If Excellent Britain has actually been calling your name– possibly after binge-watching Netflix’s Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story– however you can’t stand this summertime’s sky-high transatlantic flight rates, there might be a better choice. The foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains are reminiscent of the pastoral green areas of the Cotswolds and the rolling landscape of the Peak District– plus, they’re a lot much easier to get to from most significant U.S. cities.
While Virginia has a variety of beautiful landscapes and numerous small towns, there’s one location, in specific, that produces that unique countryside beauty you discover across the pond. Found about seven miles outside of Charlottesville, Keswick is a tiny town (although “census-designated location” is the more official term) along Route 22, a drive accented by fences, historical markers, and sprawling estates.
Keswick is mainly made up of property homes interspersed on big areas of land, but its essential feature is a 100-plus-year-old residential or commercial property that reopened its doors to guests in 2022. In the past, Keswick Hall has actually been a nation club, an Orient Express Hotel, and a personal home to Sir Bernard Ashley, Englishman and widower of designer Laura Ashley. In 2017, present owners Molly and Robert Hardie started to lead the boutique resort through a multi-year remodelling of its visitor rooms, amenities, and culinary offerings. The end goal? Bring high-end and modernity (it’s now ADA-accessible) to Keswick Hall while keeping its historical roots.
If you browse pictures of the 80-room hotel prior to checking out, you might expect Keswick Hall to sit far off the primary roadway; it releases an air of complete isolation. The entryway and parking lot, nevertheless, appear remarkably rapidly after turning off Route 22– don’t let that alarm you. Once you enter the front doors of the lobby, you’re instantly carried into a tranquil escape.
Public spaces within the main structure consist of a cozy library, a brilliant, airy sitting space overlooking the Pete Dye-designed, 18-hole golf course, and a range of locations to relax across the balcony. In late spring and summertime, visitors in addition to Keswick Hall members flock to the photo-worthy infinity pool, surrounded by lounge chairs and a choice of cabanas. The guest rooms mirror the design options discovered throughout the rest of the hotel– lots of blues, whites, creams, wood furniture, and the occasional piece of expertly curated art. Select spaces have access to personal balconies, where guests can sip early morning coffee or pre-bedtime tea and soak up the Virginia surroundings.
Work and life tension seem to slip away as you roam the premises, but no place on the 600-acre home feels more gotten rid of and relaxing than the Keswick Spa. One of the latest features at Keswick Hall, the medspa is the epitome of a sanctuary. A sensation of calm overwhelms you upon checking in– and you haven’t yet reached the relaxation lounge. Here, before or after your treatment, you can comfortable up in a chaise lounge with a fruit-infused water and keep an eye out onto the deciduous forest through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
If the general sense of peace and the home’s natural beauty are two of the specifying qualities of Keswick Hall, its food and beverage choices aren’t far behind. A grab-and-go coffeehouse, The Counter, is ideal for something quick, and guests can delight in mixed drinks and small plates at Crawford’s (a nod to the Crawford household, the residential or commercial property’s initial owners). Where Keswick Hall truly shines, however, is Marigold by Jean-Georges, the first Virginia dining establishment from well-known chef and restauranteur Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The menu turns seasonally, however expect wood-fired pizzas, dishes including local fruit and vegetables and herbs, and a well-rounded choice of entrees that never ever feel too heavy or overly complex.
An elegant countryside escape, whether in the United Kingdom or the Virginia mountains, enables visitors to take advantage of the fresh air– at Keswick Hall, that includes a round of golf, a tennis match on a red clay court, or appreciating the area’s stunning homes by bike– while at the same time providing the liberty to unplug. If that’s the holiday you imagine for yourself this year (and you do not want to fly across the Atlantic Ocean to find it), you can book a room on the Keswick Hall site.