The De Vere Latimer Estate has an intriguing historical story to tell.

I recently had the opportunity to re-visit Latimer Estate with a client which has recently unveiled a ￡7 million renovation. The venue is situated in Latimer, in Buckinghamshire’s Chiltern Hills but is just five miles from the M25.

The refurbishment uncovered and restored many original features, as well as subtly celebrating the hotel’s connection to a secret history where it was nicknamed ‘the Spy House’ because of its connections with WWII

De Vere Latimer Estate dates back to the 16th Century when the original house held Charles I during his imprisonment. The Tudor-style mansion standing today was completed in 1838 and became the temporary host of captured German U-boat submarine crews and Luftwaffe pilots during the Second World War before becoming the National Defence College until 2006.

The biggest transformation has occurred in the Mansion House. The refurbished original staircase with stained glass windows takes guests to 31 new deluxe rooms and suites that were previously meeting rooms and offices, bringing the total number of guestrooms in the Estate to 205.

The Cavendish suite has been added to the Mansion House with bi-folding doors which open onto a new terrace that offers views across the countryside.  This room can take up to 200 people.

The property also offers a further 28 flexible meeting and events spaces, some of which are located in the Waterhouse and Mews buildings, which sit adjacent to the mansion house. The Waterhouse Conference Centre (the old Cormorant building) has also undergone a ￡1m refurbishment making it a fantastic purpose built conference and training centre.

 The refurbishment has also seen the introduction of De Vere’s first Burr & Co. coffee shop concept, where guests can enjoy high quality ethically sourced coffee, tea, juices and soft drinks, cakes and pastries to take away or eat in.

Thanks for showing us around Louise, we look forward to booking Latimer for our clients.