Garden and grounds
Harlech Retreat comes wrapped in half a dozen acres of serenity and birdsong. Cleanse your soul around the yew walk, the rose garden, the waterfall, stream, and bluebell glade. Play croquet and badminton on the lawns. Bring up to four dogs and go walkies on the wooded hillsides. Tuck into a terrace barbecue under the biggest skies.
Living spaces
Elegance. It’s in every Jacobean nook and cranny. And yet it’s rendered using the finest of today’s techniques. Lime plaster, mineral paints in neutral tones of bone and parchment, liberal use of wood and stone, oak panelling and ancient beams unite in a symphony of sophistication.
Within these civilised spaces, buckets of light play across squishy sofas and woodburner flames cast shadows on limestone walls. Slip apart for serenity and space or come together around the 64” TV to stream your Netflix account over the BT Infinity Wi-Fi. Blast the Bluetooth. Borrow a book. Take it slow. You’ve got days more of this.
Cooking and dining
Is there an Aga? Of course there is, plus an electric oven and two dishwashers for when you’re done. Fill the big fridge/freezer with goodies from Tesco and Morfa Stores, barbecue meat from London House Stores, Y Groser deli and Aberystwyth Farmers’ Market. Get your wine from Gwin Llyn.
Eat all together in the grand dining room with wood on the fire and fresh bread on the table, or out on the terrace under the big skies. Finish every meal with a Nespresso or cafetiere coffee. Having a night off? Call in the pro caterers or call out for takeaways from Lemon Tree Indian, Penrhyn Pizza and Kebab, or Silver Lake Chinese.
Meat not your thing? You’ll love Eating Gorilla in Penrhyn, a vegan venue for eating in or taking away, and Foxglove in Barmouth for vegan fine dining. Take the whole family out, including kids and dogs, to The Victoria Inn in Llanbedr or tantalise your tastebuds at Nineteen.57, voted Best Hidden Gem Seaside Restaurant and Bar in North Wales.
Head to The Last Inn (but not first out) in Barmouth for langoustine scampi or buttermilk chicken. Book for the two AA Rosette restaurant at Hotel Portmeirion with majestic estuary views. Eat in an iconic building on the Llyn Peninsula coast at Dylan’s in Criccieth or try the child-friendly Nor Bar in Barmouth for fresh seafood.
Bedrooms
Birdsong filters into these beautiful Jacobean bedrooms. You’ll remember what deep sleep feels like as you drift off between 300-thread count Egyptian cotton and Fendi and Seventh Heaven mattresses. Harlech Retreat sleeps 19 in 12 bedrooms. All double rooms will take a cot and some also an inflatable mattress.
Let’s start in the Elizabethan Room: bag this for the emperor bed and en-suite. Or maybe you’d prefer the four-poster in bedroom two with its en-suite and superking bed. Bedroom three (Purple) is a single en-suite, while bedroom four (Blue) offers a kingsize en-suite.
In the attic, you’ll find three more singles, while bedroom eight (Coronation) is a kingsize. Bedroom nine (Poets’) gives you another single and ten (Pandora’s) provides a double bed. Bedroom 11 (Nursery) gives you a superking and bedroom 12 (Butler’s Bothy) is a secluded double in the gatehouse.
What people say
Mines, zip lines and spirits
Head down a disused mine to test out the huge trampolines at Bounce Below. Ride the world’s fastest zip line at Zip World and watch the goats stampede at Children’s Farm Parc. Bring your clubs for Royal St David’s, chill at The Mermaid spa, taste the spirits at Penderyn Distillery and test your spirit of adventure walking the Welsh mountains.
