Previously known as the Cooden Beach Hotel, the property in Bexhill-on-Sea was acquired by Relais Retreats in 2021. It’s the brand’s second property, following the Relais Henley, which opened last summer.
Work is due to be completed by September and all 45 rooms will be entirely refurbished, including five new veranda suites with private terraces. Guests can expect striking carpets, wainscot-panelled headboards and mid-century style daybeds.
Relais Retreats was launched last year by hotelier Grace Leo, the founder of Grace Leo Consultancy and former chair and chief executive of GLA Hotels. Co-investor Tim Hartnoll is the executive chairman of X-Press Feeders, part of the global shipping group Sea Consortium.
Leo said she wanted to create a “fun and stylish beach club atmosphere that’s usually associated with southern Europe”.
She added: “When I first set eyes on Cooden Beach I was captivated by the panoramic sea views and the prime beachfront location of the hotel. I instantly recognized the potential to transform this much-loved property into a new style of seaside retreat, drawing inspiration from my international resort experience to create a lifestyle destination in an undiscovered location on the East Sussex coastline.”
Paris-based designer Pascal Allaman has been tasked with the hotel’s new look, drawing inspirations from American coastal resorts including Nantucket and Montauk and the French seaside town of Deauville.
A new bar will sit alongside the lounge, and guests will be able to relax in sun loungers in the Beach Club or in deck chairs on the private lawn. The 1930s property has a private beach and views across the English Channel.
The beachfront restaurant and terrace will be renamed The Rally, in honour of the sporting history of the former owners, the De La Warr family. They put Bexhill-on-Sea on the map by hosting Britain’s first automobile races in 1902.
