Good for:

• Dog friendly
• Racing at Cheltenham
• House-party charm

After three jolly but exhausting days at The Game Fair there is little one wants to do less than motor home and spend an evening disgorging the car amid the usual family chaos. Instead we chose to head towards a calm Cotswold oasis on Sunday afternoon that promised a restful retreat: a country house haven where good food and drink mix effortlessly with idyllic surroundings and top-notch bedrooms.

Country house character in spades

Dumbleton Hall

We were not disappointed. Turn off the Evesham to Cheltenham road heading towards Winchcombe and there is an unassuming right-hand turn to Dumbleton. Not a hotspot on the tourist map, this small, perfectly formed Gloucestershire village is home to the eponymous Hall, now a country house hotel that is nudging its way back into the spotlight. A honey-coloured lodge house signals the start of the drive and we progress slowly through the textbook English parkland. There is the Dumbleton cricket green buzzing in the late Sunday sun with a local derby, where players in striped caps herald the opening day of the Dumbleton cricket week. Cedar trees punctuate the landscape and there, sitting atop the gentle incline, rests a manor that has hosted everyone from Mrs Gaskell and Dickens to the Mitfords.

The Pheasant Lounge

The present Dumbleton Hall, designed by GS Repton, was home to the Holland family (instrumental in founding the Royal Agricultural University at Cirencester) during the 19th century, and latterly the Eyres- Monsells. Following the Second World War it was sold to the Post Office Fellowship of Remembrance as a convalescent home, later becoming a three-star hotel before being bought by American businessman Paul Vezolles in 2021, when a programme of restoration began. Dumbleton reopened in April 2026. On arrival one now finds a 34-bedroom country house hotel in the grand houseparty style: the green-painted panelled hall, sweeping staircase beneath a lantern, tartan carpets and William Morris wallpaper and curtains engender the right ambience. Our room is the perfect place to relax, looking out over the park, with pink putty-coloured walls, high ceilings, traditional sash windows, a four-poster bed and a vast bathroom with deep bath that was gratefully settled into. Then it’s time to explore the park and repair to The Library Bar for a preprandial.

Bedrooms are top-notch

Dog-friendly

Dogs are warmly welcomed at the hotel and can stay in certain bedrooms, which come complete with wooden floorboards, a George Barclay dog bed and dog bowls. If you’re keen to keep your canine companion with you, there is the opportunity to eat in the bar or one of the drawing rooms.

As our hound was as bushwhacked as we were, she hunkered down on the dog bed and we headed to the hotel restaurant, Cedar 1905.

Dining

Delightful menu

The chefs at Dumbleton boast an impressive CV, including spells at Lucknam Park and Le Manoir, and we were delighted by the menu. After three days of bacon buns and a surfeit of game, we eagerly ordered crab and smoked trout to start followed by gilt-head bream with shrimp and creamed sweetcorn and Cornish cod with smoked pike roe, all of which had an elegant simplicity and were delicious. Food is well thought out, local where best, seasonal and refined but without pretension. A blackberry clafoutis and some excellent cheese were happily lingered over.

A welcoming bar

Restful night

After a restful night, a leisurely start allowed for breakfast outside and time to explore the gardens: the lake, grass terraces, borders in flower and mown paths. It was the sort of morning a guest longs for, and one could almost hear the gentle bickering of those house-party ghosts on the croquet lawn. The Hall is at the beginning of an exciting new stage. Secluded woodland pods are planned for the grounds and a 28-seat fine-dining taster-menu restaurant for The Orangerie, both excellent additions to this Cotswold retreat. During the season shooting parties are well catered for (the private Allied dining room seats 16) and with Cheltenham close by, racing guests can find a quiet haven away from the bustle of the racecourse. Or why not simply come to escape for a day or two? You won’t regret it.

Dumbleton Hall Rooms from £310 per night.

DON’T MISS: The history of Dumbleton Hall (The Story of a Victorian Country House). A fascinating book, it is well worth thumbing through the copy in your room while soaking in the sumptuously deep bath. You will see the house and gardens in a new light.

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Photography credit: Helen Cathcart