Leonardslee House at Leonardslee Lakes & Gardens
Romantic country house with serious culinary credentials. More 'restaurant with rooms' than conventional hotel — the 26-cover dining room is the centrepiece. British heritage design throughout: bold wallpapers, roll-top baths, antiques. Feels intimate and lived-in rather than slick.
Book Restaurant Interlude separately from your room — they are independent reservations and tables go fast. You can book up to three months in advance.
Why It Matters
One of very few UK properties to hold both a Michelin Key (hotels) and house a restaurant with a Michelin Star and Michelin Green Star. Restaurant Interlude has held its star since its first year open (2018/2019), received four AA Rosettes, was named AA Restaurant with Rooms of the Year 2025/2026, and ranked 49th in the National Restaurant Awards Top 100. The estate also owns Leonardslee Family Vineyards, debuting at No. 56 in the World's Best Vineyards 2025.
A Grade II listed 19th-century Italianate mansion perched high on a valley ridge in West Sussex, built circa 1852 and sitting at the heart of 240-acre Grade I listed Leonardslee Lakes & Gardens. Its 10 rooms are each styled by a different acclaimed British design house — think Colefax & Fowler roses, Soane Britain indigo, William Morris florals — with marble fireplaces, statement wallpapers, and antiques that are very much used rather than roped off. The real draw is Restaurant Interlude downstairs: a Michelin-starred, Michelin Green Star-holding kitchen run by Executive Chef Jean Delport, who forages directly from the estate and has retained his star for seven consecutive years. Book a room and you get the gardens to yourself after hours — which, in bluebell and rhododendron season, is genuinely something.
Where You'll Stay
10 room types available
Azalea (Classic Room)
The most playful room in the house. The dramatic 'Carnival' wallpaper from Christopher Farr — designed in the 1970s by the late fabric designer Michael Szell — runs in delicate shades of pink and green. Vibrant and cheerful rather than reverential.
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Camellia (Classic Room)
Fresh and pretty, in coral tones. The fabrics and wallpaper come from British design house Rapture and Wright. The delicate 'Maytree' wallpaper is based on the hawthorn blossom — a romantic abstract floral loosely influenced by a Wiener Werkstätte design from the early 20th century.
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Eucalyptus (Superior Classic Room)
Designed by British designer Penny Morrison, with the feel of a country bedroom. Delicate 'Sprig' wallpaper and vintage botanical artwork give it a softer, more pastoral character than some of the bolder rooms in the house.
KingMagnolia Suite (Deluxe Suite)
The grandest room in the house, entered through one of the feature arched doors off the galleried landing. Decorated with wallpapers and fabrics from Lewis and Wood, with stunning views of the gardens. Has a separate lounge — a proper sitting room, not just a sofa in the corner.
Super KingMaple (Classic Room)
A disciplined, graphic room designed by Nina Campbell. Only three colours: green, white, and black, anchored by the 'Ashdown Chelwood' wallpaper — a carnation floral garland design. The bathroom goes its own way with panelled walls and ceiling in Edward Bulmer's dramatic 'Invisible Green' and a 1930s-inspired tiling detail in the walk-in shower.
KingMeadowsweet (Superior Classic Room)
A whimsical corner room with the feel of a country cottage. William Morris 'Meadow Sweet' wallpaper from Sanderson is paired with Farrow & Ball Sudbury Yellow and Oval Room Blue. Lighter and airier than its neighbours, with a proper roll-top bath alongside the walk-in shower.
KingPinotage (Superior Classic Room)
The most masculine room in the house. A walk-in dressing room leads to the en-suite, where rich indigo walls, dramatic lighting, and a statement nickel bath take centre stage. The striking Soane Britain 'Seraphic Star' wallpaper works alongside a red and blue colour palette. Every fabric is from the Soane Britain collection.
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Rhododendron (Superior Room)
The most in-demand room in the house, and understandably so — it's enormous. Designed by Veere Greeney, with elegant panelled walls, soaring ceilings, and grand views over the estate. Soft pink tones of Edward Bulmer 'Jonquil' paired with Veere Greeney's iconic 'Folly' fabric in Temple Pink. Evokes a proper country house bedroom from a previous century.
Super KingRose (Classic Room)
A spacious room dressed in the iconic designs of Colefax and Fowler. The 'Bowood' roses wallpaper — based on a document discovered by John Fowler at Bowood House — sets a romantic scheme of greys and pale pinks. One of the more classically English rooms in the house.
KingSir Edmund Loder (Superior Room)
Named after the Victorian botanist who shaped these gardens. Decorated using the sprawling GP J Baker design house family — Kravet, Lee Jofa, Baker Lifestyle, Mulberry, Threads, and Brunschwig & Fils. The dramatic 'Chifu Blush' wallpaper — a striking interpretation of an 18th-century Qing dynasty dragon robe — anchors the whole scheme.
Super KingThe Property
Eat & Drink
2 venues on property
Restaurant
On Property
How you'll actually spend your days.
Hotel guests get exclusive access to the 240-acre Grade I listed Leonardslee Lakes & Gardens after the public has left for the day — the seven lakes, woodland paths, rhododendron groves, and Japanese maple valleys are yours alone. A genuine selling point of staying here over just dining.
The 240-acre woodland gardens first planted in 1801. Famous for spring rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias, bluebells, and magnolias (peak season: April–May). Also home to a wallaby colony (wallaby feeding daily 12:00–12:15), the Rock Garden, Loderi Garden, Coronation Garden, and a Sculpture Park described as one of the largest in Europe by a single artist. Hotel guests have after-hours exclusive access.
An extensive collection at 1:12 scale depicting the Edwardian estate and neighbouring villages. Quirky, charming, and genuinely interesting — one of the estate's more unexpected attractions.
The beautiful woodland gardens host one of the largest sculpture parks in Europe by a single artist. There is also a gallery inside Leonardslee House itself featuring smaller artworks available for purchase.
The UK's first golf and wine estate, 3 miles from Leonardslee House and also owned by Penny Streeter OBE's Benguela Collection. Offers an 18-hole Waterfall Course and a 9-hole Kingfisher course, plus dining at The Vineyard Kitchen.
Held inside Leonardslee House. Guests taste three estate-grown sparkling wines: Blanc de Blanc, Brut Rosé, and Brut Reserve from Leonardslee Family Vineyards. Complimentary when booking lunch at Restaurant Interlude.
Informal wine tastings held in the drawing room of Leonardslee House, accessed via the terrace. Walk-ins welcome Thursday–Sunday at 13:00. £20 per person for a 45-minute session.
Amenities & Practical Info
The details that matter for planning.
Guests are greeted by a self-playing piano in the sunlit first-floor atrium on arrival.
A gallery inside the entrance to Leonardslee House featuring artworks for purchase and larger estate pieces, with curator insights.
Freestanding roll-top baths in all Superior Classic, Superior, and Deluxe rooms. Classic rooms have walk-in rainfall showers only.
Card payments only. No cash accepted anywhere on the estate.
The property does not have a pool.
The property does not have a gym or fitness centre.
On-site shop with indoor plants, accessories, gifts, and estate-grown plants in signature Leonardslee blue pots.
Four electric vehicle charging points in the car park.
On-site private parking, reservation not needed.
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