I’m a fool for the English countryside. Offer me a getaway with little-to-no mobile signal, rolling hills and a cosy wood burning fire and I will practically bite your hand off. Because while our neighbours across the Channel may boast year-round balmy temperatures, the UK’s national parks are steeped in history, old-fashioned glamour and unrivalled romance – and, rather unsurprisingly, I’m a sucker for that too. 

The parks’ romantic allure – found in the likes of the Cairngorms, Loch Lomond, Snowdonia, the Lake District and, oldest of them all, the Peak District – have long enticed England’s most wistful creatives. Landscape artists, watercolourists, poets and novelists have all captured the beauty of the Great British wilderness – evident in now-famous works by JMW Turner, William Blake, Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters – while film crews have used its picture-perfect backdrops to shoot the likes of Vanity Fair (1998), The Darkest Hour (2017) and period dramas such as Pride and Prejudice (2005) and Jane Eyre (2011). 

It’s the latter two that helped cement the Peak District’s fairytale status – and admittedly, it’s the area’s period drama-peppered CV that sprung to mind when I was invited to stay at The Cavendish hotel in the ceremonial county of Derbyshire (one of five that make up the national park). But having been welcomed into this newly-renovated historic hotel in the quaint village of Baslow, fringed by the famous Chatsworth Estate, I quickly learn there’s much more to discover here than silver screen hotspots. 

To truly appreciate The Cavendish is to understand the depth and breadth of its history. Owned by the Chatsworth Estate, the stately home and seat of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire – whose family were granted this geographically-compromised title in a friendly regal deal back in the 17^th century, purely because the region’s eponymous title was already taken by another powerful family – the hotel takes its name from the family who have presided over it since 1549: Cavendish. Spanning 17 generations and 500 years, the family is one of the most prominent in the UK, with each heir living and working to keep the Chatsworth legacy alive. To this day the estate remains the official home of the current Duke and Duchess – Peregrine and Amanda Cavendish – but more recently has been occupied by their son Lord William Burlington, a renowned photographer, and his fashion consultant wife Lady Laura Burlington. 

Having injected new life into the estate via the family-run Devonshire Group – which also cares for the family’s other historic seats, including Bolton Abbey in north Yorkshire and Ireland’s Lismore Castle – The Cavendish was one of the first projects on the Burlington’s to-do list, having been left untouched since it opened as a hotel in the 1970s. Blending the couple’s mutual artistic flair,it emerged from a careful £3.5m restoration earlier this year – and caused a stir for all for the right reasons. 

Overseen by Lady Burlington, the renovation was led by esteemed interior designer Nicola Harding, who aimed to turn this darling country bolthole into a fashion-forward destination. Rendered in a bold but warming palette of purples, greens and blues – paying homage to the nature outside its four walls – alongside a smattering of pinstripe and floral wallpapers, Harding’s design nous is infectiously charming in its appreciation of the storied past of the Grade-II listed building and its connections to Chatsworth House. Harding was granted exclusive access to the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire’s private art collection; one of the most significant in Europe featuring artists such as Elizabeth Frink, Phyllida Barlow, Lisa Brice, Elizabeth Peyton and Jeremy Deller. The result is a unique artistic time capsule that blends watercolours of the house and grounds with contemporary pieces, while black and white historic family photos are peppered throughout the hotel’s grand bar, lounge and restaurant. 

Originally opened by the then-Duchess Debora Mitford, the youngest of the fabled Mitford sisters and a British fashion icon (spot the photo of her feeding chickens in a ballgown at Chatsworth House to prove my point), The Cavendish offers both style and substance. The 28 characterful bedrooms, including two suites, are not lavish but are wonderfully pretty, featuring undulating countryside views across the estate with the ‘big house’ in the distance. While antique furniture and stone fireplaces remain untouched, pops of colour add a sense of fun, from the playful lamps made by a member of the household staff to the upholstery and fabrics woven in Derbyshire and Yorkshire. 

Links to its historic neighbour are everywhere. In the Gallery restaurant, lampshades are made from old fire hydrants found in the attics of Chatsworth and wall lights in the corridors having been repurposed from antique horse carriages. Elsewhere, ceramics by Australian artist Pippin Drysdale appear in The Painted Hall of Chatsworth as well as behind the reception area of the hotel, one of several references that highlight the Duke of Devonshire’s passion for the art form. 

Inside my room, named Capability after the English landscape artist who worked at Chatsworth (I also spotted a room named Mitford en route), I am treated to a four-poster bed so high it requires a small step ladder to hop into, as well as Barbara Hepworth prints on the walls. Flat screen TV? Tick. Rainfall shower? Tick. Sumptuously soft linen and coffee station? Tick, tick. Old, stuffy, dated hotel, this isn’t. 

There’s no spa here, partly due to The Cavendish’s size and, one assumes, the restrictions that come with listed status, but this was never going to be a hotel that encourages guests to lounge and linger. Instead, the main draw will always be its doorstep access to not only the Peaks – avid walkers can hike Baslow Edge from a trail that starts in the village to be rewarded with the kind of sweeping views usually only enjoyed by grazing Highland cows – but also Chatsworth House. Accessed via an easy 20-minute walk through the estate, taking in roaming deer and sheep, ancient woodlands and miles of river walks, the perfectly-preserved working house is truly a sight to behold. It’s at this point that Pride and Prejudice fans will squeal: Chatsworth was used as Mr Darcy’s stately home, Pemberley, in the 2005 adaptation – and stepping inside is just as whimsical as you imagine. 

Having been granted early access to see the house – within which I’m told the Devonshire family still live, but their exact quarters remain undisclosed – it’s a cornucopia of art, furniture and textiles built over five centuries. Wander its halls to discover a sphinx from Ancient Egypt, stone feet from Athens, and an amethyst from southern Brazil alongside Old Masters from Thomas Gainsborough, and works by John Singer Sargent, Lucian Freud and Damien Hirst. 

Chatsworth House

From the grand Painted Hall to the state bedrooms, the house is a natural space to hold exhibitions, the most recent coming to fruition thanks to Lady Burlington’s fashion connections with Erdem Moralioglu. Imaginary Conversations is a dazzling display celebrating the legacy of the late dowager Duchess Deborah (Mitford) Devonshire, whose wardrobe also inspired the Erdem SS24 collection. Experiencing Chatsworth like this is an educational, awe-inspiring whirlwind that guests of The Cavendish are privy to – and one which peaks (ahem) on the belvedere with a glass of champagne in hand. History lessons don’t get much better than this. 

The work of Chatsworth House Trust, however, extends far beyond the building. Having worked hand-in-hand with local communities for centuries, the estate has built relationships that offer a wealth of Peak District experiences. Staying at The Cavendish hotel grants access to behind-the-scenes tours of small batch gin distilleries, breweries and ice cream makers, as well as an extensive calendar of themed talks and learning experiences throughout the year for adults and children. Whether it’s watercolour workshops, outdoor theatre, riverside Thai Chi, floristry or goat feeding, there is quite literally something for everyone.

The Garden Room

As you roam the estate and national park, you’ll soon find a teal hue keeps cropping up. That colour signifies establishments owned and operated by Chatsworth; a portfolio that ranges from inns to pubs and hotels to holiday cottages. Restaurants all follow the same farm-to-table ethos, serviced by Chatsworth’s very own kitchen garden and production manager Mick Brown. From the jams and jellies at Chatsworth Farm Shop (with produce and prices that rival the likes of Daylesford) to the Cavendish Restaurant housed in the 18^th-century stables at Chatsworth House, expect high-quality, seasonal produce sourced directly from the working farms and gardens on the estate – think butter, beetroot, chalk stream trout, lamb, apples, grapes for the estate’s smooth dessert wine and everything in between. 

This exemplary eco-conscious ethos shines at The Cavendish hotel, which serves a 10-mile tasting menu in its prim-and-proper 3 AA Rosette Gallery Restaurant. Helmed by executive chef Adam Harper and his protégé Joe Bains, each ingredient on this menu is produced, sourced or made within 10 miles of the estate, and the filling five courses range from Chatsworth beef tartare with pickles, Ladybower trout with squash, and a light, fluffy passion fruit souffle (pair with the estate’s second release of dessert wine, courtesy of talented sommelier Stuart Bond, for a real treat). For more laidback fare that doesn’t skimp on Chatsworth’s savoir faire, saunter across the corridor to the glass-fronted Garden Room, serving delectable plates of salt-baked beetroot with apple, Chatsworth sirloin steak, hot smoked salmon salad and milk chocolate brûlée. Simply delicious. 

The Gallery Restaurant

Adam Harper, left, and Joe Bains from The Cavendish

By the time I leave The Cavendish, I have not only a longing to return to the spell-binding Peaks, but a yearning for every hotel to be as mindful as this one. The family-run estate has taken its seat of power seriously, and has evidently used it for good, bringing its storied past swiftly into the modern age to ensure it will remain relevant for years to come. Book here for beautiful art-led interiors, sustainable and thoughtful food, doorstep access to centuries worth of history and endless exploration, but also the Great British countryside at its very best. You’d be a fool not to experience it. 

From £200 per night, visit cavendishhotelbaslow.co.uk

Read more: The Goring: The legacy of London’s last family-run luxury hotel