This luxury Oxfordshire hotel is perfect for a couples retreat

The Springs Resort in Wallingford truly wowed my husband Tom and I as soon as we drove onto the grounds.

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The boutique hotel is in a beautifully restored 19th century manor house – and we were really impressed by how the old features of the building had been kept amongst the renovations.

The reception had a fireplace and dark brown panels on the walls that had been freshly painted and varnished, giving it a new lease of life.

While being escorted to our room by the friendly receptionist, brown bannisters, stair runners and hanging portraits gave it that old but refreshed manor house feel.

Our room - the Sycamore Suite - was absolutely stunning and don’t even get me started on the bathroom.

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The décor and low lighting gave the bedroom an intimate and relaxing feel. The room had a large bed, TV, coffee machine, kettle, minifridge with water, desk, storage, armchair and a safe.

I'm quite fussy when it comes to mirrors in hotels and so I was glad there were two in the room including a full-length one with lights in the entrance.

There was also an ironing board and iron and hair dryer - all super handy things when you're staying at a hotel and don't want to worry about when booking.

The bathroom screamed luxury.

It was super spacious and featured a beautiful standalone bath, walk-in waterfall shower, double sink, towel warmer and a mirror that had LED lights. I really loved the green tiling, funky flooring and the touches of gold throughout adding that element of class.

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After sharing videos on social media I was inundated with friends asking me where I was.

We booked dinner at the Ridgeway Restaurant at the resort that evening.

The restaurant is in a different building to the hotel in the newly revamped Springs clubhouse. It took us just two minutes to walk over and we were greeted by a waiter who allowed us to sit anywhere we liked.

We’re real foodies so we ordered a starter, main and dessert from the menu and were impressed with everything.

We were also impressed with the soft drink options. We don't drink alcohol and we often get fed-up of the standard Coke, lemonade or water options that restaurants usually offer. Tom ordered a non-alcoholic beer and I had an Appletiser.

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To start, I had crab cakes with Siracha mayonnaise which was served with mixed leaves. The three crab cakes were delicious and I’d say it was the right amount of food for a starter.

My husband had the chef’s soup of the day which was cauliflower and pea soup. From the little taste I had, it was super creamy and flavourful.

On the main menu, I was surprised there was no chicken dish as usually that would be my go-to meal. I ended up ordering the beer battered cod with chunky chips, mushy peas and tartare sauce which was amazing.

The food came out super hot and I was surprised by the large portion that was served which included two pieces of succulent fish.

The mushy peas weren’t exactly mushy in the traditional chip shop sense, but they were still enjoyable.

Tom ordered the 8oz rib eye steak with chunky chips, beer battered onion rings and mushrooms. He was also offered a peppercorn sauce and was again impressed with his meal - especially the large portion.

With the sweet tooth that I have, I had to order a dessert and I chose the sticky toffee pudding while Tom had the brownie.

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Both served with a scoop of ice cream on top of a bed of biscuit crumbs, they hit the spot. We probably could have done with another scoop of ice cream, but the sticky toffee pudding was moist and the generous portion of hot toffee sauce that came with it was divine.

After a much needed lie-in, we went back to the Ridgeway Restaurant for breakfast the following morning.

With the sun shining over, we could finally see the site in daylight.

The Springs, Wallingford

The newly renovated Springs clubhouse is home to The Ridgeway Restaurant

At the restaurant, I ordered a bacon and cheese omelette with toast and Tom ordered a full english. 

We weren't as impressed with the food as we were with our meals from the night before, but it was still good.

The Springs is home to an 18-hole, par-72 golf course that tracks the River Thames through 133 acres of Oxfordshire countryside.

I'm not a golf expert, but from what I could see the course looked very well maintained. There's an outdoor terrace at the restaurant overlooking the course which I'm sure would be lovely to sit on when the weather is warm.

Also new to The Springs is the 1893 Spa, named after the year the manor house was originally built.

We didn't use the facilities but they look incredible.

A lot of thought has really been put into maintaining the building's heritage especially in the spa reception room where the ceiling still features intricate original work.

There's a stunning spa lounge and hydrotherapy pool with underwater ceramic beds as well as private and couples treatment rooms and there's also a gym overlooking the lake.

We got a glimpse of the private lodges that you can book at the resort too which also look like a real relaxing stay if you want to stay with friends or family.

Inside a private lodge

Overall we were really happy with our experience at The Springs and plan on going back again soon. I highly recommend for anyone who's looking to spoil themselves and escape the hustle and bustle of life.

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