The hotel is nestled just below Symonds Yat Rock and stands exclusively in grounds of almost 5 acres, overlooking the river. The hotel is in the heart of the Wye Valley in an area of outstanding natural beauty where the river Wye cuts a swathe through a wooded gorge on the edge of the spectacular Royal Forest of Dean. The Royal was originally built in 1876 as a royal hunting lodge, and was converted to a hotel in the 1920s.