Welcome to the News and Media page for the Old Rectory Hotel. The Old Rectory is a privately owned and managed, award winning Boutique Country House Hotel located on the stunning Exmoor coast in North Devon. On this page there are copies of our recent press releases, links to articles about the hotel as well as well as the fascinating story of how the owners, Huw & Sam, left the rat race in 2008 and built a wonderfully peaceful and romantic place to come and stay.
Devon Hotel named Most Romantic Hotel in Europe 2016
An Awards Double Hat Trick
Award-winning Exmoor Hotel celebrates Five Years of Success
Boutique Hotel on Exmoor 'Ahead of the Game'
National Trust Visitor Pay Back Scheme Clears the View
Huw Rees
The Old Rectory Hotel
Martinhoe
Exmoor National Park
Devon EX31 4QT
e: huw@oldrectoryhotel.co.uk
t: 01598 763368 & 07872 823321
For those seeking a romantic retreat for Valentine's Day, you need not look far and wide. TripAdvisor's 2016 Travellers’ Choice Awards named a Devon hotel as the most romantic hotel in Europe, and second in the whole world.
The Old Rectory Hotel in Martinhoe took the title based on millions of reviews and opinions from TripAdvisor travellers.
The awards keep coming for a North Devon hotel after it was named as the most romantic in Europe for the second year in a row.
The Old Rectory Hotel in Martinhoe was handed the title as part TripAdvisor's 2016 Travellers' Choice Award for Romantic Hotels, which were released today.
A hotel in Devon has been named the most romantic hotel in Europe in this year’s 2016 Traveller’s Choice Awards for Romantic Hotels, announced by TripAdvisor.
The Old Rectory Hotel in Martinhoe was named the most romantic hotel in Europe as well as the second most romantic hotel in the world, while Edgar House in Chester – which was named the ‘world’s best small hotel’ in January – came fifth in Europe and 17th in the world.
A Devon hotel has been named the most romantic hotel in Europe in this year's 2016 Travellers' Choice Awards for Romantic Hotels, announced by TripAdvisor ahead of Valentine's Day.
The Old Rectory Hotel in Martinhoe celebrates the title of Europe's most romantic hotel, as well as second most romantic in the world; while Edgar House in Chester comes fifth in Europe and 17th in the world. Also appearing in Europe's top 25 is Grasmere Hotel in Cumbria, coming in 14th.
We are proud to have made the finalists of the Devon Tourism Awards. See the full list here.
The Old Rectory Hotel, Martinhoe, is named Devon hotel of the year in the 2014 edition of the Guide which is published this week.
Desmond Balmer, joint editor of the Guide, said: “Huw Rees and Sam Prosser, who have given their old rectory a smart interior, run it with good humour and great attention to the needs of guests. Huw Rees’s cooking is much praised.”
“We are delighted to receive this award from The Good Hotel Guide and are particularly thrilled as our first entry in the guide was just last year.
The special value of the award is that it is based on reader reports and anonymous inspections. We aim to do the simple things well and create a ‘house in the country’ feel for our guests.”
This small hotel in Exmoor national park is part-Georgian, part-Victorian and was built as the rectory for Martinhoe's 11th century church. The garden is a riot of pruned rhododendrons, cut lawns and a brook brimming with bulrushes.
Huw Rees and Sam Prosser have given their old home a smart interior with great attention to the needs of guests. Huw is a fine cook, utilising Exmoor pork, local sea bass and lots of home-grown vegetables. Visitors arriving late are offered bowls of red pepper soup, fresh rolls and fine cheeses.
Thousands of pounds were raised through a visitor payback scheme run by the National Trust in North Devon last year.
A total of £1,400 was collected by The Old Rectory in Martinhoe on Exmoor. Guests automatically had a small amount added to their bill, which is used to benefit the surrounding area.
The Old Rectory Hotel in Martinhoe, in Exmoor‘s National Park, has been named one of the Most Romantic Hotels in the World. The Georgian country house hotel owned by Huw Rees and Sam Prosser, is in the final stage of a five-year, £500,000 renovation programme. The Old Rectory is surrounded by National Trust land and only 800 yards from the coast.
Spring in Exmoor National Park is a riot of colour and sound – the cacophony of birdsong at dawn can be deafening. An ideal base is the Old Rectory Hotel, a beautifully restored Georgian rectory in the peaceful hamlet of Martinhoe, surrounded by protected National Trust land. Owned and run by friendly, ex-city folk Huw Rees and Sam Prosser, it is an elegant and welcoming country house hotel with 10 pretty bedrooms, including two in the adjacent Coach House, an excellent seafood-leaning restaurant with an award-winning wine list and a three-acre Victorian garden.