British Travel Journal | Autumn/Winter 2023
There’s so much variety throughout this issue, bursting with breathtaking travel destinations, new hotels and extraordinary one-of-a-kind experiences. We cycle around Rutland’s 23-mile perimeter on a gourmet foodie trail, sleep under the stars in a wigwam surrounded by leopards at Port Lympne Safari Park in Kent, join an early morning meadowland wildlife walk and meet the resident bees of Calcot Manor in the Cotswolds, and spend a day enjoying magnificent gardens and cyder-making at The Newt in Somerset. Our journalists uncover the hottest new hotels while partaking in a nature-inspired pottery session at the Birch Selsdon and enjoying flower arranging at Cromlix with tennis star Andy Murray's wife Kim. My own travel highlights include walking across the Rhossili Downs, visiting the exquisite region of the Gower Peninsula and taking a dip in Tinker Bunny’s Bathing Pool during a luxury stay at Atlanta Trevone in North Cornwall. With so much to both see and do, it's time to get creative with our travel trips!
There’s so much variety throughout this issue, bursting with breathtaking travel destinations, new hotels and extraordinary one-of-a-kind experiences.
We cycle around Rutland’s 23-mile perimeter on a gourmet foodie trail, sleep under the stars in a wigwam surrounded by leopards at Port Lympne Safari Park in Kent, join an early morning meadowland wildlife walk and meet the resident bees of Calcot Manor in the Cotswolds, and spend a day enjoying magnificent gardens and cyder-making at The Newt in Somerset. Our journalists uncover the hottest new hotels while partaking in a nature-inspired pottery session at the Birch Selsdon and enjoying flower arranging at Cromlix with tennis star Andy Murray's wife Kim. My own travel highlights include walking across the Rhossili Downs, visiting the exquisite region of the Gower Peninsula and taking a dip in Tinker Bunny’s Bathing Pool during a luxury stay at Atlanta Trevone in North Cornwall. With so much to both see and do, it's time to get creative with our travel trips!
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‘<br />
Located in a Grade-II*-listed Georgian manor house known as Hadspen...<br />
[is] one of the most exceptional country-house hotels in the country.<br />
’<br />
IMAGES © CRAIG AUCKLAND / FOTOHAUS / JAKE EASTHAM<br />
encompassing the staggering reconstruction of a<br />
Romano-<strong>British</strong> villa found on the estate, which dates<br />
back to 351 AD. Seven years in the making, this incredible<br />
landmark is the most ambitious reconstruction of a Roman<br />
villa ever undertaken in Britain. An audio tour guides<br />
guests as they move through the space while virtual-reality<br />
technology provides further fascinating insight, and there’s<br />
also an opportunity to try some rather delicious Romanstyle<br />
street food. You definitely need more than a day to<br />
discover all there is to see here...<br />
There are various ways to experience The Newt;<br />
day-visitors are warmly welcomed (you’ll need annual<br />
membership or come as the guest of a member), and<br />
throughout the summer months The Newt’s Great Garden<br />
Escape whisks passengers to and from London by train for<br />
an unforgettable day trip filled with Newt-y delights.<br />
Alternatively, those staying in its beautiful hotel are<br />
granted unrestricted access to all that the estate has<br />
to offer. Located in a Grade-II*-listed Georgian manor<br />
house known as Hadspen, it was the seat of the Hobhouse<br />
family for more than two centuries. Today it has been<br />
transformed into one of the most exceptional countryhouse<br />
hotels, comprising 23 beautifully and individually<br />
designed bedrooms, a restaurant, bar, croquet lawnn, and<br />
a world-class spa, among other attractions.<br />
In June 2021, the Farmyard was unveiled; an entirely<br />
new part of The Newt’s hotel offering set within a hidden<br />
valley half a mile from Hadspen. Home to a swimming<br />
pool, 17 contemporary and elegant bedrooms, a bar, and<br />
an all-day kitchen. This modern, more rustic addition is<br />
set within the estate’s former dairy and can be reached via<br />
picturesque orchards either on foot, by bicycle or in one<br />
of the estate’s many golf buggies, which guests are free to<br />
whizz around in throughout their stay.<br />
Soon my visit was coming to a close, but thankfully there<br />
was just enough time for an ice cream. The Newt’s gelateria,<br />
which uses fresh buffalo milk from the estate, is not to be<br />
missed, whatever the weather. Then there is the farm shop,<br />
with its impressive butchery, wonderfully fragrant cheese<br />
room and array of delectable artisan treats. I picked up<br />
various things here, from cider and chutney to fresh bread<br />
and granola, desperate to take a slice of this pastoral<br />
paradise home with me. And then, reluctantly, back down<br />
the wooden walkway I floated. Back out into the real world,<br />
yes, but filled with the wonder of nature, and revelling in the<br />
spectacular feast for the senses that is The Newt.<br />
Annual membership to The Newt is priced at £75 per<br />
adult, with children (0–16 years) free of charge when<br />
accompanied by an adult member. Members can also<br />
bring up to six visitors per day, priced at £20 per person.<br />
Membership is included for hotel guests; room rates start<br />
from £520 per night based on two sharing on a B&B basis.<br />
thenewtinsomerset.com<br />
<strong>British</strong><strong>Travel</strong><strong>Journal</strong>.com 83
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