- 23 rooms in Hadspen House + 17 at the Farmyard
- For families, choose the Clock house, or two adjoining Hay lofts or Cozy rooms or stay at the Farmyard.
- Breakfast is included in the room rate and offers a selection of healthy as well as indulgent dishes (home made cakes, granola, breads plus local produces)
- At the main house, children under 15 can swim in the spa one hour in the morning, one hour at lunch time and one hour in the afternoon. There are no limitations at the Farmyard
- Play croquet with them on the lawn, walk around the gardens, spot the hens and rabbits roaming around
- The restaurant is not open to children in the evening.
- The Botanical Rooms offer a menu sourced from the Estate and the very best specialities from the South West
- Indoor/outdoor heated swimming pool at Hadspen House, heated indoor pool at the Farmyard
- Croquet lawn, badminton field
- Spa
- Easy journey from London either by train or by car. Nearest train station is Castle Cary
- You will require a car if you want to go around and explore Somerset
The Newt in Somerset review in summary
The Newt in Somerset is now a firm favourite of ours. We stayed there 4 times, which means that in this Newt in Somerset review, I can share my best tips with you about the rooms, the spa, the restaurants, activities for kids etc..
What we liked |
What could be improved |
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The Newt in Somerset is in a beautiful location
You can definitely credit the Newt for putting Somerset on the map. Ever since it opened, this pretty slice of English countryside had attracted Londoners.
As a result, Bruton, the nearest village, saw the opening or the reinvention of several restaurants, shops, museum and B&B.
The setting of the Newt is beautiful even more now that all the trees they planted have matured.
Hadspen House, the main house, sits on top of a slope offering you a great view of the famous gardens. With its yellow stones and tall windows it makes for a majestuous yet welcoming residence.
Everything at the Newt is beautiful and the bedrooms are really special
You just have to look at the Newt in Somerset photos that I posted above to see that the design is just perfect!
As for the Newt best rooms, we tried several categories over the years.
Hadspen Garden View rooms are the most expensive as they have obviously a fab view of the gardens. We stayed in room 1 and 2 and I would recommend 1 over 2 for the magnificent bathroom. Room 3 is probably quite special too as it has a lovely balcony. You access it via the summer lounge.
I really recommend room 5 where Mademoiselle stayed this time. It’s a Cosy category, so the cheapest and really it’s as beautiful as others, even if of course a bit smaller. It’s on the first floor and has a view over the entrance and a very good size bathroom.
Previously we also stayed in room 8 and 9 on that same floor. Again, good quality for the price. Rooms 13 and 14 are in the second floor and a bit more hokey pokey (the bath and shower are combined) but still very comfortable.
So as you can see, you can never go wrong.
They are all utterly gorgeous. Pale and peaceful green on the walls, many windows opening onto the gardens, a four poster bed and above all a fantastic and massive bathroom.
The room had a very nice complementary larder with some home made sweets and biscuits and everything to make your own tea or coffee.
Families have a choice of rooms more in the outside buildings but all with a special touch. The stables ones look quite fun for kids in particular.
The Newt also has another hotel really geared towards families. Make sure to read my full post on it.
The Newt spa: beautiful facilities and superb treatments
The spa is housed in its own building and has a beautiful wooden architecture. I really liked the barn style and it created an immediate atmosphere of intimacy.
There is an indoor pool which extends outside. It’s heated and perfect for swimming lengths. There are about 10 loungers around the pool, which mean that the poolside is often fully occupied. If that’s the case, use that time to try the sauna, steam room and salted room.
The treatments we had were superb. The therapists had a real talent and their touch was magical from the moment you sat down. There were lots of little touches which I’ll let you discover. I really really loved it.
In the past, the therapists have had special training to look after those who had or have cancer. More recently in the checkin form that they make you sign, they indicated that if you had or have cancer, they might not be able to treat you, which is really a pity.
The Botanists restaurand and the Kitchen at the Farmyard: delicious food and deserts in particular
Breakfast is delightful. Home made bread crisp and fresh, a baguette close to the French ones (that says a lot), freshly squeezed juices and a really good selection at the buffet : granola, fresh seasonal and poached fruits, smashed avocado and a few home made pastries again. The dippy eggs were scrumptious. You can order more hot breakfast dishes if you want.
For lunch, you can eat at the Botanist, the main restaurant or at the Garden café or, like us, choose to have a light lunch in the bar. The previous time, sandwiches came with a salad and crisps but this time, it was just a simple roll, very good but at the price, it would be good to have the additional sides.
You can enjoy complimentary tea and scones in the afternoon.
For diner, you of course have to try the Botanist. The Newt menu offers light and tasty food based of course on the concept of farm to table. Heckfield Place had the same concept but it felt more like they had forgotten the journey between the farm and the table and dumped vegetables in front of us. Here vegetables were treated differently and you wanted to try several of them.
During our first stay, the desert was absolutely superb. The pastry chef is clearly a talent. Do try the apple toffee pudding which Mr Big had twice during our stay. I had a chocolate desert which was full of flavours as well.
I highly recommend to book the Kitchen at the Farmyard for one of the evenings. You can take one of the golf buggies to drive there, which is fun. The atmosphere is warm and cosy with an open fire where they cook most of the dishes. The dishes are served tapas styles and really highlight vegetables.
Again, they used to have this wonderful desert of fresh donuts filled with pear and dipped in a chocolate sauce but this time it was not on the menu. Nonetheless really worth going.
We also had diner outside the Newt as the now famous Osip in Bruton. It is quite an affair and we really enjoyed that dining experience. By the way, if the Newt is fully booked or too expensive, you can also stay at Number One Bruton, which is the B&B partner to Osip.
Other things to know about the Newt in Somerset
I was pleased to notice that the Newt made the bar more welcoming with the addition of live music. This is particularly good for autumn. Otherwise, the nice decor and chairs seem more suited for a summer night.
The lounges have kept many of the original house’s features including of course the fireplaces but mainly the large wooden library. Several collectors’pieces are dotted around. The mix of modern design furniture and heirlooms is well balanced and the sofas are surprisingly confortable.
They clearly made sure to respect the original architecture throughout the estate. Local yellow stones are everywhere complemented by glass, used in the right way to bring light in and focus your attention on an antique feature.
Obviously, you need to explore the gardens. They are open to the public and you can also have a gardener’s tour and a cider press tour. The Newt constantly adds new areas to discover: the Japanese garden or more recently the reconstructed Roman Villa. I highly encourage you to go see this as the museum is really interactive and the visit very entertaining and instructive as well. Everyone will love it.
The gardens are open to everyone and are really beautiful and we can’t wait to see them in different seasons. Just a bit of a pity about the road noise on some sides.
The Newt in Somerset review: in summary
The Newt reminded us in many ways of our special place in the UK, Hotel Endsleigh but even better. It has beautiful bedrooms, an intimate atmosphere, very good food and gorgeous gardens.
It constantly reinvents itself and makes each visit therefore a new experience. Staff is very professional and kind. We never really see a manager, which is a pity, but the personal attention is there nonetheless.
The Newt in Somerset prices are quite steep, starting at £550, and you need to book way in advance as it’s very popular.
With the gardens, the spa, the food, the proximity of Bruton with more restaurants and shops, the Newt is definitely my number one recommendation for a luxury country hotel in the UK.
We booked it many times and will return again!
Lovely review and even better pictures. Can I ask what is the room number of the Garden View Room you were in?
Thanks Tom, glad you liked the review. I don’t remember the number of the room but it’s one of the two that face the gardens on the first floor of the main house. The other one seems lovely too, it has a balcony and a smaller bathroom I believe. So if you ask for one of those, you’ll have a very lovely room anyway.