Seven acres of trekking and exploration of Welsh border country bring you to orchards, woodlands and a trickling brook. The landscape rolls and falls as part of a dramatic crescendo that stretches all the way to Aberystwyth. Happily, someone dug a hole in it and inserted a pool heated to 30 degrees. Splash, sunbathe, Snapchat the moment.
The terrace view is almost transcendental, landscaped high over the pool with a view over the valley. There’s no better spot to linger over lunch or dilly-dally over dinner. Lay on a coal barbecue with bangers and burgers from Griffiths’ butchers or tap up head chef Paul Halmshaw from The Lion and lap up the sunshine while he stirs and serves.
Kids here will want to get lost playing hide-and-seek. Grown-ups might want to raid the full bookcase or belt out some tunes on the Bluetooth. In the evening, you’ll all come together to catch TV in the snug or the games room. So bring your passwords to stream Netflix or Amazon Prime over the superfast fibre.
As for that games room, keep your gin or brandy topped up because you’ll want to while away many an evening over pool or table football. Maybe you’ll just break out the board games. Or perhaps you’ll clear the floor in the ballroom and throw shapes into the small hours. It’s your holiday and your call.
Is this place posh? Your options for dining are the ballroom, with space for 26, or a terrace overlooking the outdoor pool that looks like it was plucked from a Bavarian castle. So, yes. You’ll also love the bells-and-whistles kitchen with its dual fan ovens and American-style fridge-freezer. Or just get the pros in from The Lion.
Shop at Spar in Presteigne or Morrison’s, Tesco or Sainsbury’s in Ludlow. Get delicious deli from Lorna’s bakery and meaty goodness from Griffiths’ butchers. Top it off with fizz from John Villar wines. Don’t forget to take a night off with a takeaway from Fiddler’s Elbow fish and chips, Pembridge Pizzas or Yoko’s for Thai food.
Head out to The Lion in Leintwardine, with its kids’ play area, for Tuesday-night steaks or Parma ham-wrapped tenderloin of pork. Try The Royal George in Lingen for its beer garden, live music and hearty pub fare. Or pop into The Riverside in Aymestrey, where everything is crafted fresh on-site, from stone-ground spelt bread to lavender fudge.
Have a wild time at Wild Thyme in Presteigne, serving Italian classics with a twist, such as gnocchi with wild venison ragu and sea bass with fennel and white beans. For lunch and brunch, call in at the Rose Cottage Café in Presteigne and top up on sandwiches, soup or dukkah washed down with hot chocolate or coffee.
Here on the borders of Shropshire, Herefordshire and Powys, life doesn’t get much more rural. Enjoy unbroken dreams beneath rustling leaves and wake in your balcony master suite to big skies and soaring red kites. Limebrook Hall sleeps 26 in 13 stylish bedrooms.
On the first floor, bedroom one is a kingsize en-suite with glorious valley views, while bedroom two is similar with the bonus of space for a cot or z-bed. Bedroom three is also a kingsize with bath and shower and room for a cot or z-bed. Bag bedroom four, the master suite, for those balcony views plus superking bed, en-suite with twin sinks and rolltop bath.
On this floor you will also find a second master suite which is another kingsize overlooking the valley with a shower en-suite and room for two z-beds or cots. Bedroom six offers a superking with views over the valley and orchard and a separate bathroom, while bedroom seven provides a kingsize bed, and rolltop bath with shower in the en-suite.
Bedroom eight sleeps two in a high kingsize with shower en-suite and bedroom nine is a kingsize also with shower en-suite. Bedroom ten offers twin beds overlooking the countryside with a separate shower room next door.
On the second floor, bedroom 11 gives you a kingsize overlooking the countryside and shares a family bathroom with bedroom 12, a twin with woodland views. Finally, bedroom 13 is an accessible room on the ground floor with an easy-access shower en-suite.
