Romantic cottages for two in the Peak District

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We are celebrating a new award

We have just been awarded a 2017 VisitEngland Rose Award in recognition of Excellent Customer Service. These awards are given annually to 100 VisitEngland quality assessed accommodation businesses that go the extra mile in order to provide excellent customer service and can only be won once. The nominations are triggered following annual VisitEngland assessment and observation of the assessor including online customer service reviews. The judging panel look for innovation that sets the business apart. A big thank you to all our lovely guests for wanting to come and stay with us and also for all the reviews that guest take time to do.

RHS Chatsworth

Chatsworth House played host to RHS flower show for the 1st time this year. The setting is delightful and the show gardens all very natural which is lovely to see in this Peak District setting. Peak District Premier Cottages contributed to the sponsorship of the Experience Peak District garden which won a Silver Gilt medal. It was a great day out and something to put in the calendar for next year. www.chesterfield.co.uk/2017/06/quirky-cows-score-rhs-chatsworth/

Bikes for our guests to use

Monsal Trail has been voted the UK’s favourite cycle route. We have 2 bikes and helmets that our guests can use. Monsal is just one of the many safe cycle routes around here.

Tom’s Barn: Sexy place/love nest…?

… With Valentine’s day fast approaching, and with both Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns having frequently been identified as romantic cottages for two I suppose we shouldn’t have been surprised to find Tom’s Barn selected by Kate Quill of the Times for her list of 18 “Love Nests to Rent” in an article headed “Sexy Places”. (Unfortunately we can’t give you a link to the actual article as we don’t have a subscription to online Times but if you do have it is on Page 4 Sexy Places in the Travel section on Saturday Feb 12th 2011.)

But surprised we were; in fact the first we knew of it was when someone rang to book a week, explaining she had just read about us in the Times. So that’s twice this year already – first in Country Homes and Interiors, with Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns highlighted as one of their four recommended Romantic Getaways and now the Times with their love nests in Sexy Places…

Of course we’re always delighted to have our two cottages recognised and recommended by the press; we just always feel the need to reassure everyone that we love all our guests whatever their ages, and as far as we can tell all our guests –  no matter how old or young – love our barns. They are a highly attractive destination for couples of any age.

We never ask people’s ages, but we get a wonderful spread from early twenties to mid to late 80’s, from 21st birthday treats to Golden Wedding celebrations and masses of couples in between. You’re obviously fond of each other and want some happy time together so let’s not be shy – let’s shout abroad about how romantic and sexy Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns are for everybody!

Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns – Romantic Getaways

We are delighted to report that our barns are featured in the February Country Homes & Interiors magazine, out today, as one of their four selected Romantic Getaways. They must have St Valentine’s Day in mind (which rather impractically for a romantic short break this year falls on a Monday short break changeover but it does mean that four lucky couples have the opportunity to celebrate at least part of the day!).

We haven’t actually seen the magazine  yet, but they kindly sent us  a pdf of the article so we know it exists. We had actually been asked permission some time ago, but had no idea whether it would materialise, or if it did,  what it would say. (Some of you may remember a disappointing build up  to an article about John and me being grey-haired technology whizz kids that the Daily Telegraph was planning last summer…)

We are delighted and relieved to say it looks fine! We immediately had an enquiry for two bookings and it will be intriguing to see if there any more. Even the nearby Tissington Trail is described as being romantic, which, seriously, is quite possibly very true but I’d never thought of it like that before.

Apparently Country Homes & Interiors doesn’t have a website as such which for these days is unusual but they are on Facebook and they have given us the Country Homes and Interiors Facebook link. I’m ashamed to say it has been a particularly busy day for us today and we haven’t even had the time to follow it up ourselves but will do so. Whether it will show the relevant article I’d say is doubtful, but it is a lovely magazine…

We’re (briefly) in the Telegraph Weekend section!

For a couple of hours on Monday we almost felt like celebrities, with a photographer here from the Daily Telegraph snapping away at John and me and Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns from every angle. Sadly, we didn’t look quite look the celebrity picture but it was fun while it lasted and Gabriel the photographer was charming.

This followed an interview over the telephone by Claudine Beaumont, a journalist from the Daily Telegraph. I had been understandably surprised and apprehensive when the editor of the Weekend section emailed to ask if I would be agreeable, but Claudine made it all very easy and unfrightening – in fact she was so easy to talk to it was positively enjoyable.

After all this excitement, we heard nothing. Would an article appear at all? Would we and our barns be mentioned? We really didn’t know what to expect when the paper arrived this morning. Eventually we spotted something.

In today’s Weekend Section at the very end of an article by Claudine Beaumont on page 3 entitled ‘Cashing in on the Digital Age’ you might just spot, if you look hard, a column and a half about how John and I use web technology for running Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns (our self-catering holiday cottage accommodation and note, not guest house in case you were wondering!). Not a photograph to be seen, which is probably understandable and quite a relief but also in a way quite strange after all the photographic activity!

Anyway, do have a look; it makes me seem much wiser and more knowledgable than I am or feel! We will put up the link to the article when the Saturday paper goes online.

Reader’s Tip in BBC Countryfile Magazine Dec 2009

We had hoped to be able to give you a link to the BBC Countryfile Magazine feature on the Peak District where this Reader’s Tip appears,  but have discovered that this is not possible. Although there is a website  one cannot access articles (nor readers’ tips!) because otherwise I imagine they’d never sell any magazines.

So the best we can do, with the blessing of Fergus Collins the Countryfile Magazine editor, is to reproduce the  tip below, and give you the link to the online magazine for a general browse.

“Tom’s Barn, Parwich
I would recommend Tom’s Barn, two gorgeous barns on the edge of a beautiful Peak District village with walks from the door. We went there for our honeymoon.”
Sam Temple-Scotton
BBC Countryfile Magazine, December 2009
http://www.bbccountryfilemagazine.com

To read the article on the Peak District you have to buy the current (December) edition, which we urge you to do and keep for reference if you are interested in our lovely part of the world – and who could not be?

And meanwhile, once again, thank you to Sam, although we gather there was  initial concern from some quarters  that she had revealed what should have remained a well-kept secret!

Tom’s Barn in the Independent Sept 2006

Tom’s Barn No 1 in a list of Five Romantic Retreats!

The first mention in the national press that we were aware of was over three years ago now, when – completely out of the blue – we found ourselves with a flurry of bookings from people who claimed to have read about us in the Independent.

Tom’s Barn had been singled out as the top romantic retreat ” out of the five mentioned…

“You may not have the whole farm to yourself but it feels like it once you’re in the barn….Outside, you’ll find spectacular walking territory – and a village pub – within ambling distance.”

Douglas’s Barn in the Observer

Douglas’s Barn is officially a romantic escape!

Douglas’s Barn, the newer of our two lovely barns, was picked out by journalist Annabelle Thorpe for her selection for The Observer ’20 Romantic Cottages for Two’ Escape Guide in the Observer Travel Section Sunday 13 Jan 2008.

Obviously, we weren’t surprised at the time but it was nice to have recognised publicly what lots of delighted couples had already discovered for themselves! There has been an enormous and ongoing reponse to this particular mention – obviously a lot of very discerning people read the Observer!

Her comment:
‘Sometimes it’s the little things that make all the difference to a trip away, and the fresh flowers, home-made cakes, spa bath and bookshelves stacked with games, novels and maps make Douglas’s Barn a really special place to stay. One of two five-star conversions of former cattle barns on a farm near the village of Parwich in the beautiful Peak District, it has a pristine Shaker-style kitchen, and a luxurious lounge with contemporary fittings – there is even a remote-control fire. There are dozens of footpaths around the farm – choose from a brief stroll into the village or some serious all-day hiking.’

Tom’s Barn in the Daily Mail

Most recently there was a small but complimentary mention in July 2009 in the Daily Mail Travel section.


LATEST NEWS

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