After a week away we made our way with the rest of the procession towards Arrivals, our luggage and our cars. Towards home.
Sometimes the best reminder of all we have here is to go away and to come back. We take so much for granted. We head for foreign lands – the warmth of southern sands, the stories and ruins of histories prevalent in strange towns and cities to the east and beyond; and this is all well and good. But who can deny that feeling you get when you’ve returned? You can almost smell it: the air temperature, first sights and sounds unmistakably speaking home. So much of what we go in search of we have right in front of us to some extent. A leisurely drive away finds us on the bright coastal stretches of Cornwall and Devon; at the foothills of the impossibly beautiful Lake District and other stunning national parks; and the sleepless lights of cities rich with the wonders of the old and timeless and the delights of the fast-paced present.
As we continued along the walkways of the airport, what lined the walls to our sides were a hundred examples of why anyone in the world would rightly wish to stay here: each served as a personal reminder of all there still is to be seen for myself. This small country, this relatively tiny island we sometimes feel we know so well. Indeed we know it, but we have so much more to know – to learn, to see, to touch and to experience in a myriad of different ways.
North, South, West and East: pick your starting point. In every corner there’s something to find; something to be inspired by; to take home afterwards in the form of priceless memories.
In as many areas we have a variety of extraordinary houses ready to become a home away from home for you, your family and your friends. Need some inspiration? Take a look below to see what kate & tom’s mean when we speak of variety…
Albright Lodge | Sleeps 17 | Shropshire
Beyond the Italianate gardens, the views pan forever across Shropshire’s blue-remembered hills. Catch the sun in the south-facing garden. Give it what for on the tennis court. Hit the cinema room for Netflix and nibbles. Let life pass you by, amid well-upholstered, well-appointed, flame-lit luxury.
Cambrian Retreat | Sleeps 50 | Aberystwyth, Wales
Clans, stags or hens will love Cambrian Retreat. With space for 50 (including the Farmhouse), it’s huge, homely and a little hedonistic in the shadow of the Cambrians. Watch the stars from the ten-man hot tub, get a game going on the full-size football pitch, spend late nights by the logburners. Chill, rinse and repeat tomorrow.
Chestnut House | Sleeps 12-14 | Cotswolds
What happens when you bring together the clean lines of Georgian architecture, plentiful grounds dressed in timeless country character and playful possibility, an intimate view comparable to a Constable painting, and considerately placed comforts rolled out from the hallway to the top floor? You have something quite perfect: a listed house poised in the intrigue of royal history and the irresistible promise of the present. This is the one the Cotswolds kept quiet. Now its doors are open. Welcome to Chestnut House.
Taikoo | Sleeps 14 | Dartmoor, Devon
High on Dartmoor among the buzzards and falcons, sits Taikoo. Bring the generations together in an oasis of comfort and grace; walk the mature gardens, fire up the charcoal barbie and chill in the indoor pool complete with sound system.
