VENUE CLOSED
So, this is what happened to the old Selsdon Park Hotel then!!!
From the outside, apart from having a little re-wilding to the grounds and car park, the hotel looks very similar to the old Selsdon Park, but then how much difference can a refurbishment change the outside of such a grand façade.
On the other hand, the feel and purpose of the hotel does feel very different!
Use the “Get In Touch” button, contact form (scroll down) or email me your venue requirements/brief to helen@mdem.co.uk and I’ll email venue options to your inbox.
Sat in over 200 acres of nature the owners of Birch (Selsdon) are taking on a rewilding overhaul of the grounds, including having done away with the hotels golf course in favour of nature.
Award-winning furniture designer, furniture maker and environmentalist, Sebastian Cox, is behind the rewilding of the estate and has designed bespoke furniture for the bedrooms, suites, and communal spaces.
The hotel is currently in soft opening phase (August 2023) so there is a bit of snagging left to be done but 175 of the hotels total 181 bedrooms are online.
Categories: Snug x 57, Medium x 46, Twin x 16, Large x 37, Large Sofa x 10, Meadow Suite x 5, Family x 9, Tribe x 1
Before its initial reopening in May 2023, the hotel was closed for nearly two years to undergo its transformation. More of a striping back, more down to earth than the original style.
Space-wise not much has changed, no knocking down of walls or re-configuring meeting rooms but there’s a very relaxed, harmonious feel to the hotel.
Meeting space (after all that’s one of my focal points) is spread over two floors. The ideal group size for this hotel is 90 -110 although events for x 130 are possible.
The hotel has six meeting rooms in total (other spaces within the hotel can also be privatised though for more flexibility, options and capacity):
Atkins Theatre x 130 | Cabaret x 72 | Dinner x 130 | Cocktail x 150
Seacole Theatre x 60 | Cabaret x 40 | Dinner x 60 | Cocktail x 70
Lindley Theatre x 70 | Cabaret x 40 | Classroom x 40 | Boardroom x 30
Bentham Classroom x 30 | Boardroom x 24 | U-shaped x 20
North Boardroom x 12
Annie Boardroom x 12
Back to the floor plan and to the hotels reception area which is calm, understated, and relaxed; your eyes are immediately drawn through reception to the rear of the hotel and the Orangery, a relaxed, bright area with views over the hotel’s gardens, an art installation in the grounds (a colourful large dolls house, which may change over time), an outdoor terrace area with informal seating and the hub of the hotel from where all rooms can be accessed.
The Orangery cannot be privatised but can be used as a location for a group registration desk.
To the right is one of the hotel’s restaurants, Elodie. Capacity-wise the restaurant can accommodate x 90 covers with 110 maximum possible with some fixed seating in place.
The restaurant is open Thursday and Friday evenings, Saturday during the day and evening and, on that basis, the space is available for private use, group lunches, etc.
Beyond the restaurant is Angelica, a member’s bar on Friday and Saturday evenings where you’ll find music and cocktails. There is access to an outdoor terrace directly from the bar which can also double as a breakout area for events with a maximum capacity of 60 indoors only.
At the very far end is one of the hotel’s larger meeting rooms, Seacole. This room does have natural daylight, in fact, all the meeting rooms in this hotel have natural daylight, but it does have a more subdued feeling. A maximum of 70 cabaret or theatre style.
This function room has an inbuilt screen and projector and can be accessed direct from the car park.
And then we come to the final meeting room at this end of the hotel, Annie, with video conferencing, this function room can accommodate x 14 maximum. Useful too as an organisers office if you have an event in the Seacole.
Back to the Orangery and to the other side of the hotel.
The space has a really nice flow to it. You’re greeted by the Meadow Bar. A lovely space for pre-lunch or pre-dinner drinks before you move through to the hotel’s second restaurant, the Vervain.
This is where you’ll find all day dining with the restaurant open to the public Monday to Sunday for individuals and groups of up to 79 with a maximum capacity of 110 including the bar area.
Vervain can be taken exclusively.
Vervain leads into the Snug. A warm, rich and dark coloured space with a stunning, original decorative ceiling (there are many original features around the hotel as you would expect in a building of this age), this is very much a room for sitting with a book of an evening in one hand and a whiskey in the other.
Through the snug you’ll find the hotels co-working area. A ‘working from home’ feel area but one where you don’t have to boil your own kettle or make your own lunch!
Membership is available which gives you full use of the hotel including this co-working “hive” area, hotel residents automatically become members which also gives you access to the hotel’s wellness facilities.
This includes the very well stocked gym and access to over 30 fitness sessions the hotel runs each week such as Pilates, yoga, and other more strenuous classes (believe me I know yoga can pull muscles!).
On this side of the hotel, you will also find the hotels largest meeting room, Atkins. A bright airy room with plenty of natural daylight. A maximum of 12/13 6ft rounds can be accommodated in this room and, with a mix of 8/9 delegates per table you can accommodate 100 cabaret style, x 72 in true cabaret style, 130 for a seated dinner.
This meeting room has an inbuilt screen and projector. With the Pantry located next door which is ideal for tea/coffee service area.
Beyond the Pantry you’ll find the hotels Pottery Studio and Screen-Printing Studio!
There are some lovely options for team building ranging from a group BBQ on the lawn during the warmer months, foraging in the grounds, guided walks and all manner of activities that can be arranged in the extensive grounds.
And a full diary of events to enjoy.
The hotel also has an outdoor swimming pool, The Lido. Very much a 1930’s lido feel with bright parasols, sun loungers, fire pits, restored huts and a DJ deck.
Oh and back indoors for a second, now that I’ve mentioned restored huts my mind has gone to a wheelie bar (just a mobile indoor bar) that we spotted on our site visit in the Seacole Room.
So, basically the bar on wheels arrived and was needed fairly pronto but the frontage was either missing or broken. The resourceful ground/maintenance staff foraged for some lengths of fallen wood in the grounds and covered the front of the bar … it looks amazing (although I forgot to take pictures, so there’s a reason to go visit right there!) and probably even better than it was originally meant to look.
Back to the meeting space, and the hotels last three meeting rooms on the first floor.
From the smallest first, the North, maximum x 18 with an inbuilt plasma.
The Bentham for 18 – 20 (25 maximum) with air conditioning and natural daylight mainly through sky light windows.
And lastly the Linley which can accommodate a maximum of 70 delegates, it still has a touch of the old De Vere surrounding the screen but at the far end the room has its own private balcony. A bonus when you’re on the first floor!
I can’t wait to go back to the hotel. A soft opening is good, but you have to imagine the finished results a bit. There will be more artwork going up in the hotels corridor to soften the peach/caramel paint work, a little bit more refining.
You may also like the hotel’s sister property, Birch Cheshunt (link takes you to our review on our blog site).
For more information, availability and rates contact us …
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