Waterfall Cabin, Cambrian Mountains, Ceredigion
This cabin on stilts is at the edge of a wooded glen by a stream. It is in a remote location on a 38-acre estate with woods and waterfalls, gorges, caverns and follies. There is no postcode, wifi or electricity … guests roll their luggage to the front door in a wheelbarrow. After that, they’re not exactly roughing it, though: there’s a wood burner, outdoor shower, hot tub and hammocks. The woods are home to roe deer and birds of prey, and there are lots of walking trails.
From £150 a night, sleeps two, kiphideaways.com
Lazy Bear Hideaway, Burton, Cheshire
This off-grid Nordic cabin is in a woodland clearing by a small lake. It is open-plan with a kingsize box-bed, wood burner, easy chairs with sheepskins and a dining table. Guests can also eat on the veranda or at the picnic table on the lawn, and cook in the outdoor kitchen, which has a firepit, barbecue and pizza stone. The bathroom, 100 metres away, has a compost loo and hot shower, and there is a wood-fired hot tub. As well as the woodland on the doorstep, visitors can view the autumn leaves at Burton Wood, Burton Manor Gardens and Ness Botanic Gardens, all within a mile, as is the RSPB’s Burton Mere Wetlands.
From £160 a night, sleeps two, uniquehideaways.com
Halvana Forest Shed, Cornwall
This lodge is encircled by trees in a forested part of Bodmin Moor. The open-plan ground floor has the living, cooking and sleeping areas, and there is a mezzanine lounge level that can sleep two children (not suitable for young children). The porch has a hammock, plus there is a tree swing and a firepit. Deer, badgers and owls can be spotted in the woods, and sheep, cows, chickens and a pony in the owner’s fields. Binoculars are provided for birdwatching and marshmallows for toasting. The nearest pub, the King’s Head, is a mile and a half away.
From £135 a night, sleeps two, plus £15 per child (up to two), canopyandstars.co.uk
Trees at Tughall, Beadnell, Northumberland
These three cabins are a modern take on Scottish bothies and traditional Northumbrian coastal shacks. They are named after trees: Ash is in ancient woodland and has a tree swing, while Hawthorn and Willow sit between the woods and the burn. The sleek interiors have window seats and wood burners; all have kitchens, kingsize beds and en suites. There is electricity but no wifi. Outside are covered decks with firepits. The village of Beadnell is four fields away, and it is a 10-minute walk to the sandy beach and a 30-minute drive to the Cheviot Hills.
From £150 a night, sleeps two, coolstays.com
Norbury Hall, Walcot Hall, Shropshire
Walcot Hall has 30 acres of gardens and parkland, including an arboretum with a huge douglas fir, which was originally planted in 1842. There are 15 holiday cottages and cabins in the grounds – the newest is Norbury Hall, a converted (and relocated) village hall. The interior is clad with sweet-smelling cedar boards from windblown trees on the estate. There is an open-plan kitchen/living area with a wood burner and an Aga; two double bedrooms and a bathroom are on the ground floor, and a twin bedroom with an en suite shower room sits up in the eaves. The estate has woodland walks, fishing, boating and horse riding, and its own pub, the Powis Arms.
From £575 for four nights, sleeps six, walcothall.com
Crumbleclive Cabin, Lealholm, North York Moors
Built in the 1890s, this cabin was originally a gun room for the local estate. It stands alone in the Crunkly Ghyll, a wooded gorge surrounded by oak trees. From the balcony in the treetops, there is a view of the River Esk rapids below; another decked area has a Swedish bath, barbecue and compost toilet. Inside is a double bed, a wood burner and a projector for watching films. The cabin is the newest of a handful of glamping options on Wild Slack Farm; there is also a campsite with showers about a five-minute walk away. Guests can buy the farm’s rare-breed pork, shorthorn beef and heather-fed lamb.
From £135 a night, sleeps two, lawnsgatecamping.com
The Drum, near Tarbert, Argyll
The architect-designed Drum – so-called for its elliptical shape – is a striking sight: a black and burnt-orange oval, with a sloping roof and glass doors that open on to the trees and ferns of a woodland estate that has its own castle. There’s a sitting area with a sofa and wood burner, a kitchen-diner, a curved bedroom space with a kingsize bed and a shower room. Outside is a firepit and barbecue – guests can buy fresh seafood from Tarbert, a nearby harbour village. For a break from cooking, they can head to the Kilberry Inn, an award-winning restaurant a few miles away that is run by the same couple that owns the Drum.
From £160 a night, sleeps two, hostunusual.com
Loch Ken Eco Bothies, Dumfries and Galloway
The Osprey is the latest addition to the Loch Ken Eco Bothies collection: four off-grid retreats on the wooded banks of the loch. The bothies (which are far more luxurious than the name suggests) are on the edge of the Galloway Forest Park, a Dark Sky Park and the biggest forest in the UK. The Osprey, a huge circular cabin, is made from local wood and powered by a solar farm. It has an open-plan living room and kitchen, three double en-suite bedrooms and a mezzanine with a sofa bed. Luxe features include a hanging wood burner, rain showers and a hot tub, and a viewing platform to soak up the autumn colours. It comes with its own boatshed containing a couple of kayaks and a pair of paddleboards, and the bothies are linked to the nearby Galloway Activity Centre, where there are lots more family-friendly activities.
From £970 for four nights, sleeps eight, lochkenecobothies.co.uk
Yarncliff Lodge, Peak District
Every year, the National Trust refurbishes holiday cottages, cabins and bunkhouses across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. One of its most recently renovated cottages is Yarncliff Lodge on the Longshaw Estate in the Peak District. It has a kitchen/diner, a sitting room with a wood burner, three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a small garden. The cottage backs on to Yarncliff Wood and a short walk away is Padley Gorge, where Burbage Brook rushes over rocks through the ancient woodland. In autumn, red deer can be spotted on the surrounding moorland. The nearby village of Grindleford can provide sustenance with a couple of pubs and cafes.
From £999 for seven nights, sleeps six, nationaltrust.org.uk
Log cabins, various locations
Forest Holidays has family-friendly log cabins, all with hot tubs, in 12 UK forests, from the Scottish Highlands to the Cornish coast. They are in Forestry Commission estates in England, and national parks in Wales and Scotland. The latest site opened last year in Delamere Forest, Cheshire (pictured above), and the 12th opens in Garwnant, Brecon Beacons, in February. As well as walking trails, all have a forest ranger running bushcraft sessions, a forest retreat with a shop and restaurant, a food delivery service and in-cabin spa treatments, plus activities that could include archery and Go Ape.
From £465 for three nights, sleeps two to 10, forestholidays.co.uk
