13800/4GAZETTE & HERALD: A magnificent Wiltshire garden has been applauded by the RAC as one of the 20 most beautiful hotel gardens in the UK and Ireland.

The gardens and grounds of Lucknam Park Hotel at Colerne have won high praise from the expert hotel inspectors of motoring organisation the RAC.

The hotel boasts 500 acres of listed parkland and walled gardens and is the pride and joy of head gardener Giles Hall.

"There really is a special atmosphere here everybody likes it," he said.

"We were delighted to be listed."

The hotel's managing director Harry Murray said the accolade was a great encouragement to the staff.

"They put a lot of hard work into it, and this helps make it all worthwhile," he said. "It is a wonderful place."

The hotel estate amounts to 500 acres and the house was built in 1720. It became a hotel in 1988 and has 41 rooms.

The hotel stands at the end of a stunning drive almost a mile long, lined with beech and lime trees.

There is a walled garden and a host of garden 'rooms' including a lavender garden and a rose garden, with the parkland beyond.

For the millennium the hotel planted 600 trees to create an arboretum.

Mr Hall has five people working with him to maintain the garden and estate.

He has managed the garden for around eight years, and has about 30 years' experience in gardening.

Within a walled garden he has created a herb garden, a tropical garden and large herbaceous borders.

"We are constantly looking for places to put new gardens," he said.

An extension to the leisure spa will also lead to developments in the gardens with an aromatherapy garden on the cards.

While the layout of the gardens is traditional Mr Hall has a keen eye on contemporary design developments and new plantings have included the tower garden, which is full of different species of grass.

The hotel already attracts many guests who are gardening enthusiasts, and some of the hotel's packages include visits to other notable local gardens.

The RAC has highlighted the popularity of hotel gardens and grounds in setting up their top 20 list.

"Consistently improving standards in the UK and Irish hospitality industry are reflected in the care lavished on many grounds and gardens, with the setting and environment increasingly seen as integral parts of a guest's overall experience", said RAC spokesman Rob Maynard.

"Lucknam Park's beautiful gardens will give keen gardeners something to admire and aspire to and the rest of us a great deal of pleasure."

Another UK hotel garden that impressed RAC inspectors this year was the Bath Priory, at Bath.