Revealed: The Times and The Sunday Times Best Places to Stay 2023

The Retreat At Elcot Park, Berkshire, is the national winner of The Times and The Sunday Times Best Places to Stay 2023

With more people than ever enjoying staycations and short getaways in Britain, where we stay has become increasingly important. 

This week, The Times and The Sunday Times reveal their definitive list of the 100 Best Places to Stay, spread throughout the country. The guide will be available Friday in the form of an online interactive guide and as a supplement within the newspaper this Sunday.

The Retreat At Elcot Park, Berkshire is the best place to stay in the UK, according to The Times and The Sunday Times. The Retreat is a newly re-imagined 18th-century country house hotel and spa, set in sixteen acres of grounds, with two restaurants, located between historic Hungerford and Newbury in the heart of the West Berkshire countryside.

Claire Irvin is Head of Travel at The Times and The Sunday Times. She says: 

“Best Places to Stay 2023 is a celebration of the incredible properties we have here on home soil and, most importantly, the hard-working teams that have made each one of them such a singular success. Our recommendations are not easily won and all 100 hotels in this year's list – particularly The Retreat at Elcot, our deserving overall winner – should be extremely proud of the guest experience they've created.”

Joining its riverside cousin, The Mitre at Hampton Court, The Retreat is the second hotel by the acclaimed Signet Collection.

The guide is split into eight regions: London, Southeast, Southwest, Central, East, North, Wales and Scotland. With writers from The Sunday Times travelling from the Scottish Highlands to the coasts of Cornwall, and bustling boroughs to spas hidden away in the deep countryside, there’s something for every taste, budget and location. 

There are also winners in 11 different categories; Bargain, Positive Impact, Sense of Place, Seaside, Pub, City, Bolthole, Spa, Romantic, Foodie and Family, The guide focuses on the things that really matter; hotels with the essentials of comfort, great service and value, as well as personality and warmth. 

Regional winners

Category winners