Great Fosters

Probably built as a Royal Hunting lodge and gracing an estate of more than fifty acres in what was once the heart of Royal Windsor Forest in Surrey, Great Fosters is the most distinguished of hotels. A Grade One listed building blessed with the grandeur of 16th century England and luxurious modern facilities. Immaculately preserved, this stately historic monument also boasts a highly sought-after location, being near Heathrow airport, the M25 and M4, and also near Windsor, Wentworth and many of London’s leading attractions.

Great Fosters’ many reception rooms are richly adorned with oak beams and panelling, Jacobean chimneypieces, fine furnishings and exceptional works of art. Reflecting centuries of history, art and architecture, the rooms are nevertheless immaculately maintained and offer every modern comfort in the most charming of settings.

All the bedrooms and suites at Great Fosters are individually decorated, some with four-poster beds, Persian rugs, gilt furnishings and damask walls, many with tapestries, antiques and artefacts dating back hundreds of years. Guests are accommodated in three separate buildings. The Main House, which dates from 1550, offers a choice of historic suites and bedrooms. The Cloisters, which is reached across a courtyard, offers more contemporary suites and double rooms. The Coach House offers 11 junior suites and double rooms, which were refurbished in the summer of 2008.

Guests may relax with pre-dinner drinks in the Cocktail Bar overlooking the Japanese bridge, beside the open fireplace in the Main Hall, or on the Terrace in fine weather.

The Oak Room restaurant was recently converted into a beautiful and elegant room infused with character. Graceful, exposed oak beams complement its refined, modern décor, and large windows illuminate the room with natural daylight. Specialising in modern English cuisine using the finest ingredients, Great Fosters offers an inspired menu of gourmet food.

Guests have full use of the hotel’s leisure facilities, including a heated outdoor swimming pool (open from May to September), a hard tennis court and a croquet lawn. The extensive gardens alone inspire guests to visit from all corners of the world and have been listed as ‘of outstanding merit’. Guests may also enjoy a round of golf at the famous Wentworth Golf Club, just a few miles from the hotel, racing at Ascot, pageantry at Windsor as well as many other nearby sporting and historical attractions.

Framed on three sides by a Saxon moat, the formal gardens of Great Fosters are both extensive and exceptional. The gardens at Great Fosters were originally designed by W H Romaine Walker and Gilbert Jenkins and are among the finest Arts and Crafts gardens in Europe. Designed to reflect the intricate beauty of a Persian rug, the knot garden is embellished with fragrant beds of flowers and herbs bordered by manicured hedges and topiary. At the heart of it all is the Drake sundial, which belongs to the immediate family of Sir Francis Drake and is believed to date back to 1585. Rising beyond the gardens, the majestic tiered steps of an amphitheatre have been carved into the hillside.

Wander further in this magnificent fifty-acre estate and you’ll discover a vast lake, a grand lawn leading to an avenue of lime trees and grassed amphitheatre and an enchanting Wisteria-draped Japanese bridge linking to a sunken rose garden and tranquil lily pond. Needless to say, Great Fosters has become a celebrated pilgrimage for horticultural enthusiasts from across the world.