Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire

One of our favorite places for a relaxing weekend. Nothing is too much, and they made my son feel like a prince. Thank you to all of the staff for a memorable experience. We have stayed a few times and will be sure to come again.

After a rather disappointing first experience at the Four Seasons Hampshire, which we had shared with management, we decided to return. And we were right: this second experience was memorable and totally lived up to what one expects from a Four Seasons. We particularly appreciated the quality of the dining, but above all the attentive and truly personalized service, which made all the difference. We felt that our comments had been heard and taken into consideration, which deserves to be highlighted. The estate also benefits from a superb location, in a quiet area, in a magnificent English countryside setting. The rooms are very comfortable and the bedding is simply worthy of a Four Seasons, allowing for perfect rest. A very beautiful experience that completely reconciled us with the establishment. We will return there this time with great pleasure.

I visited the Four Seasons Hampshire for lunch recently and discovered a policy so backwards it genuinely beggars belief. The hotel has EV charging points on site. On this particular day, they were free and available - not a single car plugged in. Naturally, I asked whether I could use one while I ate lunch in their restaurant. The answer was no. Only hotel guests may use the chargers. I confirmed this not once but twice with reception, spelling it out clearly: "So you're telling me that even if a charger is free, and I'm here spending money on lunch in your restaurant, I'm not allowed to plug in?" Both times, the answer was the same. Yes, that's correct. Guests only. And let's be clear - this isn't even a case of freeloading. The chargers cost £20 per session. I was perfectly happy to pay. They still wouldn't let me. Let that sink in. In 2026, when every brand on earth is tripping over itself to signal its green credentials, when sustainability is the buzzword du jour, when hotels plaster their lobbies with leaflets about reducing carbon footprints - the Four Seasons Hampshire would rather leave its chargers sitting empty and earning nothing than allow a paying restaurant customer to hand over £20 to top up for an hour. This isn't about revenue protection. The chargers were unused. It isn't about capacity. There was space. It's about a petty, gated mentality that treats a basic piece of modern infrastructure as some kind of exclusive perk for overnight guests, as though letting a lunch guest pay to charge would somehow cheapen the brand. The irony is thick. You can almost hear the sustainability officer's PowerPoint presentation about the hotel's "commitment to a greener future" - a commitment that apparently stops the moment someone without a room key asks to pay £20 to use a charger that's doing nothing anyway. For a hotel that charges premium rates and prides itself on service, this is remarkably short-sighted. The £20 I was happy to pay would have been pure revenue for a charger that was otherwise sitting idle. The goodwill generated would have been real. Instead, I left with a flat battery, twenty quid still in my pocket, and a distinctly unimpressed view of a brand that talks green but walks small. If you drive an EV and you're thinking of popping in for lunch, don't bother. You're not welcome at the charger unless you're sleeping in one of their beds. Sustainability, it seems, is strictly for guests - and so is the right to pay for electricity. 1 star - and that's generous.