Our Romantic Getaway To The Queensberry Hotel in Bath
“Wow!” We’ve just opened the door to what might be one of the most beautiful hotel rooms we’ve ever stayed in.
The room is probably four times the size of our bedroom at home. More than enough space for a King-sized bed, several plush sofas and armchairs, a decorative marble fireplace, three Georgian sash windows and an en suite large enough to fit a bathtub/shower combo.
A golden chandelier hangs from the ceiling surrounded by decorative coving and intricate plasterwork while The Downton Abbey theme tune plays on the little radio by the side of the bed. “How fitting,” we say.
We’re staying in one of the Junior Suites at The Queensberry Hotel in Bath, England. We’re told it was once a Georgian drawing room – and we’re officially in love!
It’s Scott’s birthday tomorrow and we’ve been invited to stay at The Queensberry Hotel to experience a romantic getaway here. We’ll also be eating in the hotel’s Michelin Star restaurant, The Olive Tree, which is currently the only restaurant in all of Bath that has a Michelin star.
Read on to see what we have to say about our experience staying here. I promise we’ll say more than just “Wow! It’s beautiful!” Even though it is…
FYI: We were gifted a one-night stay and dinner at The Queensberry in exchange for writing this blog post. But – as always – all photos, opinions and random musings are entirely our own.
The Hotel
The Queensberry Hotel is named after Archibald Douglas, the 8th Marquess of Queensberry, who originally built the property as his private residence in the late 1700s.
Today, the hotel encompasses not one but four terraced Georgian townhouses on Russell Street. It’s just a stone’s throw from The Circus and less than a 10-minute walk from the infamous Royal Crescent.
Inside, you’ll find traditional Georgian features mixed with an almost Art Deco feel and many a quirky painting, ornament and wallpaper print.
As such, while The Queensberry Hotel might be luxurious and hails from the aristocracy, the vibe is far from “stuffy” or “boring”. Quite the opposite, in fact!
Staff & The Vibe
Not only were the hotel and restaurant staff friendly and smiley to us the entire time, but they were also very patient considering we had a lot of questions about how the menu worked in the restaurant.
We’d never eaten in a Michelin Star restaurant before, so we were a little confused to begin with. The staff gave us plenty of time and answered all our questions – with a smile – which we greatly appreciated.
And to be honest, when you see quotes like this on the hotel website: “We do discourage flying carpets, however. Afternoon congestion can be bad enough to darken the whole sky and, with the wind-farms around Bath now, well, you don’t want us to paint you a picture, do you?”, I think you can tell that the hotel has a unique and more relaxed vibe than you might expect from a luxurious 4-star hotel in the middle of a city as historic and as world-renowned as Bath.
Sustainability
Over the years, sustainability and responsible tourism have become more and more important to both my husband and I.
So we were especially delighted to see our en suite bathroom stocked with supplies labelled as plastic-free while the packaging was “tree-free” and made from stone rather than paper.
The restaurant also proudly serves produce that’s been locally sourced (reducing food miles) and – where possible – is also organic.
But that’s not all! The Queensberry Hotel also offers a “Going for Green” rate, which means you save 10% on your stay when booked directly with the hotel and by committing to travelling to the hotel without a car. As an example, if you’re able to, you could catch a train to Bath and walk for roughly 20 minutes to get to the hotel.
Parking & Other Facilities
If you do have to drive, though, as you might already know or imagine, parking in Bath – especially on historic residential streets such as the one the hotel is on – is tricky at the best of times.
Thankfully, the hotel provides valet parking for £25 per day (as of 2024) and you don’t need to book this in advance. You just double-park outside the hotel and they’ll whisk your bags to your room and your car to their secure parking area before you know it. I must say, we thought it was a very smooth experience.
You’re also welcome to use some of the hotel’s other facilities such as complimentary tea and coffee in the drawing room. You can also purchase cocktails and a brandy or two from the onsite bar: The Old Q-Bar. Both rooms have the stylish mix of traditional Georgian meets Art Deco features I mentioned earlier.
Breakfast
When booking your room, you can choose the Bed & Breakfast (B&B) rate, which gives you a £25 per person allowance towards breakfast each morning.
Breakfast is in The Olive Tree restaurant downstairs and you’ll find prices next to everything on the menu. You should find £25 per person is more than sufficient.
To put it into perspective, between us, Scott and I had:
- A pot of tea each
- Fruit juice
- Homemade crumpets (especially delicious, by the way, as we could really tell they were freshly homemade!)
- A stack of toast
- Fruit platter
- Full English cooked breakfast
And we still had some allowance left over!
Dinner at The Olive Tree
Speaking of food, Scott and I were also invited to dine at The Olive Tree restaurant, which has a Michelin Star and is on the lower level of the hotel.
You don’t have to stay at the hotel to dine in the restaurant, but admittedly, the two together make for such a wonderful way to celebrate a special occasion, such as your partner’s birthday or an anniversary.
The way the menu works is you choose either “Four”, “Six” or the full “Nine” courses. Within that, you can choose whichever combination of dishes you like. For example, Scott and I were booked in for the “Six”, so we chose a starter, two mains and three desserts each. Can you tell we both have a sweet tooth?
It’s probably also worth mentioning that because of the appetiser, bread basket and the “to finish” dish, which was homemade chocolates when we visited, you actually end up eating more than the four, six or nine courses you chose initially. Expect to spend a good few hours treating your taste buds!
You can also add on a wine pairing where the resident connoisseur chooses wines especially to go with the dishes you’ve chosen. We both said they’ve got it “spot on!”
I’m not usually much of a red wine drinker, and yet, the wines they chose to go with our meat dishes were smooth and the perfect accompaniment. A word of caution: expect to feel a little tipsy or a lot “sloshed” by the end of your meal!
This was our first Michelin Star experience, so were especially interested in the fact that the chefs were coming out to explain each meal to us and where the food had come from.
Let’s just say you know you’re going to be in for a right royal treat when one of the chefs grates half an entire truffle onto your plate!
Find out more about The Queensberry Hotel and The Olive Tree Restaurant >>
If you’re considering staying at The Queensberry, then we hope our review helps you. Of course, should you have any questions at all, please drop us a line in the comments below and we’ll reply asap…
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