This year for my fiancé’s work Christmas do we went to the fabulous Swan hotel in Bibury in the Cotswolds (last year we were at the Rhinefield House Hotel in the New Forest). It was in the week just before Christmas and the perfect opportunity to get into the festive spirit and unwind! I’ve been to Cheltenham before, but never really explored this part of the Cotswolds before. It was a bit of a flying visit as we had to rush back to collect the little one from my Mum in Oxfordshire – but I definitely want to go back soon to explore some more! I mean seriously – how could I not come back here… it’s stunning! Not even the X Factor bus could resist!
The historic Arlington Row in Bibury just by the Swan Hotel. Known to be the most photographed scene in the Cotswolds.
Sophie Robinson left me an instagram comment letting me know that she stayed at The Swan Hotel in Bibury too! They did some filming for the second series of the Great Interior Design Challenge here.
The Swan hotel in Bibury is beautifully decorated throughout the ground floor, and as I understand from one of the members of staff, is that the owner of the hotel designed the interiors herself. Bold colours, great use of pattern, interesting paintings and prints – I really really like it! The décor is as brave as it could be for such a traditional property and in such a traditionally British village too. But the overall feel is very relaxed and cosy – not at all pretentious. You could certainly kick off your walking shoes and curl up on one of these sofas in the lounge with a paper without anyone batting an eyelid.
After checking in at reception, we went up to our room to dump our bags and freshen up after the long drive from London (and via Oxfordshire to drop off the little one). Our room was ok – clean and comfortable, but not quite as stylish as the rest of the hotel. But it has this beautiful large window overlooking woods to the rear of the hotel and a Nespresso machine with capsules which was a nice touch. I did like the white bedspread too – I have one very similar at home!
The bathroom was almost as large as the hotel room with his ‘n’ hers sinks – ideal when you’re both getting ready at the same time! Molton Brown toiletries add a luxurious touch – although I wasn’t sure about the furious-looking duck that welcomed us!
We had the rest of the afternoon to explore and relax – so my other half headed off to the bar to find the rest of our party and I went to take a few snaps of the rest of the hotel. I really do love this tartan carpeting which is a nice change from the usual plain or floral carpeting that you get in hotels.
As it was a Tuesday, we had most of the hotel to our party of about 40 people – the staff were wonderful and made sure we had a great time. One member of staff was up serving us drinks until the early hours – and served us breakfast the following morning too! Anyhow – the photos below of the bar area and main restaurant speak for themselves. A cosy log fire, wonderful fresh food platters, pots of tea and G&Ts kept us happy all afternoon at the Swan hotel in Bibury. And how awesome is this wallpaper?? I don’t know where it’s from, but I love it!!
Even the ladies is beautifully decorated and love the use of this upcycled cabinet to make a stylish place to store stuff. I wish I had space in my bathroom for storage like this!
This was the private dining room where we had our Christmas dinner – in another room we had a photo and karaoke booth which was great fun and more kudos to the staff for putting up with our attempts to sing!
The only criticism I have of our stay is a really really small one – the mirror in our room that is! It’s the only mirror in the room and it was ridiculously small and made it difficult for me to get ready for the evening do! Although we scrubbed up ok in the end to take a selfie ; )
And after a Christmas party, what better way to recover than a brisk walk in the picturesque Cotswolds? I’d definitely recommend The Swan hotel in Bibury to anyone looking for a stylish place to stay in the Cotswolds. Great for a romantic weekend getaway or for entertaining a group. Don’t want to just take my word for it, take a look at all the fantastic reviews on Expedia.
Natalia xo
