Where did we go?
Castle Farm Holidays Shropshire
Dudleston
Ellesmere
Shropshire
SY12 9EF
Tel: 01691 690801
Email:info@castlefarmholidaysshropshire.co.uk
Prices: From £55.00 per night, per glamping pod
Our stay
I set off after work on Friday evening looking forwards to a restful weekend and some quality time spent outdoors. Located in Shropshire, close to the Welsh border, Castle Farm Holidays is only a 50 drive from the office and it was still light when I set off, with a welcome hint of Spring in the air.
The drive through the Cheshire, then Shropshire countryside was a delight and I arrived just before 6:30 and was met by friendly owner Helen, who walked me up to Bluebell shepherd’s hut and gave me a rundown of the site facilities.
This was my first ever stay in a Shepherd’s hut and it was a fabulous experience. Bluebell is located at the far end of the glamping field, where 4 other glamping pods are located, one of them with its own secluded hot tub.
Bluebell sleeps up to 4 people. There’s a double bed and pull-out sofa bed. Inside there’s also a pull out table and chairs and a mini kitchen area which includes a kettle, toaster and fridge. Crockery is supplied, but not cutlery and I’d recommend taking a washing up bowl with you to easily transport used crockery to the washing up facilities at the other side of the field.
Outside there’s a cute little covered veranda, ideal for storing your muddy walking boots and beside the Shepherd’s hut there’s a picnic bench, ideal for al fresco dining in the summer.
The Shepherd’s hut is very well insulated and I found it warm and cosy. There’s an electric fire and a fan heater too so whatever the weather, you won’t be cold! The rural location makes for a truly peaceful stay and I enjoyed two very restful nights of sleep, waking up to gorgeous views and the sound of birdsong.
Site facilities
As well as Bluebell Shepherd’s hut, there are also 4 pods on site as well as 2 cottages. There’s a lovely timber building which houses the men’s and ladies toilet and shower facilities as well as a washing up area (complete with fridge and washing machine), and there’s also a cosy sitting room for guests, well worth popping into as it’s packed full of information on the local area and it makes the ideal communal area in bad weather.
There’s plenty of space for kids to run around safely and there’s a second secure field ideal for ball games and in the summer there’s things like table tennis to keep the kids entertained too. There’s free WiFi across the site and despite the rural location, I had a full phone signal too.
The local area
Last time I was in the region I picked up a signed copy of the brilliant Wild Guide To Wales and the Marches (which also covered the area I was staying in this time), so I took it along with me and decided that Castell Dinas Brân (Crow Castle) looked like a good bet for the Saturday.
On Saturday morning at 8am I awoke after a wonderfully deep sleep (the bed inside Bluebell is big and very comfortable), made a quick breakfast and headed towards Llangollen. By 9am I was parked up beside the river, with the remains of the medieval castle towering above. I chose the riverside long-stay car park which cost just £3 for a full day, popped on my hiking boots and backpack and started the steep climb up to the castle.
If you’re going to do this walk, make sure you’ve got good footwear on as part of the ascent is really steep and depending on the final approach you choose, you might need to do a bit of scrambling on the way back down.
The weather was glorious, a perfect early spring day with plenty of sunshine and when I reached the castle there were only a handful of other people up there so I hung around for a while exploring and taking in the amazing scenery; well worth the effort to reach it.
On the way back down I stopped at LLangollen Wharf (I can thoroughly recommend the vegetarian breakfast at the tea room!) and noticed horse-drawn canal boat trips, so straight after breakfast I hopped onto a canal boat for a relaxing slow meander down the canal in the sunshine, pulled by Hercules one of their two beautiful working horses.
The verdict
The Shepherd’s hut is spacious, warm and cosy with a wonderfully comfortable bed and the accommodation and facilities are spotlessly clean. The site itself is beautiful and very peaceful, so if it’s a rural idyll your seeking Castle Farm Holidays won’t disappoint.
The site is just as suitable for a romantic couples glamping weekend away as it is for a family holiday, and there’s even the option of hiring the whole site for larger groups of family or friends. Castle Farm Holidays provide a comfortable range of accommodation options with something to suit all budgets and with so much to do just a short drive away, it’s a fabulous location for a short break though there’s more than enough to do close by to keep you occupied for a whole week!
To find out more, visit Castle Farm Holidays Shropshire.
Thank you to Castle Farm Holidays who invited us to stay. We were not paid to write this review and everything reflects our own opinions on our stay.
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