Its consistently warm-to-mild temperatures and lack of a harsh winter mean there’s never really a bad time to visit St Lucia.
20.07.2023 - 13:20 / wanderlust.co.uk
With the night’s drawing in and the season of mellow fruitfulness in full swing, there's nothing like an overnight stay in one of Britain's warm and friendly country pubs.
Published by the UK travel specialist Cool Places, the new Cool Pubs & Inns Guide to the UK has loads to choose from, all serving great food and with stylish rooms to stagger up to at the end of the evening. Here, editor of the guide Martin Dunford, picks his top ten pubs to hunker down and enjoy a memorable autumn break.
Occupying an almost impossibly desirable position overlooking Dial Post's village green, this pub has a big and deserved reputation for the quality of its food, and recently added four comfortable and beautifully appointed rooms if you want to stay over. It’s dog friendly, and all rooms have fast wifi, smart TVs, mini fridges, Nespresso machines and all sorts of treats, plus high-quality vintage beds and bedding. As an autumn break, it’s perfect, and very handy for visiting the fabulous Knepp estate nearby, which offers seasonal safaris around their unique re-wilding project. Double rooms with breakfast from £120 a night. (coolplaces.co.uk)
Charlie and Willow Crossley's self-styled 'home away from home’ is a tremendous pub that manages to be both sharp and stylish and ridiculously comfortable at the same time. It's the sort of place where it's impossible not to relax, with all the bells and whistles a good gastropub should have – delicious locally sourced, unpretentious food, decent ales and an all-round cosy atmosphere – together with a comfortable set of boutique rooms. There's loads to see and do nearby: Wychwood Forest offers wonderful walking amid fall foliage, and is good for building an appetite. Double rooms from £99 a night – plus breakfast. (coolplaces.co.uk)
Ham's Crown & Anchor ticks all the boxes a proper 21st century pub should – welcoming dogs, walkers and cyclists and serving local ales and excellent food that’s a perfect blend of local, seasonal and above all British dishes but with a modern twist – bar snacks like spicy lamb scotch eggs and lovely local partridge and venison along with classics like fish and chips and pithivier pie. It also has some cosy rooms upstairs and is a perfect location for enjoying country walks, with three long-distance footpaths nearby and a great cycle route too. Double rooms with breakfast from £100 a night. (coolplaces.co.uk)
Anyone seeking a quintessential country pub in a picturesque Somerset village need look no further than the lovely Swan at Wedmore. With the gregarious Annie overseeing operations and Tom Blake, formerly of River Cottage, heading up the kitchen, this handsome former coaching inn is in great hands food-wise, plus it has 7 stylish rooms upstairs.
Its consistently warm-to-mild temperatures and lack of a harsh winter mean there’s never really a bad time to visit St Lucia.
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