The Best Hotels to Book Near Epsom Downs Racecourse

Always wanted to be part of a country club? The Lodge at Kingswood gives you all the access without burning a hole in your pocket. And speaking of, the championship golf course on site has just attached a new winding creek at the first hole – adding a new challenge to teeing off. Just off the M25, the community of return visitors are a testament to its popularity as a stay-and-play location in Surrey.

This impressive country house-turned-hotel is quintessential in its Englishness. The red brick gothic architecture gives way to an oak-panelled grand hall with stained glass windows and the grounds consist of an immaculately manicured English country garden. Book in for afternoon tea on the terrace – plump little scones and bite-size cucumber sandwiches come with pots of steaming tea and, should you wish, bottomless Prosecco.

The Foley is just five minutes from Claygate train station, positioning it perfectly as a fly-and-flop destination or weekend staycation – London Waterloo, Gatwick and Heathrow are all under 30 minutes away. Unsurprisingly, the traditional pub-with-rooms really comes into its own at the weekend, when tables book up quickly for Sunday roasts and they offer a special deal for staying until Monday. Try the pork sausages from the local butcher, the Game Larder.

Amid a 470-acre estate, Beaverbrook is made up of 29 bedrooms spread out between two buildings – plus a private coach house that guests can take over completely. Having opened as a hotel in 2017, the Victorian mansion’s heritage has been playfully honoured by designer Susie Atkinson – the brains behind Soho House’s beauty, plus the Pavilion Suites at Lime Wood Hotel in the New Forest. There’s plenty of character here: from the secret door in Churchill’s room and the UK’s first home cinema to the alfresco restaurant set beneath stationary hot air balloons.

After a £4 million refurb in 2018, the White Horse became a charming Charles Dickens-themed coaching inn. The author wrote The Pickwick Papers here and while he might recognise the original beams and stable rooms today, the new interiors by Squid Inc – who turned Hotel Gotham in Manchester into the punky, playful place it is today – would be less familiar, but all the more impressive.

A short walk from Dorking’s high street, this listed building-turned-B&B is cosy and comfortable, with country-cool interiors and plenty of light. Overlooking Denbies Wine Estate and Ranmoor Common, there’s a beautiful outdoor terrace where owner Maggie serves her famous freshly-baked cakes and makes you feel right at home. Bedrooms are bucolic but stylish – finished with Sanderson woodland-print wallpaper, antique brass headboards and fully functioning fireplaces.

Sip on a sustainable G&T made with Warner’s Gin from Northampton whilst taking in the panoramic views of Carshalton Ponds at the Greyhound Hotel – where a sun-trap beer garden, live music, pop-up shops and sports screenings make it a fun place to be, whatever the weather. It’s grown-up but spirited, with a modern mix of textured interiors: rattan lampshades, diamond-brocade knit blankets and velvet-studded chairs.

With pub grub, swift service and a superb setting, the Duke’s Head is a big-hitter among those who want to dine in and drop off without leaving the premises. For a Young’s-owned business, the Georgian building retains its own unique character – and the menu offers a feast of locally sourced ingredients from Nutborne tomatoes and Dorset lamb to Quickes cheddar and Shropshire chicken. Book out the Lavender Lounge hut in the garden and fill it with friends and family for an evening of good food, fun and planning forays into the surrounding Box Hill, Epsom Downs and the magical Mayfield Lavender Farm.

At the foot of Box Hill, the lively Red Lion is not your average pub. There’s a Saturday street food menu with rotating themed productions – Asian night includes build-your-own bao buns, Korean fried chicken and Thai corn cakes – put on by Half Cut theatre and Burns nights comes complete with bagpipes. Toast marshmallows over the enchanting laser-cut steel fire pits outside, then retire for a movie marathon with a bottle of bubbles – one of the en-suite bedrooms has a giant 75” TV.

Size matters at Hartsfield Manor: the misleadingly-named annexe bedrooms have floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a mere fraction of the 16ac gardens – and there’s endless space for weddings, birthdays and anniversaries. The afternoon tea is a highlight, with freshly-baked scones and Cornish clotted cream – plus delicate sandwiches with classic fillings, such as smoked salmon and cream cheese.