Cornwall


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-where">WHAT? WHERE?</h2>



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<p>Thought to be the inspiration for Toad Hall, in Kenneth Grahame&#8217;s&nbsp;<em>Wind in the Willows</em>, <a href="http://luxuryfamilyhotels.co.uk/locations/fowey-hall/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Fowey Hall Hotel</a> is a dreamy family staycation – close to the beach, Cornwall’s biggest attractions and plenty of fun stuff at the hotel for kids and adults (hello spa, cinema room and zipwire). You’ll find this Victorian mansion perched just above the sailing town of Fowey on Cornwall’s south coast. Set in five acres of terraced and landscaped gardens, the building dates back to 1899 and most of the rooms enjoy cracking views of the estuary. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Fowey-Hall-Hotel-Muddy-Stilettos-Fowey_0255_low-1000x667-1.jpg" alt="Fowey Hall dates back to 1899 period manor house in Cornwall" class="wp-image-88043" /></figure>



<p>Following a multi-million pound refurbishment, Fowey Hall reopened in 2023 and was swiftly crowned Luxury Family Hotels’ flagship hotel. In addition to the 24 new rooms and suites, a swish new outdoor pool and expanded spa (hello relaxation room and terrace) were added to the luxury loafing menu. Two new suites, the gorgeous Lantic Bay Suite and Polruan Suite now sit atop the renovated spa, boasting commanding sea views from private, elevated balconies.</p>



<p>It is a short but fairly steep walk down to the&nbsp;waterside or along the road to Readymoney Cove – that’s if you can&nbsp;find the&nbsp;will&nbsp;to leave the hotel at all. We&#8217;d have been quite happy marooned here for weeks – the kids certainly did not want to check out.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-vibe">THE VIBE</h2>



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<p>It’s&nbsp;traditional with quirky modern touches, so think roaring fires and cosy corners combined with eclectic art. It’s luxe yet laidback, and the furnishings are mansion-worthy without the fear a smashed Ming vase will be added to your bill. Think squishy sofas to curl up on with a good book &#8211; but with child-friendly entertainment in every corner. Essentially, plenty of fun kid-time as well as precious ‘me time, thanks to all the&nbsp;inspired, family-friendly touches.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scoff-amp-quaff">SCOFF &amp; QUAFF</h2>



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<p>Fowey Hall does classic really well and that extends to the menu. Dine with the kids in the relaxed family-friendly dining, or make the most of your 90 mins complimentary child care dial up the romance in the adult candlelit dining room.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The á la carte evening menu features quality local produce, from fish landed in Fowey to meat from&nbsp;Cornish&nbsp;farms as well as crowd-pleasing family favourites. Lunch is sandwiches, small plates and afternoon tea comes highly recommended if you have room.&nbsp;</p>



<p>A full children&#8217;s menu is available including purees for the littlies and evening meals start at 5.15pm, with small plates and half portions available. When your children are settled for the night, you can switch on the listening service or book a sitter and enjoy proper (rare) kid-free dinner.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The atmosphere in the candlelit dining room is&nbsp;intimate with a grand manor house feel. It’s mostly full of couples and families with older children. Although super casual, if you want to get dolled up for dinner you wouldn&#8217;t feel out of place. Don’t miss the opportunity to indulge in a fireside nightcap, there are lots of rums, whiskeys and cocktails to try – and you’ll want to prolong your re-entry into family life for as long as possible.</p>



<p>During the winter months you&#8217;ll find Alpine-inspired domes on the terrace where you can book cheese or chocolate fondue as well as drinks – for an après ski vibe.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pillow-talk">PILLOW TALK</h2>



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<p>Home for the weekend was a sea-view suite called Hoskin, tucked up under the eaves but with plenty of space for the whole family. The kids’ had their own room with bespoke bunk bed and bathroom, complete with roll top bath. We slept in a beautiful antique bed with a further giant bathroom (and another roll top bath), with sea view and there’s was a fun turret room for watching TV. Robes for everyone were provided, along with a Yoto player and three TVs so that everyone&#8217;s viewing and listening tastes could be entertained simultaneously.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Fowey-Hall-Hotel-Muddy-Stilettos-Fowey_0227_R_low-667x1000-1.jpg" alt="Fowey Hall Hotel Cornwall bunk beds deluxe room" class="wp-image-88039" /></figure>



<p>Lovely touches in the bathrooms included a freestanding makeup mirror and the entire Bramley toiletry collection in full-sized bottles for use during the stay, plus bubble bath and bath racks. Chill a bottle of something in the room fridge, or order room service and lay back for some proper relaxation while the kids enjoy listening to the audio-books provided.</p>



<p>For those with a bigger budget, the Lantic Bay and Polruan suites have a better sea view and easier access to the pool, as well as terraces and direct access to the gardens (and all the same luxuries, including Nespresso machines) but all rooms are luxe, spacious and well thought out.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kid-friendly">KID-FRIENDLY</h2>



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<p>You betcha! In fact, I&#8217;ve rarely been anywhere so easy to be with children.&nbsp;Every detail has been considered – from the bottle warmers and spare wellies to appropriate meal times and kids menu. Fowey Hall Hotel has teamed up with Bugaboo for Butterfly pushchairs, Giraffe highchairs and Stardust travel cots available for use, plus a partnership with Yoto means players (and a giant book of cards) can be borrowed during your stay.&nbsp;.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;re travelling with a baby, sterilised and heated bottles of milk are available morning and evening, plus changing mats and cots in your room as standard. Did we mention the 90 mins of complimentary childcare per night’s stay? Well we’re mentioning it again. It’s available courtesy of the on-site Ofsted-registered Four Bears Den (suitable for under-8s) which also has a shaded outdoor play area in view of the hotel’s terrace. </p>



<p>Slightly older children will enjoy the dedicated children’s library and cinema with daily screenings, table football &#8211; not forgetting rabbit feeding and fire pit for marshmallow roasting. Hard to please teens and tweens have not been forgotten either – you’ll find the in the games room, complete with pool, ping pong and gaming.</p>



<p>Essentially Fowey Hall encourages families to spend quality time together, safe in the knowledge that all the little things are taken care of. Kids are welcome across the hotel, from the dining room to the spa and as well as the child specific activities, during the school holidays there is a programme of fun things to do&nbsp;<em>en famille</em>&nbsp;including cocktail making and games.</p>



<p>When the weather is good kids enjoy exploring the gardens &#8211; kicking a football, bouncing on the trampoline,&nbsp;zooming through the air on the zip wire and playing hide and seek &#8211; or borrowing a bucket, spade or crabbing line and heading down to the beach. If the weather&#8217;s bad, there are lots of things to keep them entertained in the hotel,&nbsp;including&nbsp;the heated, indoor pool &#8211; with no restricted timings &#8211; and piles of board games and toys in addition to the cinema and gaming rooms.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-spa">SPA</h2>



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<p>Like every other part of the hotel, the spa has a family-friendly ethos. That&#8217;s not to say you can&#8217;t escape to a quiet room for a good massage and post-treatment relax in the lounger and sea-view terrace, but it is worth noting that the 12m indoor pool welcomes kids at all times (and has an extreme shallow end perfect for little ones).&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Fowey-Hall-Hotel-Muddy-Stilettos-Fowey_0361_R_low-1000x667-1.jpg" alt="Fowey Hall Hotel Cornwall heated outdoor pool" class="wp-image-88035" /></figure>



<p>There&#8217;s a full choice of ishga spa treatments that can be booked for both adults and kids aged 3+ including massages, facials, manicures, pedicures and more. Fowey Hall offers spa days and experiences (although there is no sauna or hot tub). Visiting between May and October and you&#8217;ll also have access to the very glam and sheltered outside pool, with sea views.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-out-amp-about">OUT &amp; ABOUT</h2>



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<p>The&nbsp;pretty&nbsp;town of Fowey is just down the hill and the&nbsp;traditional fishing village of Polruan is a ferry-ride across the water, where you can also walk along to the beautiful Lantic Bay.&nbsp;Mooch through Fowey to watch the boats, grab a coffee or a pint and browse the indie boutiques and gift shops.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Fowey was famously home to author Daphne du Maurier &#8211; you can see her old house by the Boddinick ferry – and every year in May the town hosts a literary festival in her honour. Read more in our&nbsp;<a href="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/travel/uk/travel-guides/insider-guide-to-fowey-cornwall/">insider&#8217;s guide to Fowey here</a>.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/ReadyMoney-Cove-Fowey-RB-image-1000x667-1.jpg" alt="Ready Money Cove beach near Fowey Hall Hotel Cornwall" class="wp-image-88033" /></figure>



<p>Readymoney Cove (above) is the&nbsp;closest&nbsp;beach just a few minutes’ walk down hill, and a favourite place for a swim. When the tide&#8217;s out, borrow buckets and spades from the hotel to build sandcastles. In summer there is a swimming platform and the beach shop is open all year round, serving tea in real mugs that you leave in a bucket afterwards!&nbsp;</p>



<p>From Readymoney you can climb up through the woodland to St Catherine&#8217;s Castle and then onto&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/fowey-estuary/trails/gribbin-head-walk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Gribbin Head</a>. If you want somewhere quieter, or a longer stroll, there’s a lovely walk to Polridmouth (<a href="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/things-to-do/walks-near-me/readmoney-cove-polridmouth-cove-fowey/">see here</a>) that takes in beach views and woodlands before reaching Menabilly that became Manderly in Daphne du Maurier’s&nbsp;<em>Rebecca</em>.</p>



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<p>For beaches further afield, Polkerris and Polperro are both sheltered with bags of quintessential Cornish charm – Sam&#8217;s on the Beach at Polkerris is in the old lifeboat building, sister to Sam&#8217;s in Fowey itself. If you&#8217;re staying longer than a weekend you might want to eat somewhere else other than the hotel. In Fowey, you&#8217;ll find Fitzroy and North Street Kitchen, Appleton&#8217;s, Pintxo and the charming Mardy Bakery owned by Agatha and Jack.</p>



<p>Looe is another local village that&#8217;s well worth a visit, with its safe beaches, restaurants and walks.&nbsp;If you&#8217;re not from&nbsp;Cornwall and have a bit more time to spare, The Eden Project and The Lost Gardens of Heligan are fab family days out and always put on&nbsp;great events during school holidays.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dog-friendly">DOG FRIENDLY?</h2>



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<p>Yes, and not just allowed,&nbsp;<a href="https://luxuryfamilyhotels.co.uk/dog-friendly-breaks/">dogs are actively welcomed at Fowey Hall Hotel</a>&nbsp;and the £15 fee per dog includes a bowl, bed and treats. Every dog is greeted with a woof welcome pack and can also enjoy dishes from their ‘a la bark’ menu and Waggy Tails Tea Time (a canine afternoon tea). The couple at the table next to us ordered their dog&#8217;s evening meal with their own and it was served at the same time as their food, in big bowls carefully placed on the floor, much to the delight of the dog (and my children!).</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-accessibility">ACCESSIBILITY</h2>



<p>There are two accessible rooms on the ground floor with a wet room. The swimming pool is accessible with a ramp and indoor spaces have been configured for access. All dietary requirements can be catered for with notice. Being a Victorian building there are stairs to most other bedrooms and no lift and staff will convey luggage where need.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-muddy-verdict">THE MUDDY VERDICT</h2>



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<p><strong>Good for:</strong>&nbsp;Frazzled parents (particularly of young children) will love it. If you&#8217;re anything like us, juggling fit-to-bursting&nbsp;work and school&nbsp;schedules, a weekend here is the perfect way to slow down and reconnect as a family.</p>



<p><strong>Not for:</strong>&nbsp;If you&#8217;re not keen on children or dogs then a trip to Fowey Hall in the school holidays probably isn&#8217;t for you.</p>



<p><strong>The damage:</strong>&nbsp;During the high season (Spring/Summer) a Classic Room is £360, £105 in low season. A Deluxe View Room, like the one Muddy stayed in, is £435 in high season and £210 in low season.</p>



<p><em><a href="http://luxuryfamilyhotels.co.uk/locations/fowey-hall/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Fowey Hall Hotel</a>, Hanson Drive, Fowey, Cornwall, PL23 1ET. Tel 01726 833 866</em></p>


Review: Fowey Hall Hotel, Fowey, Cornwall

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