Relais & Chateaux Hotels in Malmesbury

We stayed in a spacious suite at Whateley Manor for six nights in late September, as part of a birthday trip exploring rural UK (we are Americans). From start to finish, we felt welcome and service was perfect in every way. Every detail we asked for was amazingly promptly attended to, but personnel went further -- they were proactive, and anticipated our needs. We had just come from another 5 star hotel where service was only 4 star, and the difference was refreshing. Our spacious quiet suite (room 17, 2nd floor) had a comfortable handmade mattress, a large living area, a bath with a two-person oversized soaking tub and separate shower with fluffy towels and bathrobes, a huge amount of closet and storage space, an in-room coffee/teamaker as well as a small fridge, and daily laundry service at a reasonable price. The food, wine, and service (especially by sommelier Connor) in the main dining room were simply brilliant, very creative. The lounge and bar area was comfortable with soft chairs and sofas and eclectic art work. Room service snacks were also available 24/7. In contrast, breakfast was not special (Full English, eggs and salmon, eggs benedict, but no interesting breads or varied charcuteries), but this is routine for upscale English inns. The same venue was used for the second restaurant, Grey's, which had a very limited though good menu (what I did not like there was the pumped in Detroit style pop music, it was distracting and tiring). This inn is on the extreme southern end of the Cotswolds, so the drive to get to the hub of things is further than with more centrally located hotels, and that is it's one disadvantage. Overall, however, we loved this inn.