Little Mini Break: The White Horse Hotel, Dorking

I’m always on the look out for the perfect little escape from London as unlike most of my friends I don’t have much family in the UK outside of London. The perfect place doesn’t take too long to get to, is affordable, has great food and is somewhere I can go on great walks.

Last month I found just the place; The White Horse in Dorking. It took less than an hour and a half to get there (I’m North of the river in London but if you’re not it’ll take even less!) and it’s situated in the small town of Dorking, between the North Downs and Denbies Estate and Vineyards. As the name suggests it was a coaching inn, the property has undergone an overhaul recently and is looking really beautiful.

I will mention, before we get to deep into this blog post, that my boyfriend went away with me for this mini break, but sadly he was pretty sick both en route and once we got there which is why there aren’t quite as many photos as I’d hoped. We probably should have cancelled but he was a star and made the effort to come along with me.

I wanted this mini-trip to be quite a chilled one, it’s nice to be in a new environment for a few days but I didn’t want to do too much. We checked in around 3PM, ate snacks, played board games on the giant bed and watched some TV- not the most adventurous day but it was exactly what we wanted.

(Little peak at what skincare I’m using)

The room was a nice size- with a desk, little table and a large, super comfortable bed. The bathroom didn’t have a bath which I do usually like but the shower pressure was great and I do enjoy a shower once I’m in it. The hotel is located in the town and we were on a lower floor which left me nervous in terms of noise but we slept well all night with no noise.

For dinner we headed down to The Dozen restaurant in the hotel, there were actually a lot of locals in there also having dinner which is a great sign and I’d recommend The Dozen for dinner even if you’re not staying in the hotel. The food was honestly amazing! Michael had to leave me half way through the meal (as he was still unwell) and I’m honestly sad that he didn’t get to experience the food with me. To start we ordered a bread basket and Mac N Cheese balls which were DIVINE- I’ve been dreaming about them ever since. I then went for the fishcakes which I was a little unsure about but it was such a good decision as they were truly delicious. Of course, I also got a side of chips and I’d recommend you do the same.

In the morning, once Michael was feeling a little better we made the most of the delicious breakfast, I went for a full-english which was one of the best I’ve had in a while and included lots of local produce.

Just before checking out we decided to go for a little wonder around the town. It has lots of independent shops as well as a few chains which are great for picking up some car snacks (M&S obvs.)

Before heading home we headed to Box Hill, I hadn’t heard of Box Hill previously but if you visit The White Horse or live fairly local I would say it’s a must. We went for a long muddy walk, enjoyed the sun and indulged in an Ice Cream. Essentially, Box Hill is just a hill with a nice view and an interesting walk (especially for kids) and maybe it was just because we were lucky to get a nice day but it’s one of the nicest walks I’ve been on near London. If you’re in South London I think lunch at The White Horse and a walk around Box Hill is simply the most perfect weekend activity!

Huge thank you to The White Horse for my lovely stay, it’d the perfect place for a little mini-break!

To book to stay or eat at The White Horse, click here, room rates are affordable!