Walking boots off, slippers on. It's time for some unashamed cosying. Our friends at travel company Sawday’s have picked out seven warm, welcoming places to stay where you can gather those you love for a cosy getaway and enjoy idle chat or companionable silence broken only by the soft shifting of logs in the fire.
Philham Water Cottage, Devon
Straight out of a fairy tale, this rustic cottage by a babbling brook is a magical escape for couples. It’s easy to stay sitting snuggled on the sofa while the wood-burner blazes in the ancient fireplace, the outside world a distant memory. Or walk to the dramatic and craggy coastline, join the coastal path for challenging hikes in either direction, drive into Hartland for supplies – you’ll be glad to return to your quiet nest.
Cottage for 2 from £99 per night
Marris Cottage, Grimsby, Lincolnshire
Nestling in the heart of the Lincolnshire Wolds, you'll feel at home in this immaculate yet cosy 1800s cottage. The rooms are charming with lovely quilts and blankets in the bedroom and plenty of books and a smokeless fuel range in the living space. Walks down the surrounding wildlife-filled lanes will please lovers of nature all year round and at night the resident owls flit through the starlit skies.
Cottage for 4 from £82 per night
The Tabernacle, Aberfeldy, Scottish Highlands
Vast arched windows allow light to pour into the living space, cosy with wooden floors and filled with lovely things from the owners’ travels in Tibet, China and India. Two big sofas, books, games, fluffy blankets and sheepskin rugs will make rainy days feel like a stroke of luck and there’s an Esse wood-burning stove if you want an extra blast of heat. Majestic trees surround you, and there’s a hot tub to enjoy the view from.
House for 4 from £175 per night
The Woodshed, Midlothian, Scotland
It’s a mile drive down a bumpy track to get to this romantic cottage in the Pentland Hills, but once you arrive you’re rewarded with complete serenity. There’s nothing surrounding you but rugged heather and the glens of the Pentland Hills Regional Park where you can get lost all day hiking. After, all you’ll want to do is put on the kettle, get the log-burner going, hop into the hot tub and gaze up at the stars.
House for 2 from £130 per night
The Tack Barn at Upper Lodge, Lewes, Sussex
This is a super stylish barn conversion that’s brilliant for garden lovers, antique hunters and walking devotees. You can help yourself to vegetables from the garden and cook up a mean stew, toast marshmallows on the campfire and lose touch with the outside world. At the foot of the South Downs National Park, you’re in a prime spot for visiting Seven Sisters, Beachy Head and Cuckmere Haven or for walking the South Downs Way.
Barn for 2 from £110 per night
Home Farm Cottage, Ashton Wold, Cambridgeshire
This picture-perfect thatched cottage down a narrow track on a private estate oozes charm. It’s cosy, comfortable and neat as a pin with colourful fabrics, thick cushions and crisp linen on the beds. Take your time over leisurely breakfasts with the fresh eggs from the farm and dry cured bacon and sausages from the local butchers and then escape to the library with a book or venture outside to explore the surrounding woodland.
Cottage for 6 from £195 per night
Lodge Cottages, Staveley, Yorkshire
A short drive from the grand spa town of Harrogate and beautiful medieval York, these romantic cottages make a lovely base from which to explore North Yorkshire. After a day of exploring return to a cosy beamed sitting room (watch your head), warming wood-burner and sheepskin rugs and sleep well between crisp white sheets.
2 cottages for 2 from £110 per night
We have teamed up with Sawday’s to offer you the chance to win a £500 voucher to spend on a cosy getaway, and the lucky winner can also enjoy £500 to spend at Sophie Allport too. Want to be in with the chance of winning? Enter here!
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