Exploring Devon and Agatha Christie. Who would you put on a list of English Literary Heroes? There are some obvious contenders – Shakespeare, Chaucer, Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Byron, Shelley and Wordsworth for instance. How about more recent figures like J K Rowling or Julian Barnes? For whatever reason, despite being the best-selling novelist of […]
Burgh Island Hotel – Devon Art Deco and Decadence
The Great White Palace – Burgh Island Hotel – channel your inner Agatha. What better setting for a murder mystery than an island. Perhaps that was why Burgh Island inspired not one but two of Agatha Christie’s novels (‘Evil Under the Sun’ and ‘ And Then There Were None’). Or was it just because she […]
The Perfect Holiday Retreat – Wild Oak Barn, East Devon
The Devon Spotted Pig and Wild Oak Barn. The Story of The Devon Spotted Pig. Once upon a time in Devon, a holiday home nestled among the rolling hills… Carolyn and Paul Bellinger planted some seeds and took off for a well-earned summer break in Corfu. They returned a few weeks later, to a […]
The Scarlet Hotel – Mawgan Porth – Review
The Scarlet, a modern eco-hotel in Cornwall The Scarlet, a modern, eco, adults-only, hotel is set in a beautiful location on the North Cornish coast overlooking Mawgan Porth. Having read a lot of positive press about the hotel I was intrigued and very keen to visit for an overnight stay. I had been informed that […]
The Headland Hotel Newquay – Review
The Headland Hotel – luxury accommodation in a stunning coastal setting The Headland, built in Victorian times, is perched on the peninsula overlooking Newquay’s famous Fistral Beach. Ideally placed for surfers, walkers or for a relaxing holiday, the hotel is dog-friendly and welcomes families. In addition to rooms within the hotel, there are luxury self-catering […]
A Tale of Two Cities – Bath and Bristol
Go West – Bath and Bristol. #AD – Paid Content Two West Country cities that may just be a few miles apart on the map but which have quite unique personas, Bath and Bristol both have plenty to offer for a visitor looking for a short trip from London. Whether you are touring the […]
Boringdon Hall Hotel and Spa – a Plymouth Sanctuary
Boringdon Hall Hotel Review It must have been Karma. Just as I was putting the final details to my recent trip to Plymouth exploring the Mayflower heritage, an email hit my desk about Boringdon Hall Hotel. What could be better than balancing a trip to the centre of historic Plymouth with one to a historic […]
Tewkesbury Park Hotel – the perfect place to stay, play or be pampered
Gloucestershire luxury resort hotel with something for everyone Tewkesbury Park Hotel sits on a low hill above the River Severn, a white outcrop of buildings, set in a sea of 163 green acres. First impressions are excellent. The heart of the hotel is an 18th-century manor which a recently concluded four-year, £10 million pound renovation has […]
Queensberry Boutique Hotel & Olive Tree Restaurant, Bath – Review
Boutique Hotel in Bath – Bliss at The Queensberry Hotel: Bath is such an elegant city blending its Roman heritage and elegant Georgian sense of style with a progressive and contemporary worldview. Just two hours drive from London it’s the perfect spot for a weekend away or a midweek staycation. In this most perfectly put […]
An English Country Destination – Thyme
Visiting the Thyme Estate in Southrop: Guest post by Susan Grossman The little Bichon puppy, the newest addition to the Hibbert family, tore across the water meadow, scattering Welsh Black Mountain sheep and French ducks in its path. The 150-acre Thyme estate in Southrop, on the border of Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, described by the owner […]