Hotel Review: Birch Community - The Simple Explorer blog

*This stay was gifted but as always, all opinions are my own!

A couple of weeks ago, I was kindly invited to stay at Birch Community - a members’ club and hotel for those wanting to escape the city. It’s around 30 mins from London’s Liverpool Street so naturally, when you first jump off the train at Cheshunt (closest train station), you don’t quite feel as though you’ve escaped any sort of busyness. But within ten minutes, you drive up to a gorgeous hotel and a whole lot of green space.

The ethos of Birch’s designers, Red Deer is about sustainability, minimised waste, and upcycling - so things like exposed brick walls and original tiling can be found throughout. You may recognise THAT staircase as it’s a popular one for the ‘gram (guilty…).

value for money

The idea is that you either book to stay as an overnight guest and have access to all of their facilities OR you become a member and receive more benefits as a result (e.g. discounted rooms, food and drink etc.). The rooms vary in size a lot and it’s possible for you to stay solo or with a guest from £140 a night.

This just covers the room expense as well as access to some of the free facilities - everything is else is charged as you go. Once you add on the food and paid activities, it could rack up to be a spenny trip - but of course, the number of activities you do is entirely up to you.

facilities

We stayed in a “medium” room and it was minimalist but all that you needed for a short stay. There are no TVs or desks - with the aim of creating a thoughtful space. My initial impressions of the room were that parts of it (e.g. the bathroom) looked outdated but having learnt more about the story of Birch, it made a bit more sense. Essentially, the ethos is to reuse and repair the existing materials as well as stripping back clutter.

We wandered the grounds in the sunshine, smashed a 2-hour pottery session, peeked into the lido (not quite brave enough for a dip) and also made use of the games room. In the evening, you could wrap up in a blanket by the fire pits but this is probably one to save for the summer months. Overall, there is a lot to do and something for everyone.

For food, the hotel’s primary restaurant is Zebra Riding Club - which offers a tasting menu only. Whilst it was an interesting experience to try (I don’t often do tasting menus!), I didn’t love the vegetarian options and would likely have preferred to eat at the more casual dining space, Valerie’s.

service

The service was genuinely some of the friendliest I’ve experienced - this includes the people at reception, in the restaurant and during the pottery class. Checking in (and out) was smooth, we were showed around the whole place and you’re also given a WhatsApp number in case you have any requests at any time of day. Very handy!

location

The location makes it easily accessible via public transport from London (which is always a win for me as I don’t drive!). The closest station is Cheshunt and then it’s a ten min drive from there to Birch. There’s not much to do locally but there is plenty to do on-site. The idea is everything you need is at Birch so you stay for the duration of your stay to make the most of the facilities.