The Castle Hotel, Shropshire
A 300-year-old hotel, built on an ancient castle bailey, The Castle Hotel is surrounded by the pastoral bliss of Shropshire countryside. Welcoming dogs as well as their owners, it lends itself to a little luxury after a day outdoors, and for cyclists it aims to make life easy. There is a secured bicycle storage, a hose and brushes to clean bikes after traversing muddy paths, and a bicycle repair kit including a pump, tools, and first aid. For those not bringing their own bikes, cycle hire is available, so there’s everything to make sure you’re ready to get outside and explore on two wheels.
The Cottage in the Wood, Cumbria
With walking and cycling trails from the door and a drying room for when you return, The Cottage in the Wood in Cumbria is a whitewashed 17th century coaching inn with stunning views towards Skiddaw. It’s an invitation to get outside and enjoy the surroundings by bike before returning for an award-winning meal.
Caddon View, Scotland
A friendly guesthouse and restaurant in the Tweed valley, Caddon View is an idyllic spot in Scotland from which to get outside and explore the countryside on your bike in bucolic bliss. When you return there is storage for bicycles and fishing gear to put your mind at rest, and there’s a quintessentially Scottish menu available to restore your energy levels.
Trigony House, Scotland
Surrounded by rolling hills and farmland, Trigony House is a warm and welcoming environment with pretty gardens and plenty of countryside to get out and explore. Bike hire can be easily arranged for adults, kids, serious and amateur cyclists, while the hotel offers a route map to take you to local sites such as Morton Castle down quiet roads. There’s also the 7Stanes Cycle Routes, a series of mountain bike centers in Forestry Commission Scotland forests in the Borders and Dumfries and Galloway with 400km of all-weather trails to keep you entertained.
Tylney Hall, Hampshire
A spectacular, luxury hotel in a Grade II listed country house, Tylney Hall greets you with a tree-lined avenue leading to a palatial Victorian retreat, surrounded by beautiful grounds and offering the most warm and exquisite service. Leisure activities are a way of life at this hotel, from the outdoor pool to croquet and tennis, but amongst them, of course, there is mountain biking. You can hire bikes for adults and children from the concierge, whether you stay within the extensive grounds or head off into the local area.
Pen-y-Gwryd Hotel, Wales
An eccentric and old fashioned hotel at the foot of Snowdonia, Pen-y-Gwryd is a frugal experience in a farmhouse-turned-coaching inn that retains its spirit as a mountaineers’ hostel. For those wanting a pared-back experience away from the trappings of the modern world, this is the place for you. The surrounding area is an adventurer’s dream, as evidenced by the fact that in 1953 it hosted Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay as they trained to climb Everest – stories that the owners may recount to you by the log fire in the evening if you’re lucky.
From a selection of hotels in the Good Hotel Guide – goodhotelguide.com
