, The Sunday Times
Waking up in a property where spectacular paintings hang from the walls isn’t just the preserve of the 1 per cent. There’s a long line of art hotels, where famous pieces can be enjoyed at your leisure, with a coffee or cocktail in hand. They are often family-friendly too, and can bring alive school homework in a thrilling new way. Here are our favourites, where you can pair a stylish stay with some culture.
This article contains affiliate links that can earn us revenue
1. The Fife Arms, Braemar, Aberdeenshire
Run by the couple behind the contemporary gallery Hauser & Wirth, this converted coaching inn in the Cairngorms combines maximalist interiors with a large art collection: 14,000 pieces, if you count the antiques. Highlights include a Picasso in the drawing room and a watercolour by Queen Victoria, but The Fife Arms is also known for its commissions, which include a kaleidoscopic chandelier by the Indian artist Subodh Gupta. The hotel runs creative workshops for children during the school holidays — a perfect opportunity for parents to enjoy an uninterrupted meal in the muralled Clunie dining room. Make time to visit the galleries in the nearby villages of Braemar and Ballater.
Details B&B doubles from £250 (thefifearms.com)
2. Twr y Felin, St Davids, Pembrokeshire
Twr y Felin hotel in Britain’s smallest city, St Davids, has more than one hundred pieces of artwork
This hotel’s exterior wouldn’t look out of place on the Accidentally Wes Anderson Instagram account thanks to its tiered tower — it used to be a windmill. The visual experience doesn’t end there. Inside are more than a hundred pieces of artwork commissioned to evoke the surrounding landscape. Several of Twr y Felin’s rooms have sea views, while the in-house Blas restaurant has a menu that majors on local, seasonal ingredients. Elsewhere in Britain’s smallest city, you’ll find Oriel y Parc, which has changing exhibitions of art from the National Museum of Wales.
Details B&B doubles from £180 (twryfelinhotel.com)
3. Art’otel Hoxton, London
The 375 rooms in Art’otel, Hoxton feature pieces by the artist D*Face
MATTHEW SHAW
Reconfiguring east London’s skyline as well as its hotel scene, this 25-floor property is Art’otel’s second opening in the capital (the first is in the rejuvenated Battersea Power Station). Fittingly for an area known for its street art, the hotel’s 357 rooms feature work by the artist D*Face, but there is also art by Banksy on display. Facilities include an indoor swimming pool and a dining spot styled like a European grand café, as well as a rooftop terrace restaurant with 360-degree views, and a top-notch spa. The Whitechapel and Victoria Miro galleries are about a 20-minute walk away.
Details Room-only doubles from £329 (artotellondonhoxton.com)
• Read the full review of Art’otel here
4. Elmbank Hotel, York
The Elmbank Hotel features intricate murals by the artist George Walton
SIMON CALLAGHAN
It’s the hotel that’s the artwork — a 19th-century mansion that’s home to one of the UK’s most complete collections of art nouveau design features. Every room is like an exhibition, featuring stained glass, intricate murals and stencil work by George Walton, a contemporary of Charles Rennie Mackintosh. The bedrooms are contemporary in style. Sleep in the house, or one of the more spacious lodge or courtyard rooms. The jewel in the crown is the Peacock Bar — try a martini made with local gin and served under a sparkling chandelier. York Art Gallery has work by David Hockney, as well as a peerless ceramics collection.
Details B&B doubles from £129 (elmbankhotel.com)
5. Chapel House, Penzance, Cornwall
In Chapel House, Penzance, ocean-inspired pieces by Tom Leaper and Kate Jmo hang on the walls
The entrance hall to this Georgian townhouse has become an exhibition space, displaying an ever-changing roster of work as part of the hotel’s collaboration with the Newlyn School of Art. The owner of Chapel House, Susan Stuart, is a passionate collector, and pieces pepper the property’s six rooms and two suites. The ocean is a rich source of inspiration for many — for example, Tom Leaper’s Diving Gannet sculpture and Kate Jmo’s textured seascapes — and the island castle St Michael’s Mount is visible through several windows. After a bracing dip in the ocean, warm up in the hot tub and sauna.
Details B&B doubles from £200 (chapelhousepz.co.uk)
6. The Bull, Burford, Oxfordshire
In the peaceful, grey-toned suites at the Bull you’ll find artworks by Dalí, Hirst and Banksy
The list of those with work on display here reads like a who’s who of the 20th century’s most influential artists with Bacon, Banksy, Basquiat, Dalí and Hirst among the Bull’s big-hitters. The brainchild of the PR executive Matthew Freud (great-grandson of the psychoanalyst Sigmund and nephew of the painter Lucian), this converted coaching inn is like no other. Guests are encouraged to find outlets for their creativity with activities such as “paint and sip” nights. Quietly luxurious, the 18 bedrooms are pared back and sanctuary-like. A half-hour drive away is the Cotswold Sculpture Park.
Details B&B doubles from £245 (bullburford.com)
7. Fort Road Hotel, Margate, Kent
Fort Road Hotel in Margate showcases early 20th-century artworks
ED REEVE
So inundated with east London émigrés that it’s been nicknamed Shoreditch-on-Sea, Margate has become a haven for creatives priced out of the capital — so there was a ready-made audience for the founders of the Frieze art magazine, who opened Fort Road Hotel in 2022. Close to the town’s sandy beach and the Turner Contemporary gallery, Fort Road has 14 rooms that feature early 20th-century works, while diners in the all-day Colina restaurant can enjoy pieces by Margate notables, including Tracey Emin. In the basement bar you’ll find yourself immersed in a sweeping, psychedelic mural by Sophie von Hellermann.
Details B&B doubles from £144 (fortroadhotel.com)
Become a subscriber and, along with unlimited digital access to The Times and The Sunday Times, you can enjoy a collection of travel offers and competitions curated by our trusted travel partners, especially for Times+ members
Sign up for our Times Travel newsletter and follow us on Instagram and X
