THE HOTEL: Surrounded by 100 acres of land on the Herts/Essex border, the 99-bed Down Hall is close to Jct 7 of the M11, 15 minutes from Stansted Airport and 45 minutes from the City of London. Great location coupled with an impressive building, a 16th century mansion, with the same owners for the last 25 years.
THE CHECK-IN: Fast and easy, but I was concerned reading on a board at reception that both a charity ball and birthday celebration were taking place that night. My room on the ground floor was only a short walk away.
THE ROOM: A spacious Studio room in the modern West Wing with tall ceilings, grand drapes and views over the grounds. Traditional country house hotel décor with co-ordinated prints and patterns on the soft furnishings and dark wood furniture. Modern touches included the flatscreen TV, free wireless, laptop-size safe, iron and ironing board, and tea and coffee-making facilities. The bed was the pull-down variety as this room doubled as a boardroom/syndicate room. Nice marble bathroom with bidet and double sinks but no separate shower.
THE BUSINESS: Some 26 meeting rooms, spread over the ground and first floor, the grandest being the four in the main building which take between 15-120 people, including the impressive Harley and Prior rooms.
THE RESTAURANT: Sixty cover, contemporary eatery, the Grill Room, in the main building offers a good range of modern English staples at reasonable prices, including rib eye steak, fish, chicken, pasta and innovative desserts.
THE FACILITIES: Ornate public areas, two-and-four-poster beds in feature rooms, and classic leisure pursuits such as tennis, snooker and croquet amid the extensive acreage. Inside there’s a cocktail bar, swimming pool, sauna and whirlpool. Team-building activities on offer include quad-biking, clay pigeon shooting, archery and It’s a Knockout style games.
THE VERDICT: Down Hall is an efficiently-run hotel and conference centre. Young, friendly staff make up for a few shortcomings in the fabric of the place, chiefly the classic chintzy deco and dated pool area. Choose carefully as only A/C in the West Wing rooms.
THE DETAILS: Matching Road, Hatfield Heath, Nr Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire, CM22 7AS. Tel: 01279 731 441; info@downhall.co.uk; www.downhall.co.uk Standard doubles from £114, executive rooms £205 and feature room from £170 including breakfast and VAT. Gillian Upton
