Great Fosters

Great Fosters sits on Stroude Road, a little way out from the centre of Egham, on the western edge of Surrey where the county runs towards the Thames and the M25. It is a hotel first, a Grade I-listed Tudor estate and former royal residence, set in 50 acres of gardens, but it functions as a destination for people who are not staying the night as well. Afternoon tea is served in the Anne Boleyn drawing room. There is an Art Deco outdoor pool. The dining is described as Michelin-starred, though stars move year to year, so check the current position if that is the reason you are going.

The price band is ££££, and the five-star rating is the point rather than a footnote. This is the top of the market in this part of Surrey. Nothing about it is casual. If you are weighing it against other options, the honest framing is that you are paying for the building, the grounds and the level of service that comes with a five-star classification, not simply for a meal. Readers who find that proposition uncomfortable will not be converted by the setting. Those who want an occasion will find the setting does a great deal of the work.

Who it suits: anniversaries, milestone birthdays, weddings and the kind of overnight stay that is the trip rather than the accommodation for it. Afternoon tea is the most accessible way in, a couple of hours rather than a whole weekend, and a reasonable choice for visiting family or a significant birthday that does not need dinner. Fine dining here is an evening you plan around, not a Tuesday.

Practical points before you book. The address is TW20 9UR, and the hotel sits in its own grounds rather than on a high street, so drive or arrange a taxi; it is not a walk from the station worth doing in poor weather or good shoes. A five-star hotel of this size runs weddings and private events, and parts of the estate may be committed on any given date, worth asking when you book, particularly if the gardens are the draw. Menus, sittings and availability for afternoon tea are not things this note can confirm, so ring or check the website rather than travelling on assumption.

Egham is a working Surrey town with a university and good road links rather than a tourist centre, and Great Fosters does not really belong to the high street at all. It operates as an estate in its own right, drawing people from the wider county, from London and from the airport corridor. For anyone in the area looking for the most formal, most expensive option within a short drive, this is it.