Owners Alistair and Lorna have transformed three barns into five star holiday cottages for large groups. The Old Winery can sleep 20 in ten bedrooms, with nine bathrooms, and the oak dining table can seat up to 32. The other two cottages, when booked in conjunction with The Old Winery, enable the sleeping accommodation to extend to 32, in sixteen bedrooms and fifteen bathrooms. There is room for cots (which are provided) in most bedrooms. When all the cottages are booked together, guests also have exclusive use of a cinema room.
Situated at the end of a ¾ mile private drive, set in 52 acres of rolling Devon countryside, Higher Wiscombe stands in an enviously private spot at the head of Southleigh Valley.
The fully equipped kitchens (including two in The Old Winery) enable self catering on a grand scale. The owners have a range of local caterers you can choose from, and pampering sessions are available on site.
You and your guests can wander through Higher Wiscombe's woods and orchards, and play in streams and fields right at the heart of an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. There's an outdoor heated pool available in season, and a games room year round where marathon table tennis tournaments and table football world cups can be played in the warm and dry.
Higher Wiscombe was formerly the home of Hank Marvin of The Shadows, who had planned to use The Old Winery as a recording studio; more recently it was an apple winery, hence the name.
Alistair and Lorna set out to run a business that combines high standards with high levels of sustainability. Since opening in 2006 they have been awarded the best cottages in the South West, the best cottages in England and have no less than eight environmental and sustainability awards including Green Tourism Business Gold Award. All the cottages have been awarded with the Enjoy England Gold Award for 2011, awarded to the top 20% of five star properties in England. Higher Wiscombe is the only pure self caterer in the South West to have been awarded the British Quality Foundation marque.
A large living room in The Old Winery can easily seat 20, and 32 can all dine together in the big dining room. You’ll have the use of two kitchen areas with two large fridges and two range cookers, ideal for an extended family party. Everyone can eat outside if the weather's hot - there is a large six burner Outback gas BBQ (gas included). In cooler weather there are two log burners, one in the dining room, one in the sitting room, and logs are provided. All the cottages have underfloor heating throughout and pressurised water systems.
The Old Winery has 10 bedrooms - four super-king size doubles (all en-suite), four bedrooms with zip and link beds that can be twins or super-king doubles (all en-suite) and two twin bedrooms, which share a very smart roll top bathroom.
The Thatched Barn and Flint Barns each have three bedrooms, all en-suite, and can be booked in conjunction with The Old Winery for larger parties. Whilst private from each other they are a short distance from one another across the courtyard.
The Old Winery combines the best of old and new, with exposed beams and slate floors, but new carpets, curtains and equipment. This is self-catering at the top end of the market. There are TVs with Freeview and DVD players for bad weather days. And there are miles of open fields for long walks, with the beach ten minutes away for sunny days.
All bed linen and towels are included as are heating, electricity and logs. The kitchens have oak units with granite worktops and range cookers with extractors. Stair-gates, high chairs and travel cots are provided and there is underfloor heating throughout so you can pad about on the slate floors in complete comfort.
The owners have produced their own guide to all the best local restaurants and takeaways, as well as where to buy locally-produced fish, meat, poultry and vegetables. Local catering can be organised as well as 4x4 driving, beauty treatments and massages.
For conferences there is a dedicated boardroom, with a 42” plasma screen ready for laptops to link into. The board room table seats up to 16 or can be arranged with sofas for a more relaxed feel.
Children are very welcome.
Sorry, no pets.
A few miles from Beer and Branscombe in a very private location, surrounded by 52 acres of grounds and ¾ mile from the nearest side road. Honiton is only ten minutes away, as is Waitrose in Sidmouth.
Airports: Exeter (10 miles); Bristol (45 miles)
Stations: Honiton (4 miles); Exeter (15 miles).
Higher Wiscombe is four miles from the sea, right in the centre of the East Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, hence the beautiful views over undeveloped countryside. The World Heritage Jurassic Coast walks are minutes away and the East Devon Way can be accessed on foot from the house.
There are plenty of places for days out, from Regency Lyme Regis and Sidmouth to the famous antique markets in Honiton. Pecorama and Crealy are two excellent theme parks for children, who will also love fossilling at Charmouth. There are good local pubs and restaurants nearby, including the two most recent winners of best pubs in the South West, as well as Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage. There are many nature reserves and historic houses, horse riding (one mile), and cinemas and theatres in the towns.
Guests can explore Higher Wiscombe’s 52-acre grounds, which include woodlands, orchards, pasture and streams with abundant wildlife. There are rare bats, over 65 species of wild birds, and deer, foxes and badgers are common sights in the fields around the barns.
One week costs from £1,995 to £4,995, depending on season
ie from £99p per person per week.