Set on the fringes of Snowdonia National Park in North Wales and part of the prestigious Relais & Châteaux collection, this five-star, glamorous and gothic former stately home is simply made for romantic staycation weddings and minimoon getaways. Wersha Bharadwa packs the car and heads to Pale Hall — the perfect destination for slow travel fans and couples seeking a luxurious countryside recharge…
Location
Like something out of a Bond film, you’ll drive past cascading waterfalls and an endless array of undulating mountainous terrain on zig zag roads made for peak drama and jaw-dropping natural wonders, especially on the A4212 from Trawsfynydd to Bala as you make your way to the hotel. While most roads are winding, you’ll still catch thrilling and epic, high-altitude hilltop views to and from Palé Hall and avoid those extra white-knuckle, hairpin bends on single-track roads.
Idyllically located on the fringes of the denim-hued Lake Bala with the Berwyn Mountain range stretching in the distance, Palé Hall also handily sits on the edge of Snowdonia National Park – a 40-minute drive – for couples keen on hearty hikes. For the most cinematic drives, detours are a must, particularly along the meandering A542 Horseshoe Pass near Llangollen. For more forest than you can feast your eyes upon, head to the Fairytale reservoir at Lake Vyrnwy for snaps of the turreted tower and dam. One of the country’s most beautiful natural wonders, Pistyll Rhaeadr Near Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant in Powys is around 40 minutes by car and standing at 240 feet, it’s the tallest single-drop waterfall in Wales. It offers wonderful walks around the base and a great day hiking should you want to explore the top. For a lively tourist spot, be sure to visit Betws-y-Coed, a picturesque town with riverside walks and an excellent pizzeria.
First impressions
You know you’re in for some serious VIP treatment the minute you roll down that expansive drive, where grand dame exteriors of the Victorian mansion await — complete with red Ferraris, a Rolls-Royce, and a Bentley parked outside the honey-yellow stone façade. Check-in is speedy thanks to David and Paul who also help with valet parking.
And as luggage is discreetly delivered to your room, you’ll duly imbibe cool glasses of fizz next to a roaring fire and traditional seated desk inside the same geometric-tiled hallway Queen Victoria once did when she visited the house in 1889 during a royal tour in Wales (the suite she occupied still bears her name, complete with the original bath and bed). Built between 1869 and 1871 by industrialist Henry Robertson (his stone-carved portrait flanks the front entrance), the grade II listed property later served as a shooting lodge for the Duke of Westminster. It’s around this time Winston Churchill also graced the house with stays and likely marvelled at the same stained-glass skylight inside the Grand Hall now admired by more recent names including Jack Whitehall and Ruth Jones.
Staff are friendly and attentive, helping you settle into quiet corners and serene hidden nooks in public rooms with cocktails and snack menus. When you’re ready for the world to drift away, sink back into buttery sofas or silk-upholstered chaises in the cream-toned Four Seasons room which has gold-plated ceilings and overlooks the pretty terraces and freshly-mown, manicured lawns directly ahead.
Later, you’ll amble around the estate’s 50 acres of landscaped gardens and tree and wildflower- cluttered woodlands and marvel at the fish-filled ornamental pond and chittering brooks. Guests can enjoy vistas of the Berwyn Mountains and the Dee Valley on foot directly from the hotel garden’s too via a historic Queen’s Walk which takes you down serene woodland paths along a riverbank.
Suite dreams
You’ll solidify an appreciation of quiet decadence and history by staying in The Churchill Suite, located on the top floor. Everything about the suite is undeniably opulent and lavish with gold accents on sockets, radiators, and both wall and bedside lamps, not to mention the six pendant lights hanging overhead. A Samsung flatscreen TV is also disguised as a gilt mirror. Said radiators are industrial- sized and as much a design feature as the wood- panelled walls lined with portraits of the former PM throughout the suite.
Bright and roomy, with a vaulted ceiling and stained-glass roof lights, gone are your worries about dim hotel lighting too thanks to three floor-to-ceiling windows that open fully and offer views across the hillside, mountains and a sheep-filled paddock as well as the hotel’s walled gardens and courtyard. There are two fireplaces – an electric one in the bedroom and an ornamental, marble version in the dressing area (paired with a 1920s polished dressing table). Opposite, an oversized art deco antique oak wardrobe comes with plenty of storage space and conceals a spacious safe inside. History buffs will also appreciate the room’s carefully curated WWII memorabilia from a repurposed military aircraft pilot’s chair to a glass table fashioned from a radial engine. Some pieces, like original vintage headphones and binoculars and are even for sale. After getting acquainted with the various gins, wines and tonics at the bar you’ll want an oversized bed to fall into and the mahoganyfour poster inside the Churchill comes in high and mighty with plumped up duck-down cushions and pillows stacked high. Footstools are hidden underneath the base to help hoist yourselves up if the effort to climb into it feels like too much hard work.
With moonlit views illuminating those beautifully rugged and majestic mountain silhouettes in the distance, you’ll drift off to sleep in no time. Other thoughtful indulgences made for honeymooners include welcome trays kitted out with pretty porcelain teacup china from Doulton’s, bottles of complimentary traditional mead from Wye Valley Meadery and complimentary Relais & Chateaux monogrammed slippers. An antique bureau with an old-fashioned rolling calendar, ink pot and quill holder along with some hardback biographies of Churchill and a dial up telephone and globe is the most statesmen like desk we’ve seen in a hotel suite in a long time and a great place to practice your penmanship with handwritten love notes. Cleverly concealed in a wood panelled door, the bathroom houses a deep, roll top copper and zinc tub big enough to swim in. A large porcelain Burlington sink, gilt mirrors and soothing tiled walls and floors along with a large monsoon shower also set the scene for some heavy-duty pampering. Forget the miniatures too; in-line with the hotel’s eco-conscious ethos, guests are invited to lather up with refillable bottles from Penhaligon’s Blenheim Bouquet range.
If you’re after even more space to spread out across, book the impressive Westminster Suite downstairs which links to the Churchill with a private access staircase. Before the big day especially, the interconnectedness of the two suites makes it a top rate choice for brides and grooms. Other rooms (there are 18 in total) are equally attractive and spacious and come with plush furnishings, king beds and marble bathrooms featuring power showers and either copper or roll top statement bathtubs.
Eat
Evenings begin in classic style; you’ll play board games or billiards in the duck-egg blue library and admire the private book collection and chandeliers as the resident harpist strums angelic chords next to a piano beneath a grand staircase. Since you’re in an area with minimal light pollution, the night continues with watching local rabbits frolic under the stars as you study tasting menus in Henry Robertson – the hotel’s acclaimed restaurant (three AA rosettes and Green Michelin star). Here, starched, white tablecloths are ironed, and tables are set with low jazz lamps in a room filled with more Venetian chandeliers, oil paintings and oversized mirrors.
Chef Edward Marsh has continued a longstanding relationship with local and sustainable producers and so menus are both locally and seasonally inspired. Our food is fancy and filling with exquisitely crafted canapés of Black Bomber cheese and Pickled Walnut, and a fusion of beef, Shimeji and kombu to kick things off. Starters of Duck liver come with sweet and tangy wine jam and onions that cut through the richness succulently. Both the taster mains of Cod and Hogget (accompanied by black garlic and asparagus) are moreish and outstanding in presentation. For dessert, you won’t resist the Oren Coch – an innovative take on crème caramel that expertly fuses flavoursome blood oranges with pale white Opalys chocolate.
Every course is so perfectly executed, you’ll be planning a return visit before you’ve made it back to your suite. After dinner nightcaps are best sipped in the library, once you’ve chosen your evening read from the eclectic collection of novels and biographies.
A gourmet menu at breakfast is another highlight and features generous servings of cheeses, charcuteries, breads and pastries including gluten free options as well as finely sliced fruits for a first course.
There’s creamy porridge with lashings of whatever milk you desire, smoked salmon with eggs and kipper if you’re feeling traditional. A full Welsh comes heaving with thick local sausages and crispy bacon. Service in the morning is just as impeccable and friendly as it is during dinner.
Getting Married:
Aside from how romantic proposals here can be (we saw guests popping the big question in privately arranged proposals in the Four Seasons room, gardens and by the lake), it’s also a stunning wedding venue available to hire on an exclusive use basis. Fully licensed with an in-house wedding planner, Pale Hall can accommodate up to 50 guests for sit-down wedding breakfasts and 70 for evening receptions with the bar transformed for bands and dancing.
What You’ll Love
• Afternoon teas here are legendary: they’re served in the library, bar, Four Seasons room or outside next to the manicured lawns
• Fancy arriving in style? Helicopters have a designated landing pad
• Since being carbon neutral is of huge importance, the hotel runs on its own independent hydroelectric power supply, the surplus of which is fed back into the National Grid
• All guests receive a personalised copy of The Pale Times, complete with a weather forecast, house history and tips on local attractions.
• Visiting on a familymoon? The hotel’s Garden Suites (really, mini cottages) are big enough to accommodate children with rollaway beds and in-house cots. Two of the garden suites also have their own hot tubs.
• The hotel is super dog friendly with blankets, beds and water bowls provided for four-legged guests
How to book:
Visit Pale Hall Hotel & Restaurant
Palé Estate, Llandderfel, Bala, Gwynedd, LL23 7PS
Prices from £330 for classic rooms per night per room.
To book, visit www.palehall.co.uk
or email enquiries@palehall.co.uk Or call 01628 530 285
Where to Visit
Everyone from Elle Macpherson, Noël Coward and George Harrison to Jools Holland has made the gorgeous drive up to Portmeirion, an ice-cream-coloured, Italian-architecture inspired tourist village next to the River Dwyryd estuary in Wales. The brainchild of Sir Clough Williams-Ellis who set out to create a private village matching the fairytale design styles of the Mediterranean, it was completed over the course of 50 years and finished in 1975. A must-see, wonder of a day attraction for romantics, visit the famous pottery studios selling Portmeirion’s own range of china, take dreamy walks along tranquil beaches and through subtropical gardens, and be sure to stock up on gelato, sweets, and local honeys at various village shops near the fountains and statues in the main piazza.
Visit: https://portmeirion.wales Day ticket prices from £20.00
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