Golfers can look forward to a Christmas of great golf, stunning food and spectacular wine at a new restaurant with boutique rooms in the New Forest National Park.
Golfers can look forward to a Christmas of great golf, stunning food and spectacular wine at a new restaurant with boutique rooms in the New Forest National Park.
Burley Manor opens on December 7, in plenty of time for Christmas, following a £1.7 million transformation. With courses across the National Park, it is perfectly placed for a gourmet and golf festive break. Admittedly, players may have to share the courses with the New Forest ponies, deer or donkeys – but it is Christmas, after all, and a little sharing is called for. Top local courses include:
Brockenhurst Manor Golf Club, Brockenhurst (pictured below)- designed by Harry Colt, recognised as one of the best in the beautiful New Forest area, Brockenhurst Manor is a fine test for golfers of all handicaps. This challenging 18-hole course is surrounded by wildlife and beautiful landscapes. (Open both Christmas Eve and Boxing Day).
Hamptworth Golf & Country Club, Hamptworth - an 18-hole, par 72, woodland course accompanied by practice facilities. The club also features all-weather tennis courts, croquet lawn, gym, clubhouse, golf & tennis academy. (Open Christmas Eve, closed Boxing Day).
Forest Course, Bramshaw - sharing is a probability rather than a possibility here. Its open aspects and rolling heathland mean the prospect of a deer emerging from the trees or a mare chivvying her foal across the fairway is a likely one. The ever-changing scenery of humps, hollows and meandering streams test golfing skills and judgement within an idyllic setting. (Open Christmas Eve, closed Boxing Day).
Manor Course, Bramshaw - at the same club as the Forest Course is the first-class Manor Course, gently undulating with excellent fairways which demand accurate tee and good approach shots to the well-manicured greens. There’s no easy hole on this course. (Open Christmas Eve, closed Boxing Day).
Burley Golf Club, Burley - in Burley itself, this is a nine-hole course. Burley Golf Club is a typical heath course on Forestry land with an abundance of wildlife and forest views which have remained almost unchanged for more than a century. (Open both Christmas Eve and Boxing Day).
The official New Forest website lists more courses across the New Forest. They are many and varied, suitable for the experienced and the novice and perfect for some outdoor exercise to balance a little festive over-indulgence.
Now on to the festivities; Christmas Eve is special – time to begin to relax. A round of golf upon arrival in the forest should while away the morning before check-in at Burley Manor. Then it’s time to stop, sip mulled wine, enjoy a 3-course meal and savour the gentle anticipation of the celebrations to come.
Wake on Christmas morning to stunning winter views across rolling downland and the native red deer. This is a grown-ups only Christmas, a celebration of the season, an escape. Share gifts before breakfast and take in the tranquillity with a forest winter walk before lunch.
Burley Manor’s quintessentially English Christmas warms up for lunch. The restaurant will be unique. Relaxed and warm, renowned for featuring the rustic, vibrant dishes of the Mediterranean – simple, superb, seasonal ingredients crafted by award-winning chefs into dishes which allow the ingredients to sing.
Starters such as tiger prawn cooked in spices, prosciutto di parma, cured smoked salmon roulade; or confit duck leg with spiced chorizo and lentils are followed by dishes which feature some of the best produce from the British Isles. Wood-roasted porchetta loin of Gloucestershire old spot pork with sage and tarragon sweet potato and orange; as well as a tasteful nod to traditional festive flavours – wood-roasted crown of Bronze turkey, stuffed leg with chestnut and apricot chipolatas.
An array of the very best artisan regional cheeses, grapes, quince, poached fig and set honey served with fine biscuits are the debut for indulgent desserts such as dark Italian chocolate torte with white chocolate ice cream, or traditional Christmas pudding with brandy butter and redcurrants.
Toast health and happiness with Perrier Jouet Belle Epoque in the bar, warm and rich with bold colours, vibrant fabrics, candlelight and eclectic artwork. The scene is set to sample a selection of fine wines with dinner, from Burley Manor’s expert sommelier.
Investment in the latest wine technology means that one-third of a bottle carafes are on offer across the wine list. Pair the perfect wine with each dish and step off on a new wine journey for the coming year. Wines such as the classic Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume Domaine Jean Defaix, fine and elegant with aromas of citrus fruit and steely minerality, or the intense Lebanese iconic Chateau Musar.
After a hearty breakfast, the golf course will be calling. Eighteen holes, whatever the weather, should work up an appetite to indulge in Burley Manor’s Boxing Day dinner. A relaxed six course affair.
2015 Christmas at Burley Manor. Great golf, stunning food and spectacular wine. Only for those that have been very good this year.
Relaxed, three-night Christmas forest breaks start from £720 per person, in one of Burley Manor’s cosy snug rooms. Take advantage of this deal by booking before the end of November; it includes an introductory 20% off (quote M2015).
For more information see www.burleymanor.com or call 01425 403522. Reservations can be ade on 0800 44 44 41.
