Glencot House in Wookey Hole unfortunately closed on 2010 and now it is a private home
While touring Somerset & the West Country, we stopped by the lovely town of Wells in Somerset. There we experienced Glencot House in Wookey Hole. This enchanting cornucopia of a hotel. In one truly enchanting day, we explored its myriad of rooms, miles of books, plethora of antiques- and then there are the grounds.
Built in the Jacobean style by architects Ernest George and Harold Peto in the late eighteen hundreds after the original burned down, The house has changed ownership many times as a residence, until the nineteen seventies, when it became a school. Then, shortly before the eighties, it reverted to a residence again and in its latest incarnation, it became a hotel. In 2006 Martin Miller, the founder of Miller’s Antiques Guides and Miller’s Gin, acquired the property and renovated it into a wonderful eccentric hotel & cabinet of curiosities!
The lovely gardens are home to sculpted vignettes scripted from storybook. They are crossed by the river Axe, which glides through the property enhancing the magic.
There is a constant stream of events throughout the year- including writers retreats and culinary weekends.
The rooms are quite comfortable and luxurious. Each is themed to a whim of Miller’s and features an array of antiquities to keep the eye roaming the walls, continually discovering new nooks and treasures. Our room was a exotic combination of black walls and flowered drapery. A window overlooked the green below.
A full service restaurant prepares strong English fare with grace and style. The dining rooms are well proportioned and the staff quite amicable (as they are hotel-wide).
For us Glencot House in Wookey Hole is the reason we travel and what a hotel is meant to be. To step out of the every day, to leave the known world behind- and enter into the imagination.
Contact Info
Hotel and Restaurant(44) (0) 174 967 7160
Glencot Lane, Wookey Hole
Wells, Somerset, BA5 1BH UK
www.glencothouse.co.uk
Glencot House is no longer a hotel – it has been a private residence since 2011.
Hi Angela
I recently found out about Glencot House closing, it is so sad places like that close.
Not only the house and ground were perfect but it’s location; hopefully Mr Miller will open a similar hotel soon.
did you ever had a chance to visit it?
Best
Ondina
I went to school their in the seventies between 11and 13 and hated it. I was caned at least once a fortnight for minor things like talking after lights out.
I hope the new owners enjoy the gardens and especially the stream where we tickled trout.
I wish my deceased parents hadn’t wasted that money
Well – I’m glad someone turned the beautiful property into something a bit less painful !
Sent to Glencot Preparatory school as an 8 year old child, 1963 -1968.
Lucky I didn’t burn the place down, such was the “fiddling” and brutal canning, pants down, six of the best, that went on by the headmaster on a regular basis. Glad that someone has made better use of the place.
Its a crazy thought that someplace so beautiful hosted a litany of horrors.
Thank you for reading; and I hope you and your family are well.