The Best Hotels to Book Near Whipsnade Zoo, UK

Less than a 10-minute drive away from Whipsnade Zoo is the Holiday Inn Express Dunstable, a modern hotel with free parking and breakfast for guests. The rooms are designed to be crisp, comfortable and minimalist. This larger hotel also has plenty of different room options so that families, couples and solo travellers can all find something to suit their needs. There’s also a lobby bar.

There aren’t many hotels in this region of England that can claim to have quite as much history as Harlington Manor. This remarkable property, with antiques in the bedrooms, dates back to 1396. Throughout the interiors, you’ll find carved stone fireplaces, time-warped wood and old oil paintings. And like all historic manors, there are many stories to tell, including that of King Charles II’s stay here. You can even stay in the King’s Room, where he slept.

Pendley Manor is built to a larger scale than Harlington, with a charming Tudor revival style and set amid 35 acres (14ha) of land. Whipsnade Zoo is 8mi (13km) away, but you’re likely to spot a resident peacock on the grounds right here. The rooms all enjoy modern furnishings, some with floral- or avian-themed wallpaper and marble-tiled bathrooms. A Shakespeare festival takes place at Pendley Manor in early August every year.

What’s wrong with a bit of decadence now and then? Champneys Tring is a luxurious spa resort within a red-brick mansion formerly owned by the Rothschild family. It offers an all-inclusive, health-centric experience, where your room fee includes three meals a day, including a three-course dinner, and full access to the spa facilities, complete with a steam room, a sauna, tennis courts and a jacuzzi. Even the standard rooms have large windows and top-quality linens, while the suites have separate lounge areas.

Over in Hemel Hempstead, the Olde Kings Arms is a traditional pub where time-warped wooden pillars hint at the building’s early-16th-century origins. Rumour has it that Henry VIII even spent a night here. The nine ensuite rooms have been thoroughly modernised – particularly the clean, tiled bathrooms – although some retain their characterful half-timbered walls and ceilings. The pub downstairs sells stone-baked pizzas and a good selection of cask ales.

Like its franchise sibling in Dunstable, the Holiday Inn Express Hemel Hempstead is another great option for Whipsnade Zoo visitors who want good road access and competitively priced rooms. The pillow menu is a great feature, ensuring you get the best night’s rest possible, while the connecting rooms allow larger families the chance to stay in adjoining spaces more comfortably and securely.

The five-star Luton Hoo Hotel sits inside an 18th-century mansion. Also, the estate is home to a Victorian nine-hole golf course. An excellent antidote to all that exercise and fresh air is the hotel’s large spa and pool, which includes full use of the Country Club. Luton Hoo’s rooms retain their stately, ornate atmosphere – particularly in the suites, with four-poster beds and antique furniture.

The Linton Hotel and Luxury Suites in Luton serves many types of travellers. Stockwood Park, with a golf course and the Stockwood Discovery Centre, is right across the street; the WorkOtel rooms cater to those who need to combine their stay with an office on the road, providing desks and office facilities. And for those visiting Whipsnade Zoo, the safari park is only 7mi (11km) away.