British Travel Journal | Spring 2021

Ah, the sweet smell of spring is finally here. Flowers are beginning to bloom, the sun has started to shine and there is hope on the horizon for a great British summer! I’m sure you’ll agree that spending so many months at home has only made our adventurous, curious hearts grow fonder with a passion for travel and exploration. I will appreciate my upcoming travel trips so much more, and it has only made my job as travel Editor, and the content in our latest issue, seem even more special than usual! Lockdown might have put a stop to many things, but it certainly hasn’t stopped the travel industry preparing to ensure a super fun and warm welcome once it is safe for visitors to return. From new hotels and luxury spas, exciting holiday resorts full of adventure and off-grid activities, luxury boutique stays in acres of unspoilt countryside and coastline, brand new attractions to immersive one-of-a-kind experiences – it seems there has perhaps never been a better time to explore the British Isles! With so much ‘British staycation’ wanderlust flying about we couldn’t resist compiling our Ultimate British Bucket List. Deep in the West Dorset countryside we Meet the Makers behind the world’s only vodka made from cows’ milk. We uncover 10 of the most wonderful places to visit in Yorkshire and discover that there’s much more than just Cheddar Cheese and ancient apple orchards to Somerset’s epicurean offering in The Rise of Food and Drink. In search of beautiful destinations where social distancing is made easy, you won’t find better than a remote Sea Garden Cottage on the white sandy shores of Tresco island, a luxury family stay in the heart of Suffolk’s rolling countryside at The Ickworth or a whisky tour around the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, Islay - the Lord of the Isles. Wherever, and whenever, you next plan to take a holiday in the British Isles, we hope British Travel Journal continues to deliver as your indispensable travel magazine, and wish you a safe and seamless journey full of wonderful memories.

THE ICKWORTH Nestled in

THE ICKWORTH Nestled in the heart of the Suffolk countryside, surrounded by acres of protected woodland within a National Trust landscape, The Ickworth is a sumptuous family retreat like no other. Words | Jessica Way 50 BritishTravelJournal.com

PICTURED LEFT-RIGHT: THE ICKWORTH HOTEL FROM THE ITALIANATE GARDEN; CYCLING IN THE ESTATE GROUNDS; FUN SPLASHING IN MUDDY PUDDLES; THE LIBRARY It’s been a difficult year for all, living through a global pandemic, and an especially confusing time for our younger generation. If there’s one proven remedy that’s always worked for my children it’s getting them outside, enjoying the countryside and exploring the great outdoors. The simple pleasure little ones receive from splashing in muddy puddles, clambering up ancient trees, being in nature and breathing in the crisp clean air - it’s both therapy and family-time at its best. Set in an unrivalled location, 1,800 acres of beautiful parkland and rolling Suffolk countryside, there’s no better place to spend quality time than this exquisite country house. The Ickworth Hotel, which dates back to the Domesday book (when it was merely one of hundreds of assets belonging to the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds), is not only one of the Luxury Family Hotels’ five stunning hotels, renowned for their individual character and exceptional family-focused hospitality - but it’s also one of just three independently-owned British hotels that are also National Trust properties (the other two being Cliveden House, Berkshire and The Causeway Hotel, County Antrim). The National Trust, who own just five hotels themselves, (The Causeway Hotel, Northern Ireland, Hunter's Inn, Exmoor National Park and the Historic House trio, Bodysgallen Hall, North Wales, Hartwell House Hotel, Buckinghamshire and Middlethorpe Hall Hotel, North Yorkshire) is Europe’s largest conservation charity. The trust - which celebrated its 125-year anniversary in 2020 - care for hundreds of historic buildings and miles of coastline, woodlands, countryside, gardens and precious collections throughout the British Isles. The Ickworth, just two hours from London, is a preserved masterpiece of Italian-inspired architecture, and said to be one of the first of its kind in the UK. Its most distinguishing feature, over 100 feet high, is its very own grand Italianate Rotunda. à BritishTravelJournal.com 51