The Star

Shining bright on the high street of the medieval village of Alfriston is The Star, our latest staycation destination.

The original Star was a religious hostel built in 1345, to accommodate monks and pilgrims en route from Battle Abbey to the shrine of St Richard, patron saint of Sussex, at Chichester Cathedral.

But the Star today has been recently refurbished – all during lockdown, and a hotel Mum had been wanting to go stay at since it opened last year, but we never made it till now.

Its 15th century frontage and ancient beamed bar opens straight off the high street.

This is where we could dine with our hoomans.

Behind the bar is a small library which leads onto a large restaurant …

We were not allowed in the restaurant so Mum never went in there. However there was a piece of art that she wanted to see – the Elizabethan woman. She’s also known as the “winking” girl.

Watch the video carefully and you’ll see why.

Across from the restaurant is the heart of the hotel – the courtyard where we dined, along with all the other doggy guests!

Yup! There were some very large dogs!

But I was with my friends Dante and Dede.

Cheers to friendship and to dogs!

May’s comments: This staycation was long in the planning. Since our last staycation in Eastbourne, we’ve been meaning to meet up again with James, Frank, Dante and Dede. After I had been to the other two Polizzi Collection hotels (Endsleigh and Tresanton) I most definitely wanted to see their latest addition, The Star which had only opened the Summer of 2021.

The Star, housed in a mixture of new and old buildings, has been totally rebuilt during the lockdown.

We loved the attention to details and the colourful interiors.

The dog-friendly rooms are located on the ground floor of the 60’s block. Each one of them lead out onto a patio.

We had one of the blue rooms. Note: George sat on the blanket supplied by the hotel – recommended for dogs wanting to sleep on the bed.

The renovation of The Star hotel in Alfriston was featured on Chanel 5 – Alex Polizzi: My Hotel Nightmare. I watched it only after our stay and it made me appreciate it even more.

This staycation with friends wasn’t just about checking out another dog-friendly place but it also gave us a chance to meet up, to catch up with friends, before we went on our own merry way – till the next time, the next hotel, the next staycation. Thank you James, Frank, Dante and Dede for sharing this lovely time.

We just thought this summer travel plans were best kept local. With everything being so unpredictable, everywhere so busy and so crowded, everything so expensive – finding little gems for staycation would be the best. And we’ve been thrilled to be keep discovering parts of England we’ve never been.

If anyone has any suggestions of fab places to stay, we’d love to check them out.