UK: One of the most eagerly awaited hotel openings in the UK will take place in September, when Heckfield Place in Hampshire welcomes its first guests.
Owned by Hong Kong businessman Gerald Chan, the property was originally scheduled to open in 2012, but has been beset by delays.
The Georgian main house, the gardens, and Home Farm form part of a 400-acre estate. When it opens in September, the 46-room hotel will be helmed by general manager Olivia Richli, and with culinary director Skye Gyngell. The property will feature a 67-seat private cinema with bar, a wine cellar, spa and personal training facilities, and two cottages in the grounds.
Richli said: “A group of uniquely talented people has come together over time to build a place of intrinsic beauty where extraordinary things can happen. I am very excited to open the doors and share Heckfield Place with our future guests. The House and grounds will offer an antidote to the modern world, where guests can connect with each other and to nature.”
Interiors, by designer Ben Thompson, feature salvaged stone and distressed walnut floors, worn Persian carpets, antique furnishings, natural linen and wool upholstery. Rush mats harvested from the River Ouse and modern pieces sit alongside the owner’s family collection of British paintings.
The two restaurants, Marle and Hearth, will be supplied by the estate’s biodynamic kitchen garden, orchards and farm.
“Here it begins with the soil,” said Gyngell says. “Heckfield will feel like you’re being hugged – a feeling that’s in your plate of food.”
Rooms will range in price from £350 to £10,000 per night.
