The Grove

The Grove was the country seat of the Earls of Clarendon and is now the most convincing large-scale resort within striking distance of London — eighteen miles out, and close enough to Watford Junction that guests routinely arrive by train. The Georgian mansion holds the grander rooms; a long modern wing behind it supplies the rest.

Sequoia is the spa, built around a 22-metre indoor pool with Bamford treatments and a thermal area, and it is deservedly the main draw. The estate also carries an eighteen-hole championship course that has hosted the WGC and the British Masters, along with a walled kitchen garden, a casual garden restaurant and a beach-like lakeside area that opens in summer.

It is a busier, more sociable proposition than most entries in this collection — weddings and corporate groups are part of the picture — but the grounds are big enough to absorb them, and for a spa weekend that requires almost no travelling it is hard to better.