Gardens and grounds
Welcome to the antidote to city chaos. Hard by Devon’s Blackdown Hills, the gardens and grounds here present a prescription of soft seclusion and rural beauty for worn-down urban worriers. Bring the dog and walk the acres of woodlands, set the kids loose in the garden, sear your sausages on the gas barbecue.
Kick a ball into the footie nets. Picnic around the pond. Stay out for late-night laughs around the firepit. Live a laid-back life under big rural skies with the people who matter the most.
Living spaces
Grange Farm is a different kind of wow. There’s no slick minimalism for the Instagram feed. But an eclectic mix of old and new with an array of colour and pattern offers a homely warmth within a classic country farmhouse. Plump up the cushions, straighten the rugs, take a deep breath and choose to chill.
Chuck another log on the fire and watch the dogs sprawl in its warmth as you wiggle your toes and consider a game of cards or charades. Head to the TV room to binge a box set on the 65″ smart TV.
Bop around to the Bluetooth sounds. Or recharge the social battery with books from the shelf and Nespresso from the machine. Be as social or solitary as the mood takes.
Cooking and dining
You might want to cook. If so, you’ll revel in the country-style Aga and induction hob we’ve laid on. But you might not. So call up our pro chefs for anything from a one-off celebration to a hog roast to a fully catered break. Or call out for burgers made from scratch from The Flipside.
Eat around the 12-seat dining table in the open-plan living/dining/kitchen area or out in the southern sunshine on the bench table with supper sizzling on the gas barbecue. Shop for prime cuts at local supermarkets, the Fordmore Farm Shop or Dart Farm Village farmers’ market.
Pop in to the Drewe Arms at Broadhembury for confit of Creedy Carver chicken leg or woodland mushroom, broccoli and leek cottage pie. Head out to The Pig at Coombe for a 25-mile menu that includes pigeon breast or Dartmoor pork chop. Stick around for a treatment in the Potting Shed.
Enjoy home-cooked food under a thatched roof at The Six Bells in Payhembury. Head to Chard for AA Rosette-winning The Cotley Inn, where even the meat comes from the local estate. Try Neil’s Restaurant in Sidmouth for a beachy feel and a fishy focus. Or tuck into wholesome sandwiches, drinks, desserts, soups, salads at the Yellow Deli.
Bedrooms
The homely, Bennison, lived-in look continues in the six sizeable bedrooms. Freshen up in four bathrooms. Beams, a freestanding bathtub and a lovely balcony all enhance the experience. Feeling sleepy yet?
The master bedroom sleeps two in a superking with en-suite bath, while bedroom two is also a superking with en-suite shower. Bedrooms three and four are kingsize with a shared bathroom and bedroom five offers a superking with en-suite bathroom. Bathroom six provides a superking bed and en-suite shower.
Children welcome
Motorways become A roads, A roads become B roads, hedges get higher and suddenly you’re there. Grange Farm is the kind of classic country farmhouse Enid Blyton had in mind, where a group of excited children crack international espionage rings fuelled by lashings of ginger beer.
We can’t guarantee any KGB action, but extra helpings of fun should be on the cards among the ancient oak floors, roaring fires and deliciously soft furnishings. This is a home-from-home – literally because, with room for 12 in six bedrooms, kids can bring most of home with them. Don’t forget the dog.
When you’ve finished knocking them in to the footie goals like Harry Kane or Ellen White and played supersize hide-and-seek, stay out there cos dad’s got his apron on and the aroma from the gas barbecue is hanging in the Devon air. After supper, bigger kids can stay out past bedtime around the firepit.
Belt out your favourite bangers on the Bluetooth speaker, escape with a book from the shelf, or catch a match or a movie on the BT package on the 65″ smart TV. Pick from six lovely bedrooms, soak yourself in freestanding baths and wake to more double-doses of screen-free vitamin D.
What people say
Ropes, rides and beaches
Go Ape on the ropes at Haldon Forest. Cruise Honiton Golf Club's course on leg-saving buggies. Fish the River Otter. Eat well and get massaged at The Pig. Enjoy over 60 rides and attractions at Crealy Theme Park and meet over 200 cuddly animals. Enjoy beautiful beaches at Beer and Branscombe, and join the dots along the coastal path.
