Some hotels are a springboard to a destination, others are a destination in their own right.
Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire definitely falls into the latter category, offering vast grounds where guests can go horse-riding, fishing, clay pigeon shooting, and even try their hand at falconry, as well as a large spa and pool facility, two restaurants and a newly renovated bar – once you arrive there really is no reason to leave.
And with more than enough things to do to fill a weekend, you will want to structure your time while you are there, which is where the Four Seasons’ new app comes in. The free smartphone app acts as a mobile concierge, bringing all arranging, liaising and activity planning direct to your pocket.
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The Week Portfolio paid a visit to the grand old hotel recently to put the new app through its paces. So how did it perform?
Booking
(Image credit: Richard WaitePhotography)
Long gone are the days when you had to phone a hotel to make a reservation. In fact, according to the Association of British Travel Agents, last year 83% of holidays were booked online, compared with just 16% over the phone. The overwhelming majority of internet bookings may still come from desktops, but, as with most other online tasks, everything is moving towards mobile.
Ahead of the curve, the Four Seasons app lets you do exactly that. Open the app and tap on “book your stay” and you can book yourself in to any Four Seasons around the world.
Choose your room, your package and any upgrades you might like, add in your details and the reservation is made.
Getting there
Having made your booking, you are then free to contact your hotel’s concierge team immediately. One of the first handy things they can help with is your journey to the hotel. In our case, the team at Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire was able to help us work out the best train to get from London, and then arrange for a cab to be waiting for us as soon as we got in.
Once on the train, we sent another quick message to check our taxi would be waiting for us – the hotel responded instantly to let us know the driver was already there, with my name on a board. If only the rest of my life were this well arranged.
Arrival
Arriving at the Four Seasons Hampshire is an experience in itself. Even after you have entered the main gate, you still have a drive ahead of you through the extensive grounds. After bumping over a cattlegrid or two, the hotel eventually comes into view – a glorious Georgian country manor surrounded by great swathes of manicured grassland and wooded copses.
Once inside, we are shown to our room, which – while we don’t yet know it – looks out across the fields we have just driven through. Shrouded in darkness, that view awaits us the following morning.
First though, I was back on the app, checking availability in the Wild Carrot restaurant (which, admittedly I should have arranged before arriving). The concierge quickly found us a table and after freshening up, we were in the bar for a drink before dinner.
(Image credit: Richard WaitePhotography)
And what a bar it is. At the bottom of a winding marble staircase, sits the Wild Carrot Bar, which, though it is largely made of dark woods, projects an air of youthful exuberance. This is in no small part due to the comfy couches and the roaring fireplace. Our bartender mixed us up a couple of knockout negronis while we waited for our table. We were briefly quite tempted not to go to dinner at all.
The menu at the Wild Carrot restaurant might be loosely described as contemporary European fare. Our smoked salmon and burrata starters opened the meal nicely, and already the North American DNA of the Four Seasons hotel brand was evident. Servings are on a grand scale – you will not go hungry here.
We followed up with a rump of lamb on babaganoush (an unexpected combination, but it works) and a beef burger, which unfortunately continued our run of bad luck with burgers in hotels. It was ok, but not magnificent.
Dessert got things back on track. The warm chocolate fondant with caramel ice cream was pure indulgence, and every component of the Italian trio – tiramisu, torta Caprese and chocolate coffee sorbet – warrants its place on the plate.
Activities
The next day, we have spa treatments booked, but I had forgotten what time – so used the app to check. Late afternoon, it turned out, so we headed downstairs for something to eat, then out for a country walk.
Breakfast is also served at the Wild Carrot restaurant, which every morning is transformed for the early rush and features a buffet overflowing with pretty much everything you could possibly want. There is also an a la carte menu if you are somehow not satisfied by the buffet options.
After breakfast, we used the app for a rather more unusual request: asking the front desk whether there were any Wellingtons available for us to take on a muddy walk. Happily, there were, so we headed down to pick them up, where the concierge had also thoughtfully brought along a map to help us find our way.
We set out into the surrounding countryside on foot, though if you prefer there are also bicycles available to borrow. The long stroll took us a good hour and a half from the Four Seasons. Feeling lazy, we considered using the app again to arrange a car to pick us up, but after stopping in a local pub we got a second wind and walked back.
Spa time
The pool at the Four Seasons fills two roles. For much of the day it is a family space with laughing children gleefully disobeying the no running and jumping rules. Then early in the morning and in the late evening, it becomes an oasis of calm, as the kids are cleared out and adults have time to do laps, or float in the heated outdoor Jacuzzi.
The state-of-the-art spa offers not just treatments, but separate steam rooms, saunas and a relaxation area where it would be a genuine struggle not to switch off and let the stress drift away.
This reviewer’s treatment, called a Cocoa Journey, which has since gone off the menu, was designed to feel like waves, with the masseuse maintaining near constant contact throughout the session. The combination of coconut oils and sounds of the sea meant that if you closed your eyes you could easily imagine yourself on a beach. A perfect end to the day.
Departure
All good things must come to an end, and as our stay came to a close we used the app one final time to check out. In some hotels, checking out can be an annoying process, with half the hotel descending on the front desk to leave simultaneously. Putting the process into the Four Seasons app is another small but very sensible decision that makes departure as effortless as everything else.
Even without the app, the Four Seasons Hampshire would be a magnificent place to visit for a weekend, either with or without kids. But having the app makes everything go that little bit smoother. It is a concierge in your pocket, and it is entirely free. An easy recommendation, on both counts.
Arion McNicoll is a freelance writer at The Week Digital and was previously the UK website’s editor. He has also held senior editorial roles at CNN, The Times and The Sunday Times. Along with his writing work, he co-hosts “Today in History with The Retrospectors”, Rethink Audio’s flagship daily podcast, and is a regular panellist (and occasional stand-in host) on “The Week Unwrapped”. He is also a judge for The Publisher Podcast Awards.
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