The secret South-coast beach hotel, away from the crowds
I check in to The Relais Cooden Beach, East Sussex
It’s easily reached from London by car and you can catch a train directly to the hotel… so it’s even more surprising to find a corner of the south coast still relatively undiscovered. The Relais Cooden Beach is a stylish sea-front hotel at the extremely quiet Cooden Beach, on the edge of Bexhill, East Sussex.
While most people head to more famous Hastings to the east, or Eastbourne to the west, Bexhill sits between, with less of a seaside resort-feel and more of a locals’ town-on-the-coast feel. To the west of Bexhill, lies Cooden Beach, a wide shingle beach in an upmarket residential area. There’s nothing there other than houses backing on to the beach, plus the Relais Cooden Beach hotel. It’s a popular place for people to dine in, or sit on its huge terrace and take in the sea views.
We checked in for the weekend and stayed in a double room with balcony. The room was comfortable and views just lovely. I really enjoyed sitting on the terrace and taking a long ramble along the beach, with only a few dog-walkers for company. It’s a great spot if you are looking for somewhere quiet.
It was only slightly spoilt by the occupant of our neighbouring room who put on a jazz concert on his TV and blasted it at full volume until late at night, while he sat on his balcony. We didn’t eat dinner in the restaurant, but the menu, including fish and chips, local chicken and lamb and classic desserts such as crème brulee and Eton Mess, looked great and the restaurant was fully-booked, so it’s clearly very popular. Breakfast was great, with a good hot and cold buffet.
The hotel was built in the 1920s and is privately-owned by hotelier Grace Leo. It underwent a renovation recently and has 45 bedrooms, some in the main building and some in an annexe (we were in the annexe) and a spa is due to open this summer. The common areas were nicely-designed and the décor of our room pretty, but it could have done with a refresh, as it looked tired. I am assuming the annexe hasn’t yet been renovated.
I would definitely recommend the four-star hotel for a weekend away, as it’s good-value, a lovely little spot and service from food staff was excellent. But service in other areas, including check-in, did let it down. There was some confusion about our booking, with no roll-out bed for one of my kids and I got the impression reception didn’t believe I’d booked them in (I had). I had to give them my key back to bring a spare bed, then when we returned in the evening, there was a lengthy wait for someone to come to reception.
A sign informed us the desk was unmanned and to ask for help at the bar, which we did, to be told by the barperson, they had “no idea who to get to help, so we’d have to simply wait”, so we patiently sat at reception for about 15 minutes, until two staff emerged from their break room and gave us our room key. It might seem like a trivial moan, but for me, it’s come to embody the lacklustre approach to customer service we have accepted, post-lockdown.
But what many businesses forget is that when a customer is spending hundreds of pounds to stay in a hotel, they do want to feel like they’re having a treat. Little fails like this, mean they don’t.
The Travel List
What: The Relais Cooden Beach is in Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex.
Where: Bexhill is around two hours by car from London, on the A21. There is a train station right next to the hotel, with trains from Eastbourne and Ashford.
Cost: Rooms start at around £100 a night, off-season. I paid £220, in July.
Verdict: 8/10
To book: Visit therelaisretreats.com
This looks like a wonderful place to stay. Being in Canada, seaside communities in the UK are not something we think about. We think historical buildings, cobblestone streets, cool weather and rain. And London is where to go.
Thank you for pointing out that visitors need to escape the confines of the city and explore the surrounding countryside and shorelines to truly appreciate such a diverse country.