Luxury cottages with fireplaces
The soul of winter lies in the crackle of logs and hypnotic dance of flames. In our luxury cottages with woodburners, fire lighting becomes a ritual that marks day's transition to night, transforming spaces into sanctuaries of the most primitive pleasures.
From inglenooks in Cotswolds stone to Nordic fireplaces poised by craftsmen in Cornish boltholes, each retreat celebrates the primal draw of the hearth. Deep in Welsh mountain cottages, stock the log basket before hiking misty peaks, returning to toasted toes and buttered crumpets. In the wilds of Cumbria, play board games as shadows flicker across stone walls, snow drifting silently outside.
Perhaps it's morning coffee by glowing embers in a farmhouse, fireside suppers in a converted chapel, or gathering around cast-iron stoves in beach houses as Atlantic storms rage across the darkening winter sky. These homes offer an elemental combination of wilderness and shelter; there's nowhere better to gather, reconnect, and simply be, than beside the steady heartbeat of a real fire.
Windfall
Black Mountains, Herefordshire, UK
On the Welsh border in Herefordshire, a Victorian cider mill has been reborn as a rural escape. In Dark Sky territory, this rustic retreat promises Swedish tub soaks under infinite stars.
Sleeps: Up to 2 guests
From: £1,550 per week, £1,150 per short break
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Features: Fire pit, Swedish wood-fired tub
Charity
Black Mountains, Herefordshire, UK
Divinely secluded, Charity is a real wild retreat; set down a mountain road in the Black Mountains of Herefordshire, this luxury country home has a hot tub and sauna.
Sleeps: Up to 12 guests
Alternative Group Option: Up to 6 guests
From: £3,795 per week, £2,850 per short break
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Features: Wood-fired hot tub, sauna, outdoor shower, outdoor pizza oven, table tennis, snooker room, cinema barn and badminton lawn
Celestia
Talybont-on-usk, Brecon Beacons, Wales, UK
Resting on an open clearing beneath the tops of the Brecon Beacons, cocooned by a tangle of woodland, these luxury farmhouses are an ode to mountain living in remote south Wales.
Sleeps: Up to 14 guests
Alternative Group Option: Up to 8 & Up to 6 guests
From: £3,750 per week, £2,795 per short break
Pets: Two well-behaved dogs are welcome
Features: Pool table, Steinway piano, fire pit with grill, and stargazing bowl
