Why it’s good for business
It’s hard to believe you are just a short hop from the M25 when you are in the
400-acre grounds of Foxhill’s, a golf resort that has morphed into a
conference venue and now - with the addition of new rooms and a brand new
health spa – is positioning itself as a country house hotel. The golf – two
18-hole championship courses and one nine-hole course – will always be a
magnet for people pretending to be on business but the hotel has other
credentials that make it a good place to stay. Heathrow is just 20 minutes
away and there are three business parks and the tech-heavy town of Woking
nearby. Sony regularly sends guests to the hotel and the centre where Team
McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 cars are built is just around the corner.
The room
A new 28-room hotel wing opened in March. The building is in keeping with the
Victorian architecture of the main building but the rooms are much more
modern and standardised than the existing 42 rooms, decorated in the English
country style. The extra rooms make the hotel a much more attractive
proposition for conference organisers looking for a residential conference.
There are some nice touches – such as a cafétière, ground coffee and fresh
milk in every room. The hotel has also equipped each room with an iron and
ironing board, in my opinion, something that should be standard in a
business hotel.
A place to meet
There are nine dedicated meeting rooms with capacities ranging from four to
100 delegates. Eight-hour rates start at £79, 24 hour rates at £260. The
classy Boardroom fits 28 and has touchscreen-controlled A/V and lighting and
hideaway whiteboards and projection screens. If you want a more informal
head-to-head, take a seat in the Lounge. The soothing yellow walls and
clubby atmosphere makes it an ideal location for knocking around a few
ideas.
Technology credentials
Wireless internet is supposedly available throughout the hotel. In the room I
stayed in, three hotspots showed up but all had limited or no signal, making
access a patchy affair. However, access is included in the room rate.
Mix business with pleasure
As well as the golf, Foxhill's is renowed fors its tennis facilities. It has
12 outdoor courts - six all-weather and six acrylic - most of which are
floodlit to enable play until ten at night. Private tuition is aviable with
head pro Pippa Britton or her team of four coaches for between £20 and £28
an hour.
Free group coaching is available most days of the week in short lessons aimed
at particular ability levels but you need to sign up at the Foxfit leisure
centre in advance.
Fed and watered
The Manor Restaurant retains much of the grandeur of the stately home’s music
room, its former function. Very high ceilings and tall windows giving views
over the 18th holes of the two championship golf courses. Perhaps unusually,
the food is not French but modern British and you might get a rump of
English lamb with black pudding (£15.25) and followed up by a summer pudding
or blackberry and apple crumble (£5).
In the know
If you want something a little different than the formalised environment of
Foxhill’s Manor Restaurant, take a cab to nearby Woking. Pick of the crop is
the Mogul, a Nepalese restaurant in Brookwood, according to Foxhill’s front
of house staff. Typical dishes include salmon steak cooked in a clay oven.
The Mogul, 142 Connaught Road, Brookwood. Tel 01483 472610.
Business class – business farce
Business class: great for mixing business and pleasure
Business farce: family-friendly credentials means that there are often kids on
the grounds, although they are mainly kept well away from the adult areas.
The bottom line
Studio rooms from £180. Continental breakfast £11 (£13 in room); £16 (£18 in
room); laundering shirt £4.75 (in by 9.30am, back by 11am next day); beer
from minibar £3.80
Need to know
Foxhill’s, Ottershaw, Surrey, KT16 0EL. Tel 01932 872050. www.foxhills.co.uk
