playground

WHILE Guy Fawkes prepared to blow up King James I and his government with a deadly haul of explosives under the Houses of Parliament, a sprawling country estate 100 miles away was poised to become a crucial yet little-known part of the Gunpowder Plot.

James’ nine-year-old daughter Elizabeth lived at magnificent Coombe Abbey near Coventry and Fawkes’s co-conspirators had planned to kidnap her and install her on the throne as a puppet queen.

An anonymous letter rumbled the London end of the plan while, in Warwickshire, the plotters – led by Robert Catesby – abandoned the kidnapping on hearing about the failure.

To this day, the foiled plot is commemorated with fireworks and bonfires on November 5.

And Coombe Abbey is now a magnificent hotel worthy of its regal connections.

Built by Cistercian monks in 1150, it became the biggest abbey in Warwickshire before being seized during Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries.

BOOK IT

20 ultra cheap girly hols – UK trips, city breaks & all inclusive stays from £59

STAY CHEAP

Bargains at Butlins & manor stays… incredible value UK hols from £2.50pp a night

Later it was sold to nobleman John Harington, who agreed to act as Elizabeth’s guardian, raising and educating her at his home.

In a rather peculiar twist four centuries later, Game Of Thrones star Kit Harington, a descendant of Catesby, played his ancestor in BBC One drama Gunpowder.

Guests arriving at the hotel nowadays pass over its ancient moat then enter through the original stone cloisters, where a pulpit still stands.

You can take a pew on an ornately carved throne-like chair, admire the hanging wall tapestries and marble busts or examine the tomb of murdered monk Abbot Geoffrey, whose cloaked figure is said to still roam.

Fittingly, our room for our night’s stay was The Princess Elizabeth, decked out in deep mulberries and glimmering golds and with an oak four-poster bed set upon a plinth.

Luxurious floor-to-ceiling curtains embossed with the same heraldic design as the wallpaper enhance the royal feel, while the bathroom with roll-top bath and golden taps also adds to the drama.

The hotel lies in 500 acres of parkland, set to host a mile-long light festive trail throughout December.

Little ones will love the Hermit’s Hollow play area and families can enjoy Go Ape adventures.

Nearby Coventry is full of medieval buildings and cobbled lanes.

The ruins of its 14th-century cathedral – bombed during World War Two – are preserved alongside a modern replacement, as a symbol of peace and reconciliation.

Coventry Transport Museum is brimming with bikes and vehicles that have helped shape the world including ThrustSSC, the fastest-ever car.

Lesser known but eye-wateringly beautiful is St Mary’s Guildhall.

Built in the 1340s for traders and crafts people, it’s re-opened after a £6.2million refurbishment.

The Great Hall has hosted monarchs and its intricate stained glass windows and painted wood carvings in the roof are breathtaking.

There’s also a rare nine-metre tapestry from the early 1500s depicting Henry VI, who moved his royal court to Coventry, effectively making it England’s capital.

Uncovering another secret gem was the perfect end to a historic stay.

DREAMING of five-star winter sun without the five-star price tag? Check out Morocco’s wild north-west coast.

The Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort is vast. Sprawling across 250 hectares — roughly the size of 350 football pitches — it sits alongside four miles of empty and pristine Atlantic coastline.

The resort is built in the style of an ancient Moroccan citadel, with ochre- plastered walls capped with crenellated roofline and towers.

Rooms are set around central courtyards and landscaped gardens.

Long reflecting pools, marble fountains and rows of manicured palms are framed by grand horseshoe arches decorated with intricate, carved plasterwork.

With 15 restaurants and bars, an 18-hole golf course, spa and endless activities, my stay revealed a luxury hotel that comes at a surprisingly affordable price, with rooms from £145 a night.

STAY NOW

Our top cheap UK stays including holiday parks & seaside hotels from £3pp a night

ARE EU SCARED?

These are Europe’s SPOOKIEST holiday destinations

And you get a lot of room for your money. My spacious, modern room had fabulous ocean views with delightful Moroccan-inspired touches, including hanging lanterns flanking the king-size bed.

Sliding open the balcony doors rewards you with a sweeping panorama of the Atlantic surf crashing against the sand.

Early morning, with a sweet tea in hand, I caught sight of horses galloping along the beach.

Surf instructors were waxing down their boards and lining up life jackets ready for a day of training tourists how not to topple into the swell.

But there was no time to dawdle, with so many activities at my finger tips.

First stop was the resort’s award- winning spa for a double dose of indulgence.

I was treated to a deeply relaxing hot stones massage, followed by a traditional grand hammam ritual. Inside a glowing, marble-clad steam room, I was bathed, scrubbed and polished top-to-toe with black soap, oils and eucalyptus.

Staff said the locals insist on scrubbing down with one of these treatments at least once a week — and after seeing the glow on my own rejuvenated skin, I can certainly see why.

Suitably refreshed, it was time for some high-octane adventure.

And that’s where Mazagan feels less like a hotel and more like a high-end luxury playground.

The golf course, designed by Gary Player, is the longest in Morocco, stretching over 7,400 yards.

Then there is North Africa’s largest casino (housing 37 gaming tables and nearly 400 slot machines open 23 hours a day), a 22ft climbing wall, go-karting tracks, paintball fields, pickleball courts and more.

And at the centre of the maze of courtyards that connects the more than 400 rooms, a glistening pool invites you in for a dip — though I had barely any time to kick off my flip-flops before I was on to the next activity.

I upped the ante with a thrilling quad bike ride along the resort’s flat, wide sands, feeling the salty Atlantic spray as we neared the water’s edge before heading into the rolling sand dunes and scrubland surrounding the resorts.

On longer drives, your guides will even take you inland to zip through the neighbouring eucalyptus and pine forests that fringe the coastline.

And after some serious speed, I switched to a very different horse power with a gentle ride along the beach.

The hotel’s onsite stables are home to local barb and Arab-barb horses.

Historically bred by the North African cavalry and Berber horsemen, these magnificent beasts are sure-footed in the soft sand, calm-tempered and well-accustomed to the heat and Atlantic winds.

Heading out on to the broad, tidal flats we were soon trotting along at a fair pace on the wide open, empty sands before steering our steers towards the coastal forest trails, lined with fragrant mimosa.

All that activity means treating yourself when it comes to food and drink and Mazagan doesn’t disappoint.

Trying just a fraction of the resort’s 15 restaurants and bars, I feasted on rich, fragrant tagines, fresh seafood and mountains of velvety houmous.

Sel de Mer was an absolute highlight. Here, the catch of the day is transformed into culinary perfection.

Select your own from the fresh, tempting line-up resting on a bed of crushed ice and then choose to have it grilled on the plancha or oven-baked, served up with a choice of sauces.

For a more relaxed dining experience, the Beach Barbecue serves up freshly-grilled meats, fish and vegetables while your feet are in the sands.

Alongside the barbecue there’s a buffet of fresh salads, Moroccan cooked salads, couscous and freshly-baked flatbreads.

And for a truly Moroccan touch, Al Firma offers an open-air setting with traditional Bedouin and Berber carpets, low seating and lanterns as well as traditional tagines with vegetables from the onsite farm garden.

I topped it all off with cocktails at the Casablanca-inspired lounge bar — swathed in royal green velvet drapes and playing some live weekend jazz.

With adrenalin-charged activities alongside top-tier pampering, Mazagan delivers a great winter break option without breaking the bank.