Luxury Family Hotels was born in 1989 following a visit to Ireland by founder Nigel Chapman (and his large family). Having received a fabulously warm welcome as a family in a small Irish hotel and captivated by the thought of combining the luxury and charm of country house hotels with family facilities, Nigel decided to give up his day job to focus on bringing the same welcome and ethos to the UK (where, at the time, there was no such thing as family friendly in the hospitality sector really). He purchased Woolley Grange and then was joined by business partner, Nicholas Dickenson, and together they opened Moonfleet Manor, Fowey Hall and The Ickworth Hotel and Apartments. Many of the original team of Managers are still on board today.

In December 2006, Luxury Family Hotels was acquired by von Essen hotels, keen to add a ‘family set’ to their already fabulous collection of country house hotels which already comprised a classic set, country set and now also has a continental and metropolitan set.

von Essen has always embraced the individuality of their properties and Luxury Family Hotels has continued to prosper under their ownership. August 2007 saw The Elms Hotel join the brand.