Nestled in a village location on the Worcestershire/Gloucestershire border, between Tewkesbury and Pershore lies Eckington Manor, a long-established farm set in 260 acres of land, which has at its heart a 12th century hall.

Although offering B&B accommodation, the experience at Eckington is more akin to that of a country house hotel.

On arrival, guests are invited to use all the public areas including the Manor Hall that has it’s own small bar, and comfortable lounge area. These are both available throughout the stay.

The manor offers luxury B&B accommodation similar to that of a high-quality hotel in three converted farm buildings, with the furnishings mixing traditional and modern styling. The bathrooms have individually-designed bathing and showering areas with high-quality fittings and toiletries provided.

The bedrooms are large, and very comfortable with cotton bed linen, and thick luxurious pillows, giving an excellent nights’ sleep.

The food and cookery school, however, is what sets Eckington Manor apart from other rural getaways.

The restaurant, features a range of beautiful continentally influenced home-made British classics. The food is all locally sourced, with much of it coming from its own farmland, including a award-winning pedigree beef herd.

The hotel also offers a wide range of continental and English breakfasts. The full English breakfast is extremely popular with guests, and includes Gloucestershire Old Spot Sausages, bacon from its own farm, as well as locally-sourced tomatoes and eggs.

The Manor also runs a highly-successful cookery school for guests of all ages and skill levels. Using high-quality, state-of-the-art equipment, its experienced chefs offer masterclasses in a range of different cooking disciplines, including easy entertaining, restaurant style cooking, bread and pastry making, or Italian cooking.

For those with a sweet tooth, there is also a chocolate heaven cookery course. These courses are from half a day to two days duration.

Situated on the edge of the Cotswolds, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, there are many great places to visit within a short drive of the manor. These include Tewkesbury with it’s famous 12th century abbey, pretty Cotswold villages such as Broadway and Stow-on-the-Wold, plus bustling cities and towns such as Cheltenham, Gloucester and Worcester.

Despite it’s rural location, the manor also benefits from great transport links, being situated close to the northern end of the M50 at it’s junction with the M5.

Having experienced Eckington Manor for a weekend stay, I would highly recommend it as a centre for exploring Worcestershire and Gloucestershire, as well as a country retreat or cookery holiday.