Assessment: voco Lodge and Spa Winchester, UK

So, why the title – voco Lodge and Spa Winchester? voco loosely interprets from the Latin for an invite and a coming collectively. And no, that isn’t a typo. voco, doesn’t need a capital letter. It’s as as a lot a way of thinking as a lodge.  A singular modern title, freed from grammar protocols and stuffy pretension.

voco Lodge and Spa Winchester has location, location and extra location going for it. Set amongst the inexperienced hills of the South Down Nationwide Park, this 131-bedroom lodge is inside minutes of historic Winchester. As soon as the capital of Wessex after which England; instrumental within the start of a nation. 

In October 2023, voco reopened after an eight month and £2m refurbishment. The Vacation Inn had a persona makeover and was reborn as voco Lodge and Spa, a trendy vacation spot for leisure and me-time. Work too, in the event you actually should.

The welcome

Two employees await at reception to rapidly verify us in. All they want is a surname to find our reserving and ensure our restaurant reserving. Then we’re on our manner and within the raise. 

Getting into our room, a welcoming message on the 50-inch tv encourages us, as if we want it, to loosen up. 

The room

In line with voco model, there’s a “come on in and really feel at residence” vibe to our Premium Room, which has calming gray/blue paintwork. These mild and soothing colors, with a sea-spray flourish of white, are picked up within the deep pile carpets. All cooled successfully, in humid mid-summer, by scrumptious air-conditioning. 

It’s a spacious, stress-free room with strategically positioned ceiling spotlights and a modernist customary lamp which aspires to angle-poise standing, all deferring to a king-size mattress. Considerate design supplies a protracted desk for working with a big oval mirror in order that it multi-tasks as a dressing desk too. There may be an intensive beverage tray, plus a Nespresso coffee-maker with a selection of capsules. 

There may be an intensive beverage tray, plus a Nespresso coffee-maker with a selection of capsules. 

The toilet

A considerate design contact is that controls are positioned mid-bath so that you just set the proper temperature earlier than setting foot underneath the bathe. It’s additionally a deep bathtub for extra indulgent me-time. White towels and dressing robes are high-end, pristine and fluffy. Antipodes Fig and Feijoa toiletries present caressing pure, pure and vegan skincare.

The amenities

Kitchen 21 is called after the now legendary 21-inch pizzas which can be the signature dish of the open plan kitchens.

Wooden texture partitions, terracotta planters, inexperienced banquettes and tan chairs mix to present a reassuringly pure really feel to a light-weight restaurant the place tables are well-spaced. 

In addition to the core menu of steaks, burgers, rooster and salads, a seasonal menu – suppose seabass, vegan Thai curry, garlic and lemon pork chop – brings selection for the massive numbers of standard diners staying on enterprise.

 Amongst the starters, a watercress soup provides a nod to Britain’s watercress capital, that’s Alresford, which is a mere 10 minutes drive away.  A black pudding scotch egg, yolk heat and runny, on a mattress of piccalilli with roquette, reveals spectacular creativity. As does a Colado Mess for pud, tropically changing conventional strawberries with pineapple and including coconut ice-cream. A dish that’s a metaphor for voco’s angle. 

No shock then that breakfast is just about no matter you need it to be, grazing from the buffet or cooked to order. 

There’s extra indulgence and me-time on the ANA Spa, the place it’s advisable to e-book prematurely. Together with a way of wellbeing and calm, the spa delivers a Himalayan Salt Sauna, Sensory Bathe, Crystal Steam Room and Bubbly Foot Spa. 

Treadmills, bikes, ergo, free-weights, medication balls and even area to unfold out the yoga mats – the exceptionally well-equipped health club has all of it. 

The situation

Minutes off the M3, heading south from London to Southampton, voco is inside hanging distance of the south coast, the New Forest and all of Winchester’s points of interest.

Take a strolling tour of Winchester to study concerning the energy of the Itchen as a working river, as soon as powering 22 native mills, and to be given the “Wayfarer’s Dole”, a tiny cup of ale and a morsel of bread on the charitable Hospital of St Cross.

Or comply with within the steps of poet John Keats whose stroll from Cathedral to river to Faculty is alleged to have impressed his to “Autumn Ode”.

Steam-tinged reminiscences of The Railway Kids are rekindled on the Alresford station on the Watercress Line. A railway that till its closure in 1973 was the primary leg of a journey that transported watercress to the nation. Now its cafe, platforms and the signalman’s vegetable patch nostalgically recall one other period.

The beautiful city of Alresford with cafe and pub tables spilling onto the pavement, hanging baskets and a plethora of impartial store is probably probably the most engaging of the market cities round Winchester.

Many occasions are main as much as the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s start on sixteenth December 2025. Literary pilgrims head to her headstone at Winchester Cathedral and the Jane Austen Home Museum at Chawston. 

Different good touches

All through, three birds carry vital art work to the decor. A chatty and pleasant welcome is proven by the finch. Quieter, calmer owls symbolize in/room down time and flamingos, in public areas, replicate visitors’ social instincts 

LED lighting, timers for air-con and heating, and bedding constructed from 100% recycled supplies, all assist voco on its eco-friendly journey to sustainability.

Refreshed each day, the mini-bar contains cans of Malbec, Sauvignon Blanc, lager and Coca-Cola. 

The fee

From £250.00 per Premium room together with breakfast for 2 folks sharing the room.

The perfect bit

The bar and lounge areas are fashionable, refined, buzzy and alluring; whether or not it’s for a morning latte or a night mojito, whether or not it’s for socialising across the comfortable sofas, studying in one of many secluded armchairs or working at a high-level desk.

Decor is intriguing, with native touches, and blends modern with cosy.

The ultimate verdict

voco, nonetheless no capital letter, is “reliably totally different” as its credo guarantees. Upscale however not stuffy. Snug however stylish. High quality with out pretension. A comfy sanctuary however sociable too. 

voco is an irresistible idea not only for Winchester however one that’s spreading throughout continents from Ho Chi Minh Metropolis by Dubai to California.

Disclosure: Our keep was sponsored by voco Lodge and Spa Winchester.

Michael Edwards

Michael Edwards is a journey author from Oxfordshire, UK. Though Michael had his first journey items printed practically 4 many years in the past, he’s nonetheless discovering new luxurious locations to go to and write on.