Farm on the Hill, Prestwood, Staffordshire
A secluded campsite on a family farm between woodland and wildflower meadows. There is space for just five tents, so it’s a perfect place for a weekend gathering with friends. Children can count butterflies in the meadow or find twigs for the evening campfire. The view down the valley is lovely, especially from the toilet! Facilities are basic, with no hot water or showers. If you don’t have your own tent, bell tents are available to hire, or you can rent Keepers Cottage,which belonged to the owner’s grandfather, has a woodburner and wonderful views over the hills. On summer weekends, the tea shop in the barn is open. On-site bicycle hire offers a chance to explore the Churnet valley. Comfortable B&B accommodation is also offered at the farmhouse, Manor House Farm.
• Camping from £10 per tent for up to two, then £5pp, 01889 590410, farmonthehill.co.uk. Manor House Farm doubles from £68, Keepers Cottage selleps four, from £240 a week, 01889 590415, 4posteraccom.com
Botelet Farm, Liskeard, Cornwall
Lose yourself in the romance of this charming farmstead in a wild flower-filled valley near Liskeard. The same family has been offering farmhouse accommodation for over 80 years. Julie now runs the rustic-chic B&B; there is a choice of two yurts – each in their own meadow with their own woodburner – or there is the gorgeous SC Cowslip Cottage. The gardens are a delight and merge with the bucolic landscape, there is an apple orchard, and wind turbines provide most of the farm’s electricity. Sister-in-law Tia offers treatments and massages in the meadow; or you can go inside and enjoy the warmth of the log fires.
• Cottages sleep five, from £310 a week; Farmhouse B&B rooms from £100 a night; yurts for two from £180 for two nights; camping £7.50pp pn. Open mid May-end September, camping Easter-October, 01503 220225, botelet.com
Snows Hill Manor Estate, Broadway, Cotswolds
Cosy, well-decorated National Trust holiday cottages on the Snowshill estate with terraced gardens and rose-covered porches. The property is in a picture-book village with a local pub, on the top of the Cotswold escarpment. Best of all, you have access to Snowshill Manor, the home and garden of art collector Charles Paget Wade, who donated the estate to the National Trust in 1951.
• From £552 for seven nights, sleeps two, 01386 852410, nationaltrustcottages.co.uk
Nurscombe Farm House B&B, Bramley, Surrey
In the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, down a wooded lane in the Thorncombe valley and amid a profusion of tumbling roses is the pretty farmstead of Nurscombe. Old apple trees dot the grassy courtyard of the 16th-century wood-framed barns and farmhouse. Opposite the lane are mown paths through a meadow to a pretty pond with a rowing boat. When we arrived, owner Jane Fairbank was baking delicious cakes for her guests. There are three B&B rooms to choose from, all with en suites.
• Doubles £80 a night B&B, 01483 892242, nurscombe.co.uk
Badgells Wood Camping, Meopham, Kent
Dens and hideouts abound in this back-to-nature woodland campsite. Pitch your tent among coppiced sweet chestnuts or, in May, amid bluebells. The quiet woods border a site of special scientific interest where owls and peregrine falcons can be spotted. At the campsite free-range chickens provide eggs for breakfast. As the site is off-grid, light comes from the campfire or stars, but there are hot showers and composting toilets. Bushcraft lessons are available and it’s a great place for children to run free.
• Adults £15 (but parents with kids £12.50) children £6, 07528 609324, badgellswoodcamping.co.uk. Open from Easter to end of October
Alde Garden, Sweffling, Suffolk
Behind the Sweffling pub is a small campsite with a big heart and great community spirit. Accommodation is in a mix of Gypsy caravans and quirky sheds – one is designed specifically for stargazing – or you can bring your own tent and pitch it under the apple trees. Head to the friendly pub for supper – where most of the food and drink is locally sourced.
• Yurts (sleeps 5) from £180 for two nights; tipi (sleeps 4) from £165 for two nights; bell tent (sleeps 5) from £125 for two nights. Gypsy caravan (sleeps 2 adults, 2 younger children) from £170 for two nights; the Hideout (sleeps 2) from £75 for two nights; Badger Cottage (sleeps 4) from £355 for seven nights; tent pitches from £14 a night, 01728 664178, aldegarden.co.uk
Carpenter’s Cottage, Narborough Hall, Norfolk
The gardens of Narborough Hall are open on Wednesdays and Sundays in summer. You can stay in its Carpenter’s Cottage (B&B or self catering), which is set in the wildlife-rich Nar valley. Inside, the south-facing cottage with lake views has two bedrooms, an upstairs den and a spacious living/dining room area. B&B or self-catering is also available in the Groom’s Cottage or, for a little more grandeur, stay in one of the opulent bedrooms in the main house. There are wildflower walks to enjoy along Narborough’s railway line.
• Carpenter’s Cottage £108 a night B&B, Groom’s Cottage (single) £50 a night self-catering or £60 B&B , 01760 338827, narboroughhallgardens.com
Karma Farm Camping, Isleham, Cambridgeshire
Back-to-nature camping on a working fenland organic farm in a landscape rich with birds, butterflies and wild flowers. Visitors can walk along the river Lark to the nearby village of Isleham or explore the farmland, where there’s a bird hide. The site offers solar-powered showers. Campfires are encouraged and accommodation is either in the yurt, tipis or your own tent. There is a separate one-acre field away from the main site that is ideal for camping parties.
• Adults from £6.50 per night, children £2.50; first-time visitors and non-members of the Camping and Caravanning Club pay £1 extra, 01638 780701, karmafarm.co.uk
Brook Farm, Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire
Brook Farm and the Heartfelt Garden offer the kind of break where peace, calm and a time to clear your head are paramount. Outside is an area of hammocks, campion-fringed brooks, blossom-crammed courtyards, meadows, and vegetable gardens. B&B accommodation is in two bright bedrooms in the old farmhouse, or you can rent the converted Hop Pickers’ House or the cosy Hen House, each with a bedroom, living area and kitchen.
• Doubles from £90 B&B, 01584 819868, brookfarmberrington.org
Ty Glas, near Cardigan, south Wales
In 40 acres of meadows and wildlife reserve, Ty Glas cottage and its sister Little Barn are idyllic places to stay. Both buildings have one room, and each sleeps two people. The cottage and barn have fires, plump pillows, period furniture and views of 347-metre tall Carningli mountain. Meadows full of orchids in spring can be seen from your window, while horses peep over the open fences. The landscaping here provides true inspiration for wild gardening.
• From £419 a week (based on two staying), 0844 5005101, underthethatch.co.uk
Carr House Farm, York
A charming farmhouse surrounded by ancient bluebell woods and orchards. Anna and Jack serve breakfasts of local produce and offer great advice on walks – many starting outside the door. Inside, four-poster beds and timber beams add to the classic, cosy farmhouse feel. Courses ranging from photography to natural plant dyes are also held at the farm.
• Doubles from £90 B&B for bookings of two or more nights, 01347 868526, carrhousefarm.co.uk
Alton Albany farm, Barr, near Girvan, Ayrshire
A fantastic farm B&B, run by Alasdair Currie and Andrea Jones, on the Stinchar river near the village of Barr. The drawing room has a log fire and plenty of games to play in the evening. Alasdair’s breakfasts are just what you need to start a day’s walk straight from the house, or perhaps in Galloway forest park nearby. The gardens are lovely, with a pretty burn running through them, and children and dogs have plenty of space to run around outside in the fields. Andrea is a garden photographer and much of her work can be seen at the farm.
• Doubles from £85 B&B, 01465 861148, altonalbanyfarmbandb.wordpress.com
Wild Garden Weekends by Tania Pascoe is published by Wild Things Publishing, £16.99. Guardian readers can get 25% off the price, with free UK delivery, by visiting wildthingspublishing.com and entering Wild Garden Weekends as a coupon code
