 21-day-hung Dartmoor steak, butter-poached hake or a pizza topped with home-made meatballs. The whole clan can relax: pizzas have fresh toppings and there's a chest of toys and a roomy patio. At Lake Sourton, the thatched Bearslake Inn is run by the Cross family, who live and breathe Dartmoor. The building used to be part of a farm and the hallways are adorned with photos of those who have lived and worked there. The restaurant is crisp and smart but wholly unpretentious. There’s a children’s menu and the chef will happily scale down most meals on the main menu too. The Ring of Bells in the local village of North Bovey is also a firm favourite, and walkable, via the river from the estate.

Reviews

Photos Bovey Castle reviews
Bertie Herrtage

Anonymous review

By Bertie Herrtage, Crowdfunding guru

Winding our way down Dartmoor lanes in the pitch dark night of a winter’s 5 o’clock is an adventure in itself. My well-meaning and helpful passenger Lily, or Lily-Nav as I like to call her, assures me that I went the wrong way ages ago. As my carefully selected route begins to look less and less like an actual road and more and more like a farm track, a whispering voice deep inside me quietly broaches its concern that she could be right.

In order to deflect what could be another substantial blow to my driver’s pride, already slightly diminished after missing the last turn, I was obviously going to feign complete confidence, even if it meant driving off a cliff to get there. The best I could muster of sanguine replies was a quick blast of, ‘Where’s your sense of adventure?’, before thankfully arriving at what seemed to be the hotel’s service entrance, or as I was keen to phrase it, ‘probably the local’s way in’.

Rest assured that soon, once we had passed through a complex of kitchens and delivery bays, we pulled up in front of a very welcoming site, the spectacular and beaming warmth of Bovey Castle. Here we were met by Maz, a very well-turned-out steward and porter of the castle, who was to become our friend and ally in the few nights that we stayed here. Maz assured us that he wasn’t completely horrified by the great mountain of luggage that accompanied a photographer, her chauffeur and labrador Bob, and together we hobbled into the castle.

Once you find yourself inside this place, your world completely changes. No longer was I Bert from Banbury, but, like a phoenix stepping out of the ashes of his former self, Albert of Bovey was born. Quite a similar bloke as before really, but with slightly better posture and a hastily tucked-in shirt. Glancing over at Lily to see what kind of transformation had been wrought upon her, I was shocked to see that she too had remained much the same but then again, she always did have a queenly bearing.

In this new setting of fantasy and bewitchment, she began to turn to me in what felt like slow motion, her mouth poised to begin what could only have been a ballad of Disney proportions but instead sounded a bit like, 'Isn’t it amazing, apparently there’s a dog bed for Bobby already in the room'.

This was amazing. Bobby’s current bed was a sorry sight, what can only be described as a smelly, deflated and hairy balloon, worn out by the enthusiastic and romantic attentions of its occupant. Bobby would be delighted in this new change of scenery, but warned us with a knowing gaze that this new bed was about to change shape forever and would be unrecognisable by the weekend’s end.

The next few days were unbearably good. Breakfast in bed, chess by the fire, three-course meals and ultimately lots of time spent with each other. Yet, what stands out most for me from our stay was the walk we did, starting from the grounds of the castle and heading to the little village of Lustleigh and back. A 10-mile round trip, which spirited us alongside rivers and through ancient woodlands: we climbed to the very top of hills, perched on Dartmoor’s shoulder and descended to the very bottom of its valleys.

We arrived at The Cleave Inn at 2.30pm, just when as our luck would have it, it stopped serving food. The landlord kindly pointed out that we could get a pasty from ‘The Dairy’, a small grocer just down the road that would still be open. I hasted towards this new lifeline with rekindled hope, only to discover that it was closed.

I returned to the pub empty-handed and, needless to say, everyone was horrified. What had been clearly outlined in the parish magazine (it may as well have been carved into a stone tablet) were the words muttered again in disbelief by the landlord: ‘The Dairy open Sundays until 3pm’. Lily looked weak — the missed lunch, false promise of a pasty, distinct lack of fresh lime available for her soda and probably another good two Bertie Hours' walk back (which meant three). Because of the gentle and dreamy pace of our journey, darkness was on our heels and the promised rest at the pub began to evaporate before her eyes. I began speed-stoking her with crisps, not really as high-grade fuel as a Sunday lunch or pasty, but just enough to get the spark back, one which would need careful nurturing if we were to get back with any light at all.

Just as it felt like we had begun to sit down, we were off again. Lily was trailing behind, my enthusiasm a raft, attempting to keep our team buoyed up and on the move. The raft of enthusiasm faced a few rapids, some which could very well have thrown us all in. Fortunately, a previously forgotten apple was discovered in my pocket. How long had it been there? I didn’t know, but split three ways, there was just enough sugar in there to repair and re-inflate the raft.

As the last few inches of sunlight were extinguished, a heavy silence enveloped the landscape around us. Dartmoor in the dark is a different story and one whose punctuation is marked by gentle whispers from the wind, twigs snapping underfoot, owls hooting from above and something always scurrying into the bushes. Winding our way back along rivers, up to the top of hills and hopping over remembered puddles and bogs, the light of Bovey Castle began to reveal itself and we were home.

Needless to say, our stay at Bovey Castle is a cherished adventure and one that we’ll never forget.

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Price per night from $308.14