South Lodge Hotel, Sussex Review

South Lodge Hotel is a traditional five-star country house hotel in the heart of West Sussex.

Although the weather wasn’t the best, we were fortunate enough to catch the last blooms of the prolific rhododendrons as we drove into the grounds. The hotel prides itself on being the owner of the largest rhododendron in the country, which puts on a spectacular show in springtime.

The South Lodge Hotel is an impressive property, set in stunning grounds covering 93 acres of green Sussex Downs. During our stay we made the time to stroll up to the Rockery, a secluded area reached by a picturesque woodland path. It is definitely worth a visit.

The entire hotel is decorated in a classic British way, with light colours, dark wood and heavy soft furnishings. Everything is of a very high quality and just oozes country charm.

On entering the lodge, we were confronted by the impressive Grand Hall. We were greeted and shown to the Leonardslee room in the new part of the building. Although only completed within the last few years, it has been designed in keeping with the original lodge which dates back to 1883.

The room was very spacious, and the decor immaculate, complete with stylish wooden furniture and a large television integrated with a Bose sound system. There was a beautiful large oak bed and even a pillow menu, offering a large selection of luxury pillows.

“South Lodge Hotel is of a very high quality and just oozes country charm.”

The bathroom is very impressive and included a large bath and shower, decorated in beautiful mosaic tiles.

The room overlooks the amazing views of the grounds, and the door opens onto a terrace. Perfect for long summer days. The room was light and airy, and contains everything that we might need.

We had breakfast at the hotel which was a great start to our day. The menu offered four choices of cooked dishes, we chose the vegetarian option.

The breakfast included hash browns, vegetarian sausages, field mushroom, tomato and two poached eggs. We finished off with toast and preserve. It was all delicious and cooked perfectly.

We were well looked after, the service was impeccable and our time here was completely positive. We would happily stay here again.