Luxury Harrogate stay with Country Living Hotels St George #Review

Luxury Harrogate stay with Country Living Hotels St George Review: September 2019

Harrogate, a lovely Yorkshire destination. rich in historical charm and elegance.  There is so much to see and do, Harrogate makes for the perfect break away.

Where to Stay

Country Living Hotel St George Harrogate  

The Country Living St George Hotel Harrogate is located in an enviable position in the heart of Harrogate with a reception operating 24 hours a day to ensure all guests are well looked after.

The hotel provides a perfect place to stay while you explore all that Harrogate has to offer.

The décor has a contemporary look, but has an elegant country charm feel, perfect for a stylish getaway.

Our superior room had a beautiful window with an amazing view of the Harrogate convention centre.

Along with all the essentials to make your stay a snug and cosy one such as fluffy duvets, throws and their delightful duck cushions.

A wonderfully warm welcome came in the form of this exquisite welcome platter, with tasty treats, a bottle of red wine and plenty of Country Living magazines for us to peruse during our stay.

Cosy up and get snug in your fluffy robes and slippers, as you enjoy the fabulous tea tray amenities including tea, coffee, bottled water and scrummy biscuits.

The generous amenities continue into the bathroom with a whole range of complimentary H2K Harrogate toiletries.

Why not head down to the onsite library and challenge your guests to a game of pool.

Perhaps something more relaxing is in order, so there is plenty or reading literature for you to enjoy as you kick back and relax.

The library beautifully presented has a lovely range of quirky items including some amazing Alice in Wonderland items.

Where to Eat

Country Living Hotel St George Breakfast   

The Country Living St George Hotel has a whole range of dining options throughout the day.

Their onsite breakfast begins with a rather generous continental buffet offering.

Choose from a range of pastries, homemade preserves, cheese, meats, yogurt, cereal and some fabulous fresh fruit.

There is also the option to have a made to order hot breakfast including full English, vegetarian, porridge, smoked salmon and so much more.

Country Living Hotel St George Dinner  

The rather grand dining room is the perfect place to enjoy dinner with family, friends or a loved one.

Ryan, Tyler and Shaun did a fantastic job looking after us all evening are a delightful bunch.  In fact, all staff onsite were pleasant, friendly and helpful.

Super starters included the yummy ham hock and a fabulous heritage tomato salad.

Mouth-watering mains included the duck with fondant potato and a range of seasonal vegetables.

Also, the vegetarian risotto and a side serving of hand cut triple cooked chips.

Delicious desserts included a lovely lemon and mint meringue extravaganza and a chocolate brownie.

GINO D’ACAMPO 

Fancy some Italian flare and fabulousness, well GINO D’ACAMPO Harrogate can provide you with some of the dolce vita lifestyle.  Located in the centre, this little slice of Italian heaven is well worth a visit.

Gino clearly family focused with his sassy and sophisticated restaurant décor including pictures of his family and friends adorning the walls which is a lovely touch and adds a warm feel to the place.

Head upstairs and you will find an amazing games room along with a stunning roof top terrace ideal to get you in the holiday mood.  Our server Michael from Sardinia, a lovely cheery chap who made our visit even more fantastic.

The Olives are out of this world and go well with a pre-dinner cocktail or an Italian style aperitif Crodino.

Sharing is caring, so why not opt for a range of Gino’s lush starters and nibble your way to happiness with a classic caprese salad and arancine crispy mushroom risotto balls with a tomato and red pepper sauce.

The crispy fried courgette flowers with buffalo ricotta in honey and lemon, is a dish Gino wanted on his menu right from the very start and I can see why, these are super scrummy and are summer on a plate.

Mains included the lovely linguine with lobster and cherry tomatoes, my plus one loved this dish.  Also, the Rigtoni with four cheese Gorgonzola, Fontina, Smoked Provola and Pecorino was divine.

Finish on a sweet note and opt for some delicious desserts included the chocolate fondant which is stuffed with chocolate truffles and served with vanilla ice cream.  Also, the sensational Cherry and amaretto tart with vanilla ice cream.

Bettys 

Bettys is always a wonderful place to enjoy Afternoon tea, but this year marks a very special occasion, as Bettys Harrogate marks its 100^th birthday, as the brand began in 1919, so let the celebrations commence.

Pre-book an Afternoon tea in their Imperial room and you can waltz past the queue and prepare to dine in splendour and style.

For their 100^th birthday celebration, a specially devised menu has been prepared for you to enjoy as you listen to the pianist tinkle the ivories, as you soak up the historic surroundings and elegance.

Vegetarian appetiser was the scrummy Courgette, Spring Onion & Cucumber Cocktail Marinated courgette, red chilli, spring onions & coriander with cucumber and mint crème fraîche. Served with a crisp paprika croute.

The main appetiser was the Prawn, Spring Onion & Cucumber Cocktail Marinated Atlantic prawns, red chilli, spring onions and coriander with cucumber and mint crème fraîche.  Served with a crisp paprika croute.

The savoury included a rather lovely Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Tart Puff pastry tart with roasted red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, Gran Mantovano cheese, sweet pickled red onions and basil dressing.

The delicious Vegetarian sandwiches consisted of Cucumber & Mint crème fraîche miniature croissant, roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Pâté and Avocado & Spring Onion.  The yummy main sandwiches included Smoked Salmon & Dill Crème Fraîche Miniature croissant, roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Pâté and Chicken Caesar.

Their signature scones baked freshly throughout the day come in two types, the Lemon Scone Delicately flavoured with lemon zest and the Sultana Scone Made to a deliciously buttery recipe and filled with plump sultanas.

The lovely delicate and dainty miniature cakes included the delightful Apple & Vanilla Custard Tart, Salted Caramel Pillow and a Passion Fruit & Lemon Macaroon.

What to do

RHS Harlow Carr Gardens

The RHS Harlow Carr Gardens is a delightful place to visit and easily reachable on foot from the St George Hotel approximately a 35-minute walk.

Make your way through the lovely Valley Gardens and you will see signposts for the RHS Harlow Carr.

Slightly further along the journey you enter Pinewoods where you will pass the Pinewood Panorama viewing station.

The RHS merged with the Northern Horticultural society in 2001 hence the acquisition of the gorgeous Harlow Carr garden.

The RHS Garden Harlow Carr covers around 68 acres and set in a stunning valley in the heart of the Yorkshire countryside.

The streamside garden is one of the longest in the country, a super splendid sight for sure.

There are some wonderful willow woven sculptures that depict woodland creatures and animals.

Around every turn and tree another exciting display awaits, as you adventure deeper into their grand gardens.

Trees, flowers and sculptures galore, you are spoilt for choice and this makes for an ideal day out.

A personal favourite of ours was the bird watching station where if you kept calm and quiet, a whole range of beautiful bird species came out to play.

Turkish Baths

Offering a fully restored Victorian Turkish Baths, it is time for you to experience some rest, relaxation and you time.

The historic and impressive baths is stunning in terms of décor and design with Islamic arches, screens, vibrant brickwork, the arabesque painted ceilings and terrazzo floors laid by Italian experts.

Your journey begins and ends in the Frigidarium, as you start of in the steam room and then make your way through the chambers with a range of heat temperatures starting off from 45, 55 to 65 degrees.

The plunge pool provides the perfect opportunity to cool off during rooms and bring your body temperature down.

Josh and Amanda did a fab job at looking after us and explain how the process works to make sure all visitors know how to use the facility which ensured optimum relaxation.

Harrogate Theatre

The Harrogate theatre, located in the centre of Harrogate, built in 1900 is the perfect place for performance perfection.

A cosy hub, that has a friendly and warm vibe and a home away from home feel about the place.

Stunning and superb, two words I would use to describe the theatre. An intimate setting, yet not too stuffy of an auditorium, that has a rather regal and rich sumptuous look.

Harrogate Theatre Rep Company in partnership with Phil & Ben productions presented On The Piste written by John Godber and directed by Phil Lowe.

Chris and Alison along with Bev and Dave are off on a skiinh holiday of a lifetime and yes you may have guessed it, they have all of the gear, but no idea.

Right from the offset, the play perfectly performed by the 6 strong cast was a fun, energetic, with lots of laugh out loud moments with genuine giggles a plenty – a giggle machine for sure!

A light-hearted cheeky play, that skied its way into the top of both mine and the audiences hearts and minds, as judging by the crowd’s reaction, it wasn’t just me who had a fabulous time.

Clue HQ

An exciting, entreating and exhilarating escape game experience awaits in Harrogate centre.

Prepare to play The Betrayal of Cluetankhamun, as just over one month ago the long-lost tomb of Cluetankhamun was unearthed for the first time in over 3 millennia.

A team of explorers had the task of going into the tomb to find and recover the Cluetan Crystal which is said to have the powers of the river Nile.

However, the explorers are no where to be seen, so now it was our turn to take on the intrepid adventure, as the sands of time slipped away, we just managed to retrieve the crystal, but the question is can you?

Harrogate is the ideal place to enjoy a beautiful break away with lots to see and do you are spoilt for choice.

Thank you for reading 😊

Melanie xx