Family-friendly self-catering
Children pick out wonder and awe in the smallest detail. These family-friendly locations come with muddy puddles, rock pools and garden games for all.
Little ones see everything through rainbow-tinted spectacles, and travelling with children should be a halcyon experience. What was once mundane becomes a shiny sparkle: the smallest puddles can turn into an exciting ocean voyage across stormy waves; those gnarled and twisted trees on a woodland walk are now tall turreted towers that must be scaled. There's nothing like exploring a new area with a child-friendly luxury holiday home as a base, heading out wellies on and a little hand clasped in yours, pointing in awe at clouds shaped like giraffes and glow worms lighting up the night. All the better enjoyed with grandparents, multi-generational group gatherings allow parents to sneak off and enjoy moonlit dips in heated swimming pools, or pop open a bottle of bubbles under starry skies while sinking into a garden hot tub. Time spent together is time well spent, after all, and memories are made of this.
The Hop Store
Ledbury, Herefordshire, The Cotswolds, UK
Set within 150 acres of perfectly aligned hop yards, rolling meadows and juicy apple orchards, The Hop Store is idyllically situated on one of the last remaining hop farms in the UK.
Sleeps: Up to 4 guests
From: £1,095 per week, £825 per short break
Alternative Group Option: Up to 2 guests
Pets: Sorry, no pets
Features: Heated garden room, games room with bar, pool table, dartboard and giant jenga
Hollyhocks
Wend through Herefordshire’s patchwork countryside and find this chalky Tudor cottage nestled on the banks of the river Arrow in the fairy-tale village of Eardisland.
Sleeps: Up to 6 guests (ideally 4 adults and 2 children)
From: £1,350 per week, £995 per short break
Alternative Group Option: Up to 2 guests
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Alchemy Hill
Blending seamlessly with the dramatic scenery of the Brecon Beacons and Black Mountains, Alchemy Hill is a peaceful and stylish retreat set in the rolling hills of Hay on Wye.
Sleeps: Up to 8 guests
From: £1,950 per week, £1,450 per short break
Alternative Group Option: Up to 4 & Up to 2 guests
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Features: Outdoor wood-fired eco hot tub, outdoor kitchen
Atelier Rose
This luxury riverside home is a wonderland of vintage charm. Ring the old pull-string bell and push open the door to botanic coving, four-poster beds, an orangery with giant tin hot tub and secret topiary gardens.
Sleeps: Up to 12 guests (10 adults and 2 children)
From: £2,995 per week, £2,250 per short break
Alternative Group Option: Up to 6 guests
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Features: Large William Holland hot tub, cinema room, pool table room
Charity
Black Mountains, Herefordshire, UK
Modern rusticity, clever artistry and divine seclusion combine to make Charity the ultimate wild retreat for friends and family gatherings; set down a winding mountain road in the Olchon Valley near the Brecon Beacons.
Sleeps: Up to 12 guests
From: £2,650 per week, £1,995 per short break
Alternative Group Option: Up to 6 guests
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Features: Hot tub, sauna, outdoor shower, outdoor pizza oven, table tennis, snooker room, cinema barn
The Sculptor´s Gardens
A luxury country escape overflowing in vintage fizz, this unique pairing of riverside properties offer the perfect retreat for large groups and families.
Sleeps: Up to 18 guests (16 adults and 2 children)
From: £4,195 per week, £3,195 per short break
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Features: Large William Holland hot tub, cinema room, games room with pool table
