Cliveden House - an Iconic Luxury Hotel

太美了，很喜歡

This is certainly one of the finest stately homes made over to a hotel. The suites are generous and beautiful and everything you need. The house paintings and decorations are like being in the national portrait gallery. The staff are excellent and friendly throughout. The gardens and grounds great for walks and the spa is nice if a little old. We loved the food and atmosphere in the Astor Grill. This serves tasty food in a renovated stable and was fun and friendly. The breakfasts are really nice well cooked food and lots of variety. The French buffet room is like something out of Versailles palace. But It’s a shame about the food in the dining room. The service and surroundings and atmosphere and price make you expect fine dining. But the quality is missing. Something is wrong in the kitchen as the fish was overcooked and sauces unbalanced, overpowering the main ingredient and the desert lacked flavour. This is Michelin star price but the food does not match. I can see many other good reviews of the dining room so I hope our experience was not common. But we left thinking that if the food matched the price they would not just be a three AA rosette dinning room. Be in no doubt we enjoyed our two day break but I would recommend eating in the Astor grill. As the dining room left us disappointed. Have a think about Hartwell house if you want to stay in a national trust house with exceptional fine dining. One final point. The spa massages were absolutely fine. But don’t rely on the website to check the prices. The extra “not voluntary” service charge is well hidden in the fine print. I think the Cliveden experience could be 5 star with a little more care in the dining room kitchen and a think about how they advertise prices.

Alas, if I am unable to award a "sixth" star, then a "five" star it shall be! Which means there can truly be no other five stars, as the Cliveden House is nothing short of the most spectacular hotel on the planet. What was to merely have been a convenient overnight stay, albeit an opulent one, in order to get to Heathrow the next morning, turned out to be singularly the grandest hotel experience of a lifetime. Ours was to have been a subdued visit, hoping for no more than to absorb the elegant ambience and to allow our imaginings to transport us to a time of dignity and gentle grace long gone by. But the hotel staff would not permit us to relegate this experience to make believe. In no uncertain terms our splendid hosts at the Cliveden opened its doors with a warmth and social embrace that left us agog. We were not royalty, nor people of even conspicuous means, yet for perhaps the first time in our lives my wife and I were made to feel as such. This was a staff not only of gracious attentions, but also of good hearted humor. Nothing about our visit resonated falsely. My wife and I realized we would never have another experience like this again! Or at least until the next time we visit, which we can assure will be for more than just one night!