Prince Hall, Dartmoor
I know from experience that finding great accommodation that also welcomes dogs is becoming increasingly difficult. For instance, Babington House, Soho House’s country house, once allowed dogs in all public areas, but nowadays it’s more restricted, with dogs only accommodated in the stable block and the coach house, outside the main house, and on a lead in the library.
When it comes to dogs in hotels, I like Dartmoor, because I know two very good places – the Prince Hall Country House Hotel and Two Bridges – where it’s warm, cosy, clean, the food is good and you can enjoy fabulous walks. You can also relax knowing that the occasional woof won’t have other guests snorting in disgust because dogs are positively welcomed here. For example, at Two Bridges guests are given a real “Doggy Bag” on arrival, containing treats and a doggy bowl. Plus, dogs’ dinners are offered too.
I could see why Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (who reputedly stayed here before it became a hotel) found these Dartmoor landscapes, which inspired The Hound of the Baskervilles, so haunting and evocative
In fact, I’ve found that whatever the weather, there’s nothing better than a weekend away experiencing the wilds of Dartmoor. It was a couple of years ago in August that we first pitched up at the Prince Hall Country House Hotel. Call us crazy, but for quite some time we’d been craving the outdoor life so had decided to give camping a shot. Sadly, after a blustery night on the edges of Exmoor, during which the dog wouldn’t settle and I felt really cold, somewhere warm, cosy and family-run started to develop an outsize appeal. So when we read that the Prince Hall Hotel, in an isolated Dartmoor location, would not only welcome Markie, our aged greyhound, but also that there was the promise of hot baths, roaring fires and big comfy beds, I told my husband to pack the car at once.
It certainly didn’t disappoint. On arrival, well past 2pm, we were offered steaming bowls of soup and homemade bread, while to get to Dartmoor National Park all we had to do was to walk to the back of the house where we were greeted by stillness, beautiful vistas, muted moor land colours and big skies. I could see why Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (who reputedly stayed here before it became a hotel) found these Dartmoor landscapes, which inspired The Hound of the Baskervilles, so haunting and evocative.
At Prince Hall, all of the eight rooms are named after the tors, the sculptural man-made structure that pepper the moor. We chose Haytor for its stunning moorland view, but we’ve since stayed in a room at the front of the house called Brentor, which to my mind is just as good.
The evening turned out to be just as colourful. After drinks in the drawing room, we sat down to a three-course dinner with a menu that featured plenty of local fare, including Roast Prince Hall Reared Belly Pork, and got chatting with another guest – former Conservative MP Ann Widdecome, who confessed to being a big fan of both this hotel and Dartmoor in general.
Fast-forward to earlier this year, and we were back at Prince Hall once again, this time for a wintertime weekend break. Ironically, the hotel was full, the mists had cleared and the sky was cobalt blue – but then, whenever I’ve stayed at Prince Hall during the summer it’s felt like winter, and I’ve experienced balmy, spring-like temperatures when it’s really supposed to be cold.
This time we decided to set out straight after breakfast, planning to reach the nearby Two Bridges Hotel for lunch at one. Unfortunately, things didn’t go exactly to plan. I’m inclined to blame it on the rudimentary hand-drawn map, because by 3pm we found ourselves nowhere near our destination and desperately in need of sunscreen. Luckily, we came across some delightful teenagers training for the Ten Tours challenge. They showed us where we’d unwittingly ventured off-piste and led us to Postbridge. But when we arrived any evidence of lunch to greet our grumbling tummies was long gone.
On reflection, we’ve decided that it’s only a matter of time before we’re back on the moor once again. Though next time we’ll get Prince Hall to make us a packed lunch and carry a compass, an Ordnance Survey map or bring our dog Markie, now so old, stiff and tired that he simply won’t allow us to stray. C
Elisa Anniss is a leading London-based fashion and lifestyle journalist. She is a regular contributor to the Weekend FT and How To Spend It