Designated a national park in 1951 and home to the UK’s first long-distance footpath, the Pennine Way (opened in 1965; find the start at the Nags Head Inn in the village of Edale), the Peak District stretches for 555 square miles from beauty spot Dovedale in the south, to the southern end of the Pennines in the north.
Whether it’s the area’s landscape of caves, peaks and gorges that attracts you, the architectural grandeur of spa town Buxton, the park’s myriad picturesque villages or many stately homes and manor houses (Chatsworth included), the Peak District is an idyllic staycation spot. These are the best luxury hotels in the Peak District.
Wildhive Callow Hall Hotel, Ashbourne
Crowned The Sunday Times’ Hotel of the Year in 2021, Callow Hall Hotel sits at the gateway to the Peak District, just outside the pretty market town of Ashbourne, nestled in 35 acres of gardens, woodlands and wild meadow. The 19th-century restored Victorian country manor houses 15 plush bedrooms, beautifully designed private dining spaces and the glass Garden Room bar and restaurant.
Guests looking for an escape to the wilds are invited to stay in one of the hotel’s quaint woodland hives or treehouses, from which you can easily explore the estate’s expansive grounds. The Coach House wellness centre offers an array of organic treatments from massages and manicures, to the Wildhive Signature Facial using honey from Callow Hall bees. Bikes are available for guests to make full use of the grounds, including a spot of afternoon tea in the Secret Garden, or a picnic by Bentley Brook, while communal fire pits and pop-up woodland bars offer an element of surprise and community for guests immersed in the woodland.
From £242 per night, visit wildhive.uk
The Tawny Hotel, Stoke-on-Trent
Tucked away among the rolling landscape of rural Staffordshire, The Tawny Hotel invites guests to immerse themselves in the splendour of Consall Hall Estate’s meticulously restored wild gardens. Rather than a traditional hotel set-up, The Tawny comprises 55 contemporary shepherds huts, treehouses, boathouses, modern retreat rooms and the luxurious Lookout suite, each inspired by the 70-acre grounds they are nestled within, with private terraces, outdoor bathtubs and stunning, uninterrupted views to boot.
The hotel’s striking central building houses the Plumicorn restaurant, which honours Staffordshire and the Peak District with ingredients sourced from the hotel’s own kitchen garden and the neighbouring area. Wellness is paramount at the Tawny: each room comes equipped with yoga mats with private or group classes on offer, and reading nooks litter the grounds, encouraging quiet moments of reflection and relaxation.
From £270 per night, visit thetawny.co.uk
Losehill House Hotel & Spa, Hope Valley
Named The Sunday Times’ Country Hotel of the Year in 2018, and with a restaurant listed as one of The Times‘ ’20 best wild places to eat in Britain’, Losehill House Hotel & Spa is the only a handful of four-star boutique hotels in the Peak District. Facilities include a 10-metre indoor heated swimming pool, an outdoor hot tub, and a sauna and steam room. The hotel, which is full of bespoke furniture crafted by a local carpentry company, is nestled between Lose Hill and Win Hill, at the meeting point of the Hope Valley and the Vale of Edale. There are only 22 rooms, most of which offer sweeping views over the stunning surrounding countryside.
From £299 per night, visit losehillhouse.co.uk
Biggin Hall, Buxton
A characterful, 17th-century, 21-bedroom country-house-turned-hotel, Biggin Hall is situated 1,000 feet above sea level deep in dry-stone wall country. Surrounded by densely wooded valleys, heather-clad moorlands and pretty market towns, the hotel is a great base from which to explore country estates such as Haddon Hall, Chatsworth and a number of National Trust properties. Luxuriously-styled guest rooms are spacious and individually furnished, while Biggin Hall’s cosy, oak-beamed restaurant champions local produce and offers stunning views of the English countryside.
From £130 per night, visit bigginhall.co.uk
Fischer’s Baslow Hall, Bakewell
Fischer’s Baslow Hall is a Grade II-listed manor house that was transformed into an 11-bedroom, family-run boutique hotel in 1988. Located four miles northeast of Bakewell, the hotel is also home to one of Derbyshire’s highest-awarded (a Michelin star included) restaurants. Imaginative, modern British food is the order of the day, so expect Derbyshire venison, Grimaud guinea fowl and Cornish monkfish served alongside vegetables picked from the hotel’s kitchen garden.
From £402, visit fischers-baslowhall.co.uk
Alstonefield Manor, Ashbourne
Not strictly a hotel, Alstonefield Manor is a 16th-century manor house (and family home) sitting in walled gardens high in the hills above the village of Dovedale. Views, as you’d expect, are stunning. Beautifully-designed bedrooms (which can sleep up to 10) are crammed full of antiques, while bathrooms have showers or roll-top baths. Cater for yourself in an Aga-equipped kitchen or head across the village green to the award-winning George Inn.
Price upon request, visit thestoneestate.co.uk
Cavendish Hotel, Baslow
A public house since the 1700s and a hotel since 1830, the Cavendish Hotel is located in Baslow, one of the Peak District’s prettiest villages. Part of the Chatsworth House Estate, the hotel is renowned for its collection of original artwork and antiques, many of which have been relocated from Chatsworth House itself. The Cavendish Hotel — characterised by open fires and oak beams — boasts fantastic views and a restaurant that has won an AA 3 Rosette Award.
Headed by chef Adam Harper, expect dishes comprising local and seasonal produce, such as Chatsworth Farm lamb with Pommes Anna and Chatsworth Estate wild mushroom arancini with Dovedale blue cheese. In February, its Garden Room restaurant reopened as the first stage of its £1.1 million investment added a large outdoor dining terrace so guests can enjoy extensive views overlooking the Chatsworth parkland.
From £230 per night, visit devonshirehotels.co.uk
The Peacock at Rowsley, Rowsley
A traditional English manor house with modern interior twists, The Peacock at Rowsley was once a dower house of Haddon Hall, one of Derbyshire’s finest stately homes. It’s now a 15-bedroom boutique hotel with grand four-poster beds, contemporary black furry rugs, antique wardrobes and leaded window panes. Ancestral portraits line the stairwell, while a restaurant, awarded three AA rosettes, serves an upmarket menu, using produce local to the Peak District National Park.
From £188 per night, visit thepeacockatrowsley.com
Grantley Hall, Ripon
Grantley Hall, housed in a beautifully-restored Grade II listed Palladian mansion, is located on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales. The hotel’s Three Graces spa offers restorative treatments from Ila, as well as an 18-metre indoor swimming pool, indoor-to-outdoor hydrotherapy pool, sauna, steam room and snow room, serene relaxation room and outdoor terrace. Gourmands will not be disappointed with a choice of five vibrant dining outlets, including a Michelin-starred fine-dining experience with the acclaimed British chef, Shaun Rankin.
From £500 per night, visit grantleyhall.co.uk
Buxton Crescent Hotel, Buxton
In late 2020, Buxton Crescent Hotel opened its doors following an £80 million refurbishment of one of England’s most significant Georgian architectural buildings. Located in the historic spa town of Buxton, the UK’s highest market town, the hotel utilises the therapeutic properties of mineral water for which the town is famed. Hydrotherapy is at the forefront of the spa offering. The hotel spa is home to three pools, one of which has Buxton’s mineral-rich water flowing into it and retains the hotel’s original features, such as the wall tiles dating back to 1924 paired with a new, contemporary stained glass canopy over the thermal pool.
From £175 per night, visit ensanahotels.com
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