Hotel review: Hyll by YOUTH

Curated as a ‘slow hotel’, Hyll‘s surroundings gently set that tone. Following a 90-minute train ride from London, the Cotswolds unfold in soft, pastoral waves around you and – like me – you’ll be instinctively inclined to leave any stress you brought with you on the station platform.

Set against a backdrop of the seasonally transformative British countryside – raw in the unindustrialised, agrarian sense, it is evident as to why YOUTH Studio, Founded by Oliver Collinge and Liam McGroarty, were chosen as the interior designers. The studio’s regard for the rugged organic is translated directly within the interiors of Hyll, equally inspired by the property’s surrounding weathered landscapes too.

Arriving at the hotel, two low walls of Cotswold stone, marked simply with ‘Hyll’ in brushed metal, guide you up a driveway that gently climbs the property’s namesake hill. Rounding the first bend, the 14th-century manor appears, its buttery yellow Cotswold stone a sunny sight. Along the way, a tall stone sculpture catches the eye – the first installation of an art trail that will eventually weave across the grounds. The sculpture, anchoring the hill, feels emblematic of the property’s spirit – grounded, balanced, quietly powerful. Every object here carries a story told with complete intentionality.

Entering the manor, there is no formal check-in. Guests are welcomed as if arriving home. A boot room pre-stocked with wellingtons and rain jackets invites you to hang your belongings and settle in. The entrance hall, lined with artworks, naturally slows your pace – encouraging you to pause and look.

The interiors are intended to create a tangible shift in pace for guests, offering an experience that resists the conventions of a typical country house hotel. Restraint, presence and material honesty guided every decision, and these values are felt the moment you arrive” – Liam McGroarty, Co-Founder of YOUTH 

Throughout the ground floor, vintage farmhouse tables and mid-century chairs mingle with softly lit lamps, setting a tone of tactile warmth and an uplifted domestic familiarity. Materials are chosen not only for their connection to place – locally sourced timber, hand-worked plaster, aged metals – but for how they will evolve; surfaces are intended to wear and patina.

Image credit: Murray Orr

Leading from the hall, three lounge rooms unfold, each designed for both connection and solitude. Stacks of design magazines, gardening journals, and novels curated by Borzoi Books of Stow-on-the-Wold, invite you to linger for longer. In the main lounge, generous sofas gather around a stone fireplace, encouraging conversation or quiet contemplation. Nearby, a smoky-hued snug doubles as a music room, complete with vinyl player and shelves of records – part refuge, part reverie.

Renowned for combining the rich and the raw, YOUTH layers velvet-suede and linen in tones of cream and mocha to create spaces of deep comfort. The jagged stone-feet of coffee tables contrast with liquid black tabletops, anchoring rooms, echoing the manor’s natural palette, cementing the space in the contemporary with a sense of permanence.

A shared understanding of materiality, atmosphere and the quiet power of spatial storytelling led to Hyll. Our intention was to create a retreat that strips away the noise of the modern world, favouring a raw, sensory-driven approach. With this alignment of philosophy, the collaboration felt less like a choice, and more like a natural outcome” – Oliver Collinge, Co-Founder of YOUTH

The same sensibility carries into the restaurant, which celebrates fresh local ingredients and nourishing, seasonal food. Similarly, the design celebrates nourishment as much as aesthetics. Charred wooden tables crafted by local artisans add tactile touch points, while timber panelling mirrors tall woodland shapes, bending light and casting soft shadows. Conceived to blur boundaries between the built and the natural, the space feels calm, generous, and honest – much like the food.

Lighting, considered by YOUTH as an architectural element, glows low and warm. Sculpting rather than saturating, custom fixtures in aged metal – down-lit sconces, low pendants – deliver a quiet refinement. The atmosphere throughout is closer to candlelight than electric light, soothing rather than stimulating.

Image credit: Murray Orr

In guest rooms, divided between the main manor and a courtyard building, two colour palettes – one dark and cocooning, the other bright and fresh – offer distinct moods, both guided by restraint. Though beds take centre stage; a bespoke Naturalmat design, equal parts aesthetic, comfortable and sustainable, anchors each room. Staying in a courtyard suite, a softly curved mid-century style headboard spans the width of the bedroom wall, backlit at the flick of a switch in amber tones that produces immediate luxurious ambience.

Advocating the history of the building, as has been done throughout the property, in the bedrooms, YOUTH opted to strip the manor’s existing beams back to their original wood – something designer Oliver tells me was not an easy feat after years of paint layers had taken hold – and embrace the walls’ imperfections with a coat of paint rather than a complete replaster. The result is a neat nod to the property’s long history, invigorated for the modern day.

Hyll is not about escape – it is about reconnection. The design is more than visually calm; it is experientially grounding, inviting guests to engage with their surroundings in an unforced way. Every detail is considered to encourage stillness, guiding rather than demanding – Oliver Collinge

Wardrobes of stained oak are lined with soft linen and gently lit from within, creating quiet moments of luxury. Beside each bed, charred timber tables carry the imprint of transformation, their darkened surfaces a tactile reminder of Hyll’s raw materiality. Seating in the suites are a mixture of linen and leather, again, tactility reigns supreme. While simple pleasures, such as making a cup of tea, are elevated to quietly ceremonial, with kettles echoing traditional Japanese teapots. This property is slow, quiet luxury at its finest.

Thresholds are equally intentional: bathroom entrances framed in sculptural stone mark the passage as fluted glass doors accentuate the light passing through. Each detail connects seamlessly, ensuring the guest experience feels fluid and continuous.

Throughout, YOUTH’s design language champions subtraction over addition. Rather than layering for effect, spaces are pared back to reveal form, material, and atmosphere. Furniture is positioned to frame views rather than demand attention; light is used to guide movement and shape emotion. The result is a retreat that feels less designed and more discovered – as if the building had slowly grown from the hill itself.

Excitingly, set to open in early 2026, The Bower – a new building designed by Tim Groom Architects – will be added to Hyll’s skyline. Designed as a wedding and event space, it will sit beside the manor in dialogue rather than deference.

With The Bower soon to join the landscape, Hyll’s recent opening marks only the beginning. Yet its essence is already clear — this is a place where contemporary design, unembellished nature, and a deep sense of heart, soul, and time coexist in quiet rhythm. I’m already on the edge of my seat for news of the next YOUTH project, and I’ll be keeping a close eye on the Madfabulous Hotels brand too. Perhaps it’s my familial northern bias showing, but I can’t help feeling that Hyll is just the start of something quietly powerful from this collective of effervescent Mancunians.

Main image credit: Murray Orr