‘I checked into a treehouse the night after my wedding for the most romantic mini-moon’
The formula for a first-class mini-moon is simple enough: not too far from your wedding venue, bespoke spa treatments, a ginormous squishy bed and somewhere warm and bubbly to soak in. Throw in a special setting – say, a treehouse – and you’ve got the equation for total post-wedding bliss.
This, among numerous recommendations from friends, is how my (then) fiancé and I settled upon staying at Chewton Glen – a five-star luxury country house hotel and spa – for a couple of nights after our wedding. Reader, it did not disappoint.
What’s the vibe?
Chewton Glen is a world-renowned boutique hotel in Hampshire. Situated on the outskirts of the New Forest, its flawless (read: unfailingly polite) customer service, celebrated fine dining and ‘just-a-stroll-from-the-sea’ setting have made Chewton Glen an enduring hit.
We arrived around 6 pm on the Sunday evening after our wedding day – we’d spent the afternoon at my parents’ house in Lymington, celebrating with a ‘day 2’ hungover hog roast in the garden. My family decorated our car with ribbons, balloons and a twee ‘Just Married!’ sign, and when we drove down the luxuriously long drive and headed for the treehouse concierge at Chewton – with cans cackling behind us – I think the staff had a bit of a giggle.
After checking in, we (alongside all our wedding cards and presents) were taken to our very own circular treehouse via a golf buggy, which is accessed by a gangplank.
We stayed in the ‘hideaway suite’ – a large 86m2 room (although I’m not sure you can call it that, it’s bigger than my old flat) – which just seems to float, 35 feet above the ground, high in the forest canopy.
The rooms
The bedroom in the hideaway suite is actually set apart from the main body of the treehouse and accessed by a covered walkway with floor-to-ceiling windows, dripping in sunlight. The bedroom has a king-size bed right in the middle of the room and a separate marble bathroom with a large free-standing bath and a party-sized shower.
The ‘living area’ part of the treehouse has a little kitchenette that, come to think of it, actually isn’t that little at all, since it’s big enough to have its own dishwasher. There’s a wood-burning stove, underfloor heating and a large, but secluded, outside terrace with an outdoor hot tub.
We immediately pop open the champagne that’s been thoughtfully left out for us, jump in the huge hot tub and watch the sun go down. Afterwards, we climb into the fluffy hotel robes, and open our wedding cards, crying at the thoughtfulness of our friends and family, and reminiscing over what really was ‘the best day ever’.
We sleep for 11 hours straight and don’t emerge from the treehouse until lunch (since breakfast is dropped off through a hatch in the wall). It’s the ultimate luxury. And I can honestly say, the bed is the most comfortable I’ve ever experienced.
The spa & treatments
Should you feel like stirring, then I’d recommend heading to the spa, where there’s a 17-metre swimming pool, a hydrotherapy spa pool, a sauna, a steam room and an outdoor whirlpool. There’s also a vast array of treatments – from bespoke facials and manicures to reiki and full-body massages.
My now husband (still feels weird calling him that) and I, opted for a joint couples massage in our treehouse. For 90 minutes we were brushed and lavished with nourishing body oil. He went for more of a nurturing and calming full-body massage, while I chose a detox massage, where the therapist exfoliated my skin with a dry body brush to promote lymphatic drainage, before gently rubbing aromatic oils into my skin and then cocooned me with a hot ‘body wrap’. It’s hard to describe, but it’s basically like being zipped up into a heated body bag or camping-style sleeping bag. Needless to say, it didn’t take long before I started sweating and overheating. But once I’d cooled down, my skin felt silky smooth.
And the food?
We ate at both ‘The Kitchen’, a restaurant overseen by chef James Martin, and also at the fine dining restaurant which is set in the main house. We headed to The Kitchen, which is just a short stroll from the treehouses, for a relaxed lunch (pesto pizza for me, buttered chicken curry for my other half) and spent a long evening at The Dining Room – where the food has travelled less far than us – since it’s all locally sourced and picked from the walled garden. We were the youngest in there by about 25 years.
Our stomachs rumbled as plates piled with rare steaks and grilled fish with Pink Fir potatoes were whisked past us to other diners. The food envy here is real. We decided to go for the soup of the day and Chesil smokery oak-smoked salmon to start. Followed by steak and chips and a smoked loin of Wiltshire venison. After that, we needed a lie-down. As such, we just didn’t have room for dessert and instead slowly finished the remains of our bottle of red – a Pinot Noir from Napa Valley, California, chosen by the sommelier.
What else can you do at Chewton Glen?
If you manage to summon the energy to leave your treehouse, there’s so much to do within the 130 acres of grounds. There’s a cookery school, a nine-hole golf course, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, a croquet lawn and an outdoor pool. And if you don’t fancy walking from your treehouse to the main hotel, there are regular shuttles that can transport you the 200–400m.
Go on then, how can I get there?
Chewton Glen is around two hours drive from London. From London Waterloo, South West Trains runs a direct service that will get you to New Milton station in an hour and 50 minutes. If you’re fancy and own a helicopter, there are two helipads at the hotel.
WH Verdict
Without a doubt, this is one of the country’s most luxurious hotels – its treehouses offer guests the perfect mix between a 5-star hotel stay and a glamping retreat. We really didn’t want to leave. The staff are exceptional. The food is heavenly. And for newlyweds, there isn’t anything more romantic than staying in your very own luxury treehouse, away from anyone and everyone – just the two of you, soaking in that ‘newly married’ bliss. I can’t recommend it more – and I’m already working on persuading my new husband to book us in for an anniversary date in a couple of years.
Book now: Chewton Glen
Rates at Chewton Glen start from £450, treehouses start from £995.
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