An exclusive country escape that supports your well-being? Try this curated Home in the British Countryside.

“Heckfield House is the epitome of Georgian elegance, re-designed to be effortlessly warm and welcoming. As it’s new custodians we are proud to open the doors on this magical place to a new generation of guests.”

Just one hour from London, the first impression of Heckfield didn’t falter; we were greeted sophistically by several umbrella-carrying doormen and a waiter carrying a tray with refreshments. We couldn’t fail to notice the high level of security at the gate, which made the hotel feel more like a member’s club or a private home of someone who prefers privacy.

Heckfield Place still has an imprint of the Georgians that first marked out the area in the 1820’s, but the renovation speaks towards a highly modern experience with respect towards the original building, that has taken years to complete. The owner Gerald Chan chose the young interior designer Ben Thompson (a protégé of Ilse Crawford) to renew the original high-end concept and make it more contemporary.

Thompson chose handmade furniture using English oak, artisan tiles, and subdued colour schemes - modern and sophisticated, finished by the botanical setting created floral designer Kitty Grayson’s elegant choices that blend finely with the surroundings. The living rooms with the original marble fireplaces, were curated with the latest selection of books, newspapers and magazines.

The gardens and surrounding parkland have all been restored, and we could experience a park that perhaps was not fully complete and grown to perfection, but rather newly shaped and ponds perhaps superficially laid, but still a beautiful landscape to walk through (you can borrow wellies and a raincoat downstairs, all by Hunter). Especially the large swing for two, attached to an old oak by the lake, is definitely worth trying - a great place to unwind, or the greenhouse with the herb garden is a must-see.

The place feels a lot more like an extended home than a hotel, with walls covered by fine examples of 20th century art, all picked and curated by the owner. The very English colour scheme and style, with hints of Scandinavian touches here and there, are perfectly combined to create a tranquil atmosphere.

The style of the restaurant Marle, run by the chef Skye Gyngell, is minimal with a focus upon botanical aspects, wood surfaces and marble. We dined in the orangery-style building, where we enjoyed a simplistic menu, using the local produce, with a focus on the ingredients and the taste instead of too many condiments.

Gyngell is Australian, but has become one of the most acclaimed chefs in Britain, after the succes of Petersham Nurseries, winning a michelin star, and working as a food editor for Vogue. She has worked at The French House in London, after training in Sydney and Paris. Do check out her three books, A Year in My Kitchen (2006), My Favourite Ingredients (2008) and How I Cook (2010).

Later we discovered the cocktail bar hidden behind a velvet curtain, where they were able to create just about any cocktail you might fancy - I tried to request my own favourite; a gin based cocktail with passion fruit and a sponge-like layer of shaken egg whites. They didn’t have passion fruit on the grounds, but instead they used another tropical concoction to receive a similar taste, different but devine. The stable piece of the bar, has got to be the enormous disco ball hanging from the ceiling.

The next day we enjoyed an organic breakfast, and later ordered a small selection of sandwiches for a picnic. The produce was local, from near-by farms and we enjoyed the down-to-earth feeling, of being able to borrow wellies and raincoats for a walk around the grounds. We can recommend visiting the Thyme hotel also in the Cotswold, which has a similar country-feel.