Ashdown Park Hotel & Country Club Review
(I stayed at the hotel for free in return for a review, however, all opinions are my own)
Here’s my full and honest review of the Ashdown Park Hotel and Country Club - located in the home of Pooh Bear.
I knew that the Ashdown Park Hotel was going to be grand, but pulling into their long driveway and catching a glipmse of the beautiful manor house still caught me off guard.
One of a collection of period properties owned by Elite Hotels, my sister and I were excited to stay for the night after exploring the local area’s links to Winnie the Pooh.
A Brief History of the Ashdown Park Hotel
Ashdown Park has a rich history and is believed to have been built in the 1800s. The site previously housed a school, which closed in 1970, as well as a church (now demolished). It was even converted into a hospital during World War One, before being purchased for use as a convent in 1919.
The nuns extended the building and lived in the property for 50 years, before it was sold to the United States International University, and later, Barclays Bank. The current owners bought the house in 1993, when it first opened its doors as a luxury hotel.
Today, the historical Ashdown Park has been reinvented into a glorious 100 room hotel with grounds that total 186 acres. There’s a beautiful chapel, two restaurants and a country club available for guest use with tennis courts, a swimming pool, and facilities for golf and croquet.
My Review
I visited the hotel for a night’s stay with my sister, and we checked in after spending the day exploring the local area. Ashdown Forest is known to have been the inspiration for A.A. Milne’s Pooh Bear stories, which he penned just down the road at Cotchford Cottage.
We enjoyed a delicious lunch at Pooh Corner in Hartfield and walked through Ashdown Forest (the inspiration for the Hundred Acre Woods) to play Pooh Sticks at Pooh Bridge, before checking into the Ashdown Park Hotel for the night.
Upon walking inside we were instantly impressed by the building’s grand architecture, which carries a great sense of history and has been wonderfully preserved. Finding our room required meandering down several corridors, and we were delighted by our beautiful suite.
The room had a large and comfortable double bed, which I threatened to halve with a pillow fort should my sister not sleep strictly on her side of the bed. The sitting area had a television, as well as a comfortable sofa and armchair. There was a dressing table, large wardrobe, and hot drinks station complete with a Nespresso machine and little packets of biscuits. The en-suite was clean and well equipped with a jacuzzi bath which we both found to be a hysterical novelty.
My favourite feature of the room was the private terrace area, which was located on the far side of the room and accessible through a set of double doors. Furnished with a table and chairs, this sun trap was beautiful and the perfect place to enjoy a cup of tea while looking out at the grounds (and pretending that I actually lived there and this was my bedroom).
After an excellent night’s sleep, my sister and I headed down for breakfast in the hotel’s large Anderida restaurant. The spread was lovely, with plenty of pastries and a variety of cooked breakfast options available to order.
Keen to make the most of the facilities on offer, we made our way down to the country club after breakfast to spend some time in the spa. While the changing areas could do with a refresh, the swimming pool was lovely and modern and even came with a jacuzzi hot tub.
We finished our visit with a snack in the country club restaurant, the Forest Brasserie, where we devoured a pile of chips (my sister accused me of being a chip eating machine, which may or may not be true). It was with great reluctance that we eventually left the hotel grounds before setting off on our two hour drive home.
It’s hard to describe how special this hotel is. There’s so much to explore - nooks and crannies have been filled with cosy armchairs, there’s a Drawing Room that serves afternoon tea, and grounds with an entire forest to explore. This is somewhere that you could easily spend a long, wholesome weekend, popping out to visit the local town and exploring the home of Winnie the Pooh.
Some of the reviews claim that parts of the hotel are tired and could do with refurbishment, and while it may feel that way for guests who prefer ultra modern decor and furnishings, that’s not what this hotel is about. Instead, we thought that the Ashdown Park Hotel had a comfortable, lived-in feel that that’s both friendly and welcoming, while also feeling grand and luxurious. It really suited the history of the building and is the sort of place we could imagine ourselves living if we had been born into the landed gentry.
Before we left my sister and I made sure to take a peek at the chapel, and were met with a stunning surprise!
Having been dressed up for the hotel’s wedding showcase, the Chapel might be one of the most stunning venues I’ve ever seen. They offer a variety of packages for weddings big and small, making this the ideal place to host a dream wedding.
How to Find the Hotel
The Ashdown Park Hotel and Country Club is located at the following address:
Ashdown Park, Wych Cross, Nr Forest Row, East Sussex, RH18 5JR
The easiest way to reach the hotel is by car, and free onsite parking is provided.
Alternatively the closest train stations include East Grinstead, Haywards Heath and Tunbridge Wells, although you will need to arrange onward transport to the hotel.
A huge thank you to Elite Hotels for hosting me at the Ashdown Park Hotel.
Have you stayed here? Leave a comment and let me know!