Great House, Lavenham, Suffolk - anyone been?

[Marina]

Trying to fix up a surprise weekend away (with children) for dh's birthday at beginning of April.
The Great House in Lavenham looks delightful and very reasonable. Has anyone stayed there?
Any other ideas for something a bit off-beat but welcoming of families somewhere in SE England warmly welcomed - not really rich enough for these Luxury Family Hotel jobbies though. TIA.

[Crunchie]

Looks really fab, I know the area and it is really pretty. What things are you planning to do? The village is very 'antiquey' it is where Lovejoy was filmed, Colchester is about 20 mins away with a fantastic zoo and a nice castle. I'd go there!!

[Marina]

Crunchie, thanks everso for the tips on activities. We "like Suffolk" without ever having spent much time anywhere except Southwold...I'd heard Lavenham was pretty but hadn't twigged Colchester was nearby. Cheers!

[bossykate]

marina, you could try chilston manor in kent. it's quite posh and not a "children's" hotel in the way they are featured on MN - BUT they have loads of offers around the £65 per night level, which might make interconnecting rooms a possibility. they do have baby sitting, cots etc, iirc. another option might be the spread eagle in midhurst - they have offers around that level too. what is your budget?

another one to try might by fairfields hotel in studland (ok i know it is not the SE!) it has a great reputation for child friendliness is in a beautiful location and doesn't have the price tag associated with the better known family options. haven't been there ourselves but it is rated by the guardian and friends of ours have been and loved it (summer though).

good luck and have a wonderful time.

[Marina]

Thanks for these too, bk. It's always nice to have a choice and my googling totally failed to find anything in Kent other than the slightly daunting Continental in Whitstable (place we like but fancied somewhere different this time).

[Azure]

Ooh yes, DH & I had a lovely weekend pre-children in the Great House, as have friends of ours. We had a very large room with a separate sitting area. Lots of beams on the ceiling. The place is quite small, and so I would imagine a baby monitor would work from the room to the restaurant, if needed. Food was great, too. Have a lovely weekend wherever you go.