Vibrant yet elegant, a guestroom at Bishopstrow House

Plenty of hotels offer impressive service with porters on tiptoes awaiting guests. But at Bishopstrow House, the general manager himself offers his hand when I pull up in a taxi, then carries my bags in for me. This is the kind of warmth and lack of pretension that runs throughout this quintessentially English hotel.

Surrounded by 27 acres of untamed countryside, Bishopstrow House is a handsome ivy-clad Georgian building and the latest von Essen hotel to undergo a multi-million pound facelift. Each of its 32 bedrooms has been given a flamboyant lick and polish and a brand-new spa has been added.

Moments after our little party arrives, tea and homemade cookies are laid on in the library, and even though we are determined to save our appetites for dinner, we cannot resist. Well, it is an icy-cold evening after all. Every furnishing in the library is imbued with British style. Well-loved rugs, a six-seater leather Chesterfield, antique lamps, fresh wild flowers and, of course, a log fire crackling away in the corner. Then out come the big guns: foie gras canapés, quails’ eggs on soldiers and baked cheese hashbrowns, and did I mention the Bollinger? We’re in hotel heaven before we’ve even seen our rooms, which by the way, are roasting warm, filled with colourful silk cushions and plenty of va va voom on the walls.

Dinner is at Mulberry, Bishopstrow’s new-look contemporary restaurant. We are served modern English cuisine at its best: twice-baked Devon crab soufflé, butter-roasted Turbot with buttered leeks, wild mushroom duxelle and crisp ratte potatoes, followed by hot double chocolate cake with blood orange sorbet and homemade marshmallows, all of which is impeccably presented and piping hot. It’s easy to see why the restaurant has been awarded 2AA rosettes. In the kitchen, the head chef is Ben Streak, a South African who sources more than half of his ingredients from Bishopstrow’s gardens and is more than happy to share a few of his culinary secrets over a nightcap.

Mulberry, the hotel's restaurant

Next day, we don our bathrobes and head to the Halcyon Spa – a major new feature of the hotel’s refurbishment. Sadly, it’s somewhat of a disappointment. The changing rooms are rather akin to what you’d find at your local gym (rather steamy and sweaty with little privacy) and unsightly slip-proof mats unfortunately flank the swimming pool. My Elemis facial, however, is superb, and a rigorous 30-minute back massage grants me two full weeks free from back pain for the first time in years. Remarkable.

There is plenty to see and do in Wiltshire. Stourhead House and Gardens is a must, so too is Stonehenge (20 minutes away). Plus, the glorious Georgian city of Bath is just up the road. Or, closer to home, there’s clay pigeon shooting and archery within the grounds of the hotel and if you really want to get into the spirit of things, trout fishing is an option from April 15 to October 15 on Bishopstrow’s private stretch of the River Wylye.

Bishopstrow House doesn’t quite compete in the style stakes when it comes to its trendy neighbours such as Babington House, but therein lies its charm.

www.bishopstrow.co.uk