Bibury hotel up for sale (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Bibury hotel up for sale

A WELL-KNOWN Cotswolds hotel could become a private home after being put up for sale with an asking price of £4 million.

The owners of the Bibury Court Hotel, near Cirencester, think it's more likely to remain as a luxurious hotel, but the 18-bedroom property could well be transformed into a private estate.

The 17th century building on the outskirts of picturesque Bibury might even be snapped up by another celebrity wanting to move to the Cotswolds.

Andrew Johnston has joint-owned the hotel for the last thirty-five years. He said: "We think it's time to move on - our young don't want to be hoteliers and the place needs new blood.

"We've had a lovely life out of the hotel and it's hard to see the sale information in print.

"Like selling any family business it's been hard to make a decision." The hotel was originally built as a country house in 1633 and is set in six acres of beautiful gardens and grounds bounded by the River Coln.

Bibury itself was once described by William Morris, founder of the Arts and Crafts movement of the 19th century, as "the most beautiful village in England", and it still has a thriving tourism industry during the summer months.

After various owners and the death of Lady Clark, the last person to use it as a private house, Bibury Court was transformed into a hotel in 1968. It is currently owned by Mr Johnston, his wife Anne, and Jane Collier.

Mr Johnston added: "We've have had some interest in the building as a private house but I think it's more likely to go on as a hotel - but you never know."

At £4 million, the asking price is higher than any of the grander properties recently sold in the Cotswolds.

Even Kate Winslet and Sam Mendes only paid £3.3 million for their home near Bourton-on-the-Water, although their total bill is likely to be a couple of million higher after two years of extensive renovation and improvement work.