Best hotels in Shropshire for nature, history and dog-friendly spaces

Rural, radiant, and no longer ignored as a liminal vagueness between England and Wales. The world has woken up to Shropshire, and the dramatic landscapes and astonishing history that make it a dreamy destination to escape the everyday.

Explore castles and fortifications, wild open spaces on the top of Long Mynd, historic villages and market towns. Visit Ironbridge Gorge, the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution and home the world’s oldest working cast-iron bridge, or ramble through the Shropshire hills, enjoying the V-shaped valleys and countryside as you go. Shropshire is home to the best-preserved steam train network in Europe, the Severn Valley Railway, where you can have a go at driving your own passenger train.

And Shropshire is answering – with hotels to impress the even most exacting of travellers, serving food that capitalises on the region’s rich agricultural heritage. As someone who’s explored the length and breadth of these borderlands, here’s my pick of Shropshire hotels with a special something.

( Castle Hotel)

Neighbourhood: Bishop’s Castle

Bishop’s Castle has only stumpy remains of its eponymous stronghold, but the arty market town is home to two breweries, including Britain’s oldest working one, the Three Tuns. Sample the wares in three bars at the unpretentiously elegant Castle Hotel, built from ruins on the castle site in 1719. The restaurant menu changes daily, making hearty use of produce from local suppliers. Up the Georgian staircases are thirteen bedrooms, furnished in harmony with the big windows and quirky spaces of this lovely old coaching inn.

(Fishmore Hall)

Neighbourhood: Ludlow

A Palladian-style house, sitting at one with the Shropshire countryside in sight of the romantic towers of Ludlow Castle. Food-wise, you’re in caring and capable hands, from the magnificent Shropshire Tasting Menu in three AA-rosette restaurant Forelles, to minibar treats carefully picked from local suppliers. This thoughtful approach extends to sleep: a huge bed, gorgeous linen and a pillow menu awaits in one of 15 airy, comfortable rooms. Fishmore’s spa opened in 2016 and embraces the outdoors with a cedar wellness pool and giant hammocks for post-treatment slumber.

(Catherine Barnes)

Neighbourhood: Downton on the Rock

Four miles from Shropshire’s foodie town of Ludlow, almost into luscious Herefordshire, is a happy assortment of medieval, half-timbered and Georgian converted stables and barns, set around a flower-filled courtyard to create the upscale restaurant with rooms that is Old Downton Lodge. The high-ceilinged dining hall is trumped in splendour only by the tasting menu and expertly chosen wine flight. Sleep well: every nook, beam and hidey-hole has been cleverly embraced to make each of the nine bedrooms deliciously characterful and comfortable.

(Finlays Imaging)

Neighbourhood: Norton

Inside this red-brick inn, between Bridgnorth and Telford, awaits a charming concoction of wood panels, patterned tiles, stained glass, collage art and antiques. The air is aromatic with log fires and herbs from the glorious ‘enchanted’ garden, seasonally planted to supply the accomplished kitchen team with salad leaves, fruit and vegetables. A friendly donkey called Pegasus lives here. The offbeat opulence extends to ten bedrooms: think four-poster/half-tester beds, chandeliers, dramatic drapes and, if you’re lucky, a swing hanging from the oak beams.

(Lion + Pheasant)

Neighbourhood: Shrewsbury

Almost encircled by the River Severn, Shropshire’s county town of Shrewsbury has a heady concentration of independent shops – plus a vibrant indoor market with a gin bar. After shopping, retreat to the chic surroundings of the Lion + Pheasant on Wyle Cop - a contemporary hotel in characterful townhouses, parts of which date to the 16th century. Twenty-three rooms are styled in sleek neutrals and crisp whites, with the best bed linen. The fine-dining restaurant and wine bar have you covered for the evening too.

(Steve Jetley)

Neighbourhood: Shrewsbury

The past is tangible in Shrewsbury’s eclectic architecture, medieval passageways, and streets named after the trades once peddled there. On Butcher Row the timber-fronted Prince Rupert Hotel is an amalgamation of buildings over the ages, and several of the 70 rooms can be booked according to their century (12th or 15th, actually). It’s old fashioned in a comfortable way, with knights’ armour, mounted swords, enormous fireplaces, excellent food and welcoming staff. Ghosts are not guaranteed, but wonky staircases and narrow landings offer up their existence as a delightful possibility.

(Soulton Hall)

Neighbourhood: Near Wem

A romantic red sandstone Elizabethan manor house in the loving hands of a conservation-conscious farming family, whose land includes a kitchen garden to supply the candlelit restaurant and an oak wood in which bluebells thrive. In a distant field, they’ve established a long barrow in the prehistoric tradition. Eight large rooms offer grandly atmospheric chambers in the manor, ground-floor comfort in the Carriage House, or family / four-poster suites in the Cedar Lodge. Soulton Hall hosts archaeological digs as well as outdoor theatre productions and concerts.

(Tobiah Tayo Photography)

Neighbourhood: Weston-under-Redcastle

This sumptuously restored Grade I-listed manor is all sweeping staircases and refined countryside vistas, promising five-star grandeur for you and, for an extra housekeeping fee, your dog. Your arrival is heralded with butler service and fluffy robes, while your pet gets a check-in card, goody bag and ‘Yappy Meals’. Thirty-seven thoughtfully appointed bedrooms include twelve suites named after English poets. Don’t miss the chance to wander the dizzying sandstone cliffs and pitch-black caves of enchanting Hawkstone Park and Follies nearby.

(Julia Stanley Photography)

Neighbourhood: Near Market Drayton

The elegance of this eighteenth-century house extends into five acres of mature, meticulously nurtured landscape, earning Goldstone Hall Hotel’s place as an RHS partner. The TLC lavished on the striped lawn and abundant kitchen garden continues inside, with twelve comfortable and distinctive rooms (including four overlooking the garden) and attentive yet unfussy service. Between Newport and Market Drayton, this family run hotel is convenient for visiting other significant gardens in north Shropshire, including Hodnet Hall and Wollerton Old Hall.

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(Tommy Hunter)

Neighbourhood: Rhydycroesau near Oswestry

Tucked into a hill and built from silvery local stone, this Georgian former rectory is midway between Shrewsbury and Chester, a convenience belied by its immersion in verdant countryside. You may not even get a mobile phone signal - and who would want one? Fourteen bedrooms in soothing tones offer spa-tier luxury (try a suite with private walled patio and double whirlpool bath), with bookable in-house treatments that include massage and reflexology. Enjoy a sundowner in the bountiful gardens and dinner in ‘Seasons’, Shropshire’s longest-standing two AA-rosette restaurant.

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