Waking up to the sunrise streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows in the calm, modern luxury of my biophilic lodge ranks among my favourite moments of the year. The Reeds is a relatively new addition to the South Lodge estate, a series of six two storey cabins perched over a lake, into which the brave can dash for a bracing morning swim. 

I was content to relax in the morning glow with a cup of coffee and a copy of City AM The Magazine, the bustle of the main South Lodge estate feeling like a world away. Available in various sizes – mine was a roomy one-bedroom called “Damselfly” – these are impeccably put together structures, the word “cabin” utterly failing to do these louche, curvy residences justice. Downstairs is a chic living space with sofas overlooking a terrace. There you can enjoy the hot tub as you gaze out at the gently rolling countryside, or warm up within your own private sauna. Upstairs on the mezzanine you will find the giant bed.

Where is The Reeds at South Lodge?

This is ideal long weekend fodder, with South Lodge sitting right in the Goldilocks Zone just outside of London, far enough from the City to feel like a proper change of scenery but close enough that you’re not going to spend half your trip on the motorway. Located a short drive from Horsham in West Sussex, it’ll take you as little as an hour to get there by car should the traffic gods smile upon you, and less than two hours all-in by train.

What is there to do?

Seriously, when you check out this cabin, you’re not going to want to leave – but South Lodge is a stunning estate worth exploring. Beside the cabins you’ll find a young vineyard, which will eventually supply wine to the restaurants (you’ll find a bottle of local fizz in your cabin, which is a nice touch). Further afield lies the estate itself, a stunning country pile that’s been tastefully modernised by the Pecorelli family’s Exclusive Collection. Before you make your way through the grand entrance, cast your eye over the manicured lawn to the largest rhododendron in Europe, an absurdly vast shrub that is said to be impossibly beautiful when in bloom.

The hotel is rather easy on the eye, too, all ornate carving, marble floors, heavy wood panels and botanical wallpaper. You can feel the history here, whether you’re relaxing in the chandelier-lit Billiard Bar with a dram of whisky or sitting on the stepped lawn, which is so precisely manicured it must be maintained with nail scissors.

Ant then there is the spa, which is half the draw at South Lodge, made up of a sprawling collection of pools and tubs, both indoor and out. Loungers circle the pools, giving the impression you’re somewhere warmer than the UK and when I was there, the weather duly obliged. Should you wish to cool down, there’s a ‘wild swimming’ pool that will get your heart thumping before you hop back in the hot tub.

What about the food at South Lodge?

The food, you ask? Oh, let me tell you about the food. There are three restaurants here as well as the aforementioned bar, of which I ate at two. Let’s start at the top: The Pass earned a Michelin star in 2023 under head chef Ben Wilkinson (just seven months after his arrival) and you can see why. With just 28 covers, it’s an intimate affair, with many of the tables overlooking a kitchen that would be the envy of most London restaurants. You know what to expect here – incredible lamb and oysters and turbot – but that doesn’t make it any less enthralling to eat. Book a table here, you won’t regret it.

There is also the only-slightly-less-fabulous Camellia, situated in the sun-filled room in which you’re served breakfast. Expect innovative twists on classic country dishes: rabbit loin and venison and a brilliant take on Sussex beef tartare, including oyster emulsion, crispy capers and pickled shallot.

And the main hotel?

The rooms in the main building are the equal and opposite of the cabins: traditional affairs with the kind of idiosyncratic layout typical of such estates. Mine featured exposed beams, a double-width ‘stable’ door downstairs and a chimney stack sprouting from the centre of the room. Very quaint.

• For more information and to book go to the website here