For gathering
In the end, we’ll look back at the pictures we took beside that fire pit, in that treehouse, dancing around that kitchen island, and we’ll say: “look at us, we always filled those big houses to the rafters.”
Welcome to the family reunion: where kith and kin gather in large houses around the nation. Out on the wind-whipped balcony, an imaginative elder points out to sea and tells concocted stories of fisticuffs with sharks and trading treasures with the Pirates of Penzance. Inside, there’s fresh coffee and sweet apples from the orchard; and fair isle socks muffle the thuds of young ones testing their pillow obstacle course.
This winter is for coming together in luxury, for dogs dodging tumbling stacks of Jenga, for floating in and out of slumber as the stardust-souled play a motion picture, and the whole group gathers in the fire-warmed snug. Tables piled high with crackers and trailing grapes. Cheese boards and nut bowls and jars of fruit chutney; no space left for elbows. Carafes slosh with plummy Malbecs until the last drop is poured, well into the small hours.
Nightjar
Ampney Crucis, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, The Cotswolds, UK
A Cotswolds country home meets contemporary design in this large, luxury self-catering retreat. Expansive light-filled living spaces, a heated pool and private cinema shape an idyllic family escape.
Sleeps: Up to 10 guests
From: £7,495 per week, £5,595 per short break
Pets: Sorry, due to the proximity of livestock dogs are not permitted
Features: Outdoor swimming pool (available May - September), hot tub, sauna, cinema room and games room with table tennis and a pool table
The Palladian
Ampney Crucis, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, The Cotswolds, UK
Georgian in style and grand in nature, this self-catering Cotswold manor offers a true countryside escape perfect for multi-generational groups.
Sleeps: Up to 12 guests (6 adults and 6 children)
From: £4,795 per week, £3,450 per short break
Pets: Sorry, no pets
Features: Outdoor heated swimming pool and hot tub (both May - September), gym, tennis court, trampoline and small football pitch
