Oakley Court
Gothic garret
Regal riverside
A grand Gothic getaway on the most noble waterway in the land, Oakley Court may be set in a historic building, but the stuffiness stays at the door. Instead, guests are invited to treat this stately pile as their own – choosing the vinyl for the record player, taking tea wherever one pleases and drinking at any time desired. The riverside has its own micro Soho House, with an ice-rink every winter, mini marquees by the water and heaters to ensure no amusement is curtailed by the temperature. And just in case that doesn’t sound fun enough: in the summer months you'll find a Jeremy Deller-designed bouncy castle the size and shape of Stonehenge (yes, really). The Druids would be proud.
Facilities
Номера
117.
Checkout
11am, but flexible for an hour (longer for a fee), subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 3pm.
Больше сведений
Rates don’t usually include breakfast (£25 for adults and £12 for children).
Also
The ground-floor lounges, dining areas and bars at Oakley Court are wheelchair accessible, and some rooms in the outbuildings that house the gym and pool have been adapted and are suitable if you have mobility issues.
Фитнес-центр
Бесплатный доступ в интернет
Прачечная
Возможно размещение с животными
Бассейн
Рестораны на территории
Обслуживание в номерах
At the Hotel
Free WiFi throughout, record-players in the lounges, seasonal ice-rink, tennis courts, gym, bicycles to borrow, sculpture garden, Stonehenge-shaped bouncy castle (summer only). In rooms: Roberts radio, Smeg kettle, Nespresso coffee machine, smart Sky TV with casting, Cowshed bath products, cocktail station, and minibar with free snacks and soft drinks.
Our Favourite Rooms
The cheery Boathouse rooms have a perky pink and green palette, but it has to be private quarters in the Gothic Mansion House, for bigger-than-emperor-size beds and sunken bathrooms in the tower itself (Rapunzel-ready room 114), gentlemen’s-club-worthy wood-panelling (room 103) and an enormous green chandelier (room 102).
Poolside
There’s a heated pool in the spa and gym outhouse. Swimming hours are 7am to 8pm.
Spa
The wellness area currently includes two types of sauna (one infrared), a steam room and a Jacuzzi.
Packing Tips
Books to read beside one of the many fireplaces, sensible shoes for treading the Thames Path, a boat to berth at Bray Marina and vinyl records for any aspiring DJs to soundtrack everyone’s evening.
Also
The River House is a collaboration with Soho House — your cue to order Dirty Burgers and Picante drinks, perhaps after you’ve tried a highlight of the owner’s art collection: a life-size Stonehenge in bouncy-castle form by Jeremy Deller, open in summer.
Дети
All ages are welcome, and there’s lots to keep little Smiths happy, including entertainers at the River House at weekends and (in the summer) a to-scale inflatable version of Stonehenge.
Галерея
Food & Drink
Top Table
There are too many cosy corners to choose from (and six fireside seats to shotgun).
Дресс-код
To the manor born. In a turn of events for the usually dapper gentry, no suits are allowed at the River House (nor fun-obstructing laptops).
Hotel Restaurant
The hotel operates more like a house, with food available whenever and wherever you want it – guests can take their pick from cosy lounges with fireplaces and low sofas, cushion-scattered, Moroccan-style tents and riverside marquees at the water’s edge, and the closest-thing-to-formal the Parlour. The all-day menu includes pistachio, pesto and mortadella pizzas, toasties and salads, with the brief but delicious dinner menu featuring dishes such as grilled squid with ink risotto and chilli, bream and beetroot, and steak with truffle mash and oyster mushrooms. Breakfast begins in the way all mornings should (especially those of the hungover variety): first things first, the waiter takes your probably elaborate drinks order (coffee, juice, water, smoothie, soda…). Choose from porridge with estate honey, avocado on seeded bread and kale from the garden with poached eggs.
Hotel Bar
There’s a wood-panelled bar in the main house that’s open around the clock and another down on the waterfront that calls time at 11pm.
Last Orders
Breakfast hours are 7am to 10am. An all-day menu is available between 11am and 10pm, with the set dinner menu served from 6pm until 10pm. Afternoon tea is from noon to 4pm.
Room Service
Hot meals can be delivered to your room from breakfast until 10pm, after which point it’s cold snacks only.
Planes
London Heathrow is the closest airport, a 20-minute drive away. The hotel can arrange transfers on request.
Trains
There are many options for arriving by rail, including the line between London Waterloo and Windsor & Eton Riverside. Guests can also arrive at the stations in Slough (to which there are 13-minute services from London Paddington) and Maidenhead. Transfers from any of these stations cost between £10 and £15.
Automobiles
Wheels will come in handy for exploring the bucolic Berkshire surroundings, not least for getting to the fine-dining enclave of Bray with ease. Windsor is just over 10 minutes away by car. There are five car parks at the hotel, and parking is free.
Worth Getting Out of Bed For
The river-front setting requires at least one attempt to tackle the Thames Path – you’ll pass Bray Studios (where David Bowie and co rehearsed for Freddie Mercury’s memorial concert in 1992), Eton College’s sporting lake and, eventually, reach Windsor Castle. The full route to the Queen’s favourite fortress will take around two hours, or guests can borrow one of the bicycles lined up outside for a quicker trip (45 minutes).
Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt
This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .
