The Crown Hotel
Lynton
The hotel is conveniently located in the North Devon town of Lynton, providing the perfect base for walkers exploring the Devon coastline – in particular the iconic ‘Valley of the Rocks’ – an incredibly raw and rugged landscape. Lynton is a charming Victorian cliff-top town perched high over the dramatic Devon coastline with quaint cottages and narrow streets full of cafe’s, antique shops and galleries. It is famously connected to its sea-level sister town of Lynmouth by a Victorian funicular railway – the highest and steepest water powered railway in the world.
As such the hotel attracts a demographic of avid walkers and those wanting to experience a traditional Devonshire ‘time-capsule’ town. We therefore adopted a vintage design aesthetic as our concept for the hotel, while also injecting natural textures and tones into the bedrooms, inspired by the natural landscape.
The pub is blessed with incredible wall murals by the late artist Mick Cawston – one of the world’s finest dog and animal painters. He was a master of anthropomorphic pictures and humorous country scenes.
We were keen to treat the pub with a light touch in order to preserve and celebrate the Cawston murals, while bringing his artwork alive, allowing for an immersive experience throughout the hotel.
The customer journey needed serious attention, with no clear sense of arrival when you arrive at one of three sperate entrances as either a staying guest, diner at the restaurant or drinker in the pub. To achieve this we created a vibrant lobby lounge and reception area, combining an eclectic mix of furniture upholstered in bold prints and textures with quirky lighting and artwork.
The bedrooms have a boutique feel with the main impact achieved from the textured feature walls, bold headboards and richly coloured ceilings. The bathrooms have had a significant overhaul with new plumbing infrastructure, antique bronze sanitaryware and vintage wall tiling, resulting in a traditional aesthetic with a contemporary twist.
