A top-notch Somerset hotel and Spa owned by a Dragon has been sold to a Singaporean real estate development company.

Charlton House Hotel and Spa in Shepton Mallet, owned by Duncan Bannatyne , had been put on the market in 2021 for £4m, but sold for £3.1 million at the end of February.

The 28-bedroom property - a converted 17th-century country house - is set in four acres of landscaped gardens and grounds.

Charlton House Hotel and Spa has one Moroccan-themed spa with five treatment rooms, a hydrotherapy pool, an aroma-infused laconium sauna, crystal steam room, Finnish sauna and ice fountain. The hotel includes a full-service air-conditioned gym with state-of-the-art machines, classes and training facilities.

The hotel also has a 2AA Rosette Restaurant and Bar, Maxine's, a lounge and bar in the drawing room, and an Orangery that hosts indoor and outdoor events such as weddings. It comes with sprawling grounds that has a small apple orchard as well as a tennis court.

The Bannatyne Group acquired the Grade II-listed property out of administration in 2010. The group's portfolio now consists of three hotels in Hastings, Durham and Darlington.

It was bought by Kop Limited, who own Montigo Resorts in Nongsa and Seminyak in Indonesia as well as Wintastar Shanghai and Dalvey House in Singapore, and previously owned London's Cranley hotel and 10 Trinity Square, which houses the Four Seasons hotel.

They say they are drawing up plans for a 'quiet renaissance', with a sensitive repair and restoration programme on the cards. However, their website repeatedly refers to the hotel as being in Glastonbury., rather than Shepton Mallet.

Leny Suparman, Group CEO of KOP Limited, said: "The acquisition of the Charlton House Hotel and Spa owned by Bannatyne Hotels Limited will fit into our hospitality portfolio where we provide leisure experiences to our clients. This purchase marks our re-entry into the U.K. market."

Matthew Smith, partner, hotel agency at Knight Frank, which oversaw the sale said: "This sale demonstrates the confidence in the UK hotel market, which we expect to continue throughout 2023."