Grantley Hall in North Yorkshire

Grantley Hall's origins trace back to around 1710, when Thomas Norton built the original Palladian-style house on the banks of the River Skell, just outside Ripon in North Yorkshire. His son Fletcher Norton, who was made 1st Baron Grantley in 1782, extended the modest residence into a grander country house in the 1760s, with further additions attributed to architect John Carr. Over the centuries, the hall served many purposes beyond a private home — functioning as a wartime convalescent facility during the Second World War, and later as an adult education centre. By 2015, it sat dilapidated and largely forgotten until Valeria Sykes decided to purchase the estate while driving past, embarking on a four-year, £70 million restoration project with the ambition of creating something "Yorkshire could be proud of." The result of that painstaking renovation, which opened in July 2019, blends traditional elegance with state-of-the-art facilities, with three generations of the Sykes family involved in shaping the hotel's character. The building holds a Grade II* listing on the National Heritage List for England, and its Japanese garden — created around 1910 using rocks from nearby Brimham Rocks — is separately listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. Inside, the aesthetic balances period grandeur with contemporary comfort: guest rooms are decorated in soft tones of cream, grey, and gold, with velvet armchairs, marble-topped furniture, and upholstered bedheads, lending a refined country-house feel. Today, it is recognised as one of England's members of The Leading Hotels of the World, offering Michelin-starred dining, an award-winning spa, and an atmosphere that mixes old-world Yorkshire charm with thoroughly modern luxury.