Safari, surf and stargazing
Walk the gardens at Knightshayes and eat at The Lost Kitchen or Ranscombe Great Wood with its barbecue tables. Take a brewery tour at Cotleigh or a Red Stag Safari over Exmoor. Brave the chaotic surf of Saunton Sands, stargaze at Wimbleball Lake, and pick from 60 rides at Crealy Adventure Park.
Country kids
The north-coast beaches are wild with Atlantic surf and kids will love the chaos. Consider dog-friendly Saunton Sands, Bossington, Wringcliff Bay or, for some peace and quiet, Glenthorne. Ramp up the action at Vivary Adventure Centre on high or low ropes and climbing walls.
You’ve more climbing on offer at Clip ’n’ Climb, the Southwest’s largest indoor climbing centre. Drive quadbikes at Quadworld, meet fish, reptiles, birds and mammals at Tropiquaria Zoo, and wander the wonderland of ponds and streams at Langford Nature Reserve.
Enjoy your choice of 60 rides and attractions at Crealy Adventure Park Resort and meet the goats and sheep. Get stuck into watersports galore at Wimbleball Lake, including kayaking and windsurfing. And help yourself to history at local landmarks such as The Somerset Museum, Taunton Castle and Dunster Castle.
Sunny day? Swim outdoors at Wiveliscombe’s traditional lido with sun deck and play area. Enjoy a family barbecue in The Quantocks at Ranscombe Great Wood, with grassy spaces by a shallow stream, brick barbecues and designated picnic tables. And get doggie fans over to The Golden Retriever Experience
For the grown ups
In such glorious countryside, let’s start with a walk. Visit the historic court at Knightshayes, explore magical gardens and then trek through the woodlands for lunch at The Lost Kitchen. Hit the high, open moorland of The Quantocks for glimpses of the Welsh coast. Or get a drone’s view in an Aerosaurus balloon.
Get professional tuition at The Oake Manor Golf Club, where ten of the 18 holes come with water hazards. Discover nature reserves at Ash Common and Langford, and local history at The Wellington Monument and Cothay Manor. Find fine formal landscaping at Hestercombe Gardens and don’t leave without demolishing an afternoon tea.
Catch live music at Milverton Music Club, take a brewery tour at Cotleigh, or dance, drink and dine in Taunton at spots such as Zinc, and Pitcher and Piano. Head for the surf and the South-West Coast Path complete with coves, bays and beaches. Or spot seals, porpoises and birds at Hurlestone Point.
Get pampered at Cedar Falls Health Farm and Spa. Shoot clay at the South West Shooting School in Ilfracombe, and potter the local lanes on bikes from Exmoor Adventures or on four legs with horses from Burrowhayes Farm. Take a Red Stag Safari over Exmoor. And take home some local gin and rum from Exmoor Distillery.
Happy hens!
Forget noisy, messy city hen and stag affairs. You can party, laugh, dance and drink cocktails just as much at Boho Barnhouse, and the country air will clear your head way better than any paracetamol. It beats any hotel, too, with guests you invited yourself and the chance to be as together or apart as you wish.
As if an on-site swimming pool, cinema room, games room and outdoor dining area weren’t enough, just say the word and we can set up a local masseuse, or Pilates and yoga instructors. Like the idea of being waited on hand and foot? Ask us about local caterers. Get your sparkling vino from your tour of Wellhayes Vineyard.
Got the taste for local booze? This is cider country and Sheppy’s has been brewing premium, award-winning craft ciders for over 200 years. Take a tour and take some home. Or how about a drop of Tawny Owl, Commando Hoofing, Golden Seahawk, Buzzard or Barn Owl from Cotleigh Brewery?
Make your break competitive with a round at Oake Manor Golf Club, nestled between the Quantock, Brendon and Blackdown hills and offering ten water hazards. Keep the wetness coming at Wimbleball Lake, for walking, stargazing, fishing, sailing or paddleboarding. Wrap up the day in cosy pubs such as The Bittescombe Inn.
