Boutique Hotel in Cornwall: The St Moritz
Coastal Cool Boutique Hotel
For the ultimate in luxury and coastal cool, the St Moritz Hotel on the north Cornwall coast is hard to beat. This hotel at Rock, Cornwall is across the estuary from Padstow and is a highly regarded luxury boutique hotel with Cowshed spa and a history going back nearly 100 years, when the then owner turned their art-deco styled coastal family home into the ultimate hotel experience, with outstanding customer service.
Roll on nearly 100 years and the St Moritz Hotel is still unwaveringly delivering the ultimate customer service, coupled with the highest of standards - and has recently undergone an entire refit to bring it up to the standards of the 21st century.
What's In Padstow:
- Obby Oss Procession - Padstow May Day
Every year, on the 1st of May, May Day, the Obby Oss comes out of his stable and there's a huge procession around Padstow that's been happening for hundreds of years, since the 14th century and maybe before. ... - Rick Stein Restaurants in Padstow
You can be forgiven for thinking that Rick Stein restaurants in Padstow are on every street, because this celebrity chef certainly owns a lot of businesses and shops in Padstow - here's your quick guide to Rick Stein Restaurants in Padstow. - Rick Stein Shops in Padstow Cornwall
Rick Stein is a TV chef and celebrity chef who has built up a small empire in Padstow, Cornwall. When you walk around this small fishing village there are Rick Stein Shops everywhere in Padstow - here's your Guide to Rick Stein Shops in Padstow, Corn
In itself, the St Moritz Hotel is elegance personified, sitting astride the highest hill overlooking the Atlantic Ocean in Trebetherick, just north of Rock and across the Camel Estuary where you'll find Padstow, itself famed for a rich Cornish fishing history, Rick Stein (celebrity TV chef and author of many highly respected recipe books) and the Obby Oss May Day celebrations.
The area of Trebetherick, Polzeath and Rock is a well-known haunt of the rich and the famous, so it's quite surprising how the St Moritz has managed to consistently deliver such high quality service, such outstanding quality - and yet still keep their prices with one foot in affordability.
The hotel rooms themselves are the ultimate in luxury, or you can book a suite which is like a mini apartment - when you book in you'll even find that the fridge/freezer has a jug of fresh milk ready for your first refreshing hot drink to be made. It's this level of detail that makes the St Moritz Hotel stand out from the others.
This boutique hotel is one that's so highly regarded I've yet to find anybody disappointed by it, in any way! It's even approved by the well-known hotel appraisers "Mr & Mrs Smith"
The hotel sweeps round a gentle curve, a continuous sweeping vista of white walls and ceiling to floor, wall to wall, patio doors facing the sea. Standing majestically, like a beached and luxury ocean-going liner. When it comes to boutique hotels, when the whole building becomes part of the experience then it just takes the meaning of boutique hotel to a whole new level. Here you feel part of the experience, not an occasional observer.
Originally built in the 1920s/1930s, the St Moritz Hotel has retained that art deco chic styling, it feels as if you've been transported back to that time, when luxury and elegance were King.
The views are magnificent, the local beaches are some of the best in the world, the food at the hotel is exceptional - or you can explore further afield and indulge in other iconic experiences such as Rick Stein's Seafood Restaurant just a short passenger ferry trip across the estuary.
Rooftop Penthouse Suite
What could you possibly find wrong with a rooftop penthouse suite, with full length sliding glass doors that just glide to the touch, being able to step out into the crisp and salty Cornish air and have a panoramic view of the dramatic and gorgeous north Cornish coast.
With cloudless blue skies above, the Atlantic Ocean below you and the Cornish palms in the grounds, you'd probably forget where you are for a moment! The air is bracing, invigorating and the surrounding area inviting. Just a short stroll will take you down to the St Mortiz' private beach. Not the largest beach in the world - and there are a few pebbles around in most seasons - it is certainly a fabulous sun-trap.... and being a private beach, its use and potential mis-use are tamed.
In Your Boutique Hotel Room ...
It's important that it feels special! And at the St Moritz it feels 200% special, from the minute you turn into the driveway and see the full building in front of you, you feel special, relaxed and lucky you found this Cornish gem.
As soon as you get into your room, if you're like me, you'll throw your cases on the bed, open those huge glass doors, step out onto the balcony and breathe in that fresh Cornish air - you've arrived! Then it's time for the room - what've you got??
Well, there's a flatscreen TV, hair-drier, hair straighteners and those lovely Cowshed products (I love to pick those up and just feel and smell them). If you've booked a suite, then you get the joy of checking out the mini kitchen too, which has a washer drier, a fridge-freezer, hob, kettle, toaster, oven - and a full set of utensils (including a great bottle opener) - and if you're cooking, then you're not missing out as the kitchens have balconies too.
There are even other, small, touches that make a difference, like the pack of playing cards available to pass the time.
Spend Your Days .....
You can simply kick back and relax in luxury in your own room, slide back the balcony doors and breathe in that fresh, salty sea-air.
With the St Moritz being a large boutique hotel, there's the full range of activities available within its exclusive sports centre There's an indoor swimming pool and an outdoor pool, tennis courts, sauna, steam rooms and a jacuzzi - all immaculately presented, pristine and inviting.
Cowshed Spa On Site
No doubt you're familiar with a lot of top, luxury products such as Cowshed spa and beauty products and treatments, but at the St Moritz Hotel there's even a Cowshed Spa. The comfortable and large cream chairs literally wrap round you as you lay back and enjoy being pampered.
All the rooms have Cowshed products too, something a little heart-warming as you first settle into your new home for the weekend - or the week maybe!
The Cowshed Spa is in the sports centre, so now might be a great time to book yourself in for some super pampering at the Cowshed Spa. Top Tip: Book the spa before you arrive as it's very popular!
Head for the Private Beach
If you prefer to just take the short stroll down to the St Moritz' private beach, then stop off at Reception on the way and you can rummage around in their room of body boards, windbreakers, buckets, spades... and all that beach paraphernalia that you don't want to take with you and don't want to waste time buying when you get there. Simply help yourself to what you need, the collection's vast.
- Camel Ski School, Rock
The Camel Ski School in Rock specialise in water-based sports along the Camel Estuary between Padstow and Rock in Cornwall.
Gentle Coastal Stroll
Once you're on the beach, you can walk round to Daymer Bay and further to Rock, and the ferry, which is 2-2½ miles via the beach. If you take this route, then look out for St Enodoc Church, just a few feet from the beach, which is where John Betjeman, the former poet laureate is buried. His grave is just on the right after you've stepped through the entrance archway.
Prideaux Place
Or, you can pop over to Padstow and walk the coastal path there, perhaps visiting Padstow's ancient Prideaux Place, a private home that's open to the public and is steeped in history and ghosts.
Action Packed Days
If you're the more energetic type though, why not book some surfing lessons down on Polzeath Beach? For those of you who prefer more land-based activities, the Camel Trail starts at Padstow, simply take the passenger ferry over from Rock and when you get off the boat turn left and head along the road that follows the estuary, to the site of the old railway station on the quayside, about 100 yards past the Metropole Hotel, which stands on the hill. There you can hire bikes to cycle to Wadebridge, or even as far as Bodmin. Or you can simply choose to stroll along the Camel Estuary - a disused railway track that's been converted into one of the most popular walking and cycling trails in the country.
Black Tor Ferry/Padstow to Rock Ferry
There's been a ferry here since medieval times. The ferry's route is tide-dependent, at high tide and mid-tide you'll start and finish at the same points on both sides. At extreme low tide you'll have to walk down the beach a little at Rock - and walk over the headland back into Padstow.
Ferries run every 20 minutes from 8am to 5pm in the winter, with the hours extending up to 8pm in peak summer. There's no Sunday ferry from the beginning of November to the middle of February. The ferry fare is £3 return for adults, £2 for children, £3 for a bicycle and £1 for a dog (which is at the ferryman's discretion). Map/times: http://www.padstow-harbour.co.uk/padstow_ferry_s.pdf
Directions to St Moritz Boutique Hotel
Overall, the St Moritz have it spot on when it comes to delivering a high quality boutique hotel experience. There's nothing you can find wrong with the hotel, the fittings, the staff, the location, the ambience..... it's all just PERFECT!
A short break at the St Moritz will probably be the best time you've spent away, ever.
The St Moritz boutique hotel is on the north Cornwall coast, in quite a remote, but exclusive, area. If you're driving, you can enjoy the Cornish countryside along the route. If you're arriving in Cornwall by public transport, then you will need to think about your onward journey.
You can fly in to Newquay Airport, which is about 20 miles by road (via Wadebridge). Or, you can arrive by train, with Bodmin Parkway Railway Station being the closest.
Address: St Moritz Hotel, Trebetherick, Cornwall, PL27 6SD
Telephone: 01208 862242
Website: http://www.stmoritzhotel.co.uk