The Woodlands House Estate - 4 Bedroom (Sleeps 7) House in North Devon

Description

There is a valley in North Devon that most people never find.

Hidden in the Sterridge Valley in the village of Berrynarbor, The Woodlands House Estate is an exclusive-use 1910 country house unlike anything else in North Devon. One property. Private grounds. Zero neighbours. The entire estate is yours alone.

This is not a holiday rental. It is a family home — a 1910 country house restored with five years of love, determination and the kind of stubbornness that only comes from knowing something is worth saving — shared with families who understand what it means to need a place like this.

Come and stay. Bring your dogs. Bring three generations. Bring your walking boots, your binoculars, your laptop, your children who have never seen a hedgehog or heard a tawny owl or watched the Milky Way stretch across a truly dark sky.

Leave the world behind. Even just for a week.

THE HOUSE

Four beautifully appointed bedrooms sleeping seven guests:

BEDROOM 1 — KING
King size bed. Large double glazed sash windows with beautiful natural views. 65 inch smart TV. Dressing table. Bedside cabinets and lamps. Wardrobe. Individual heater and radiator. Carpeted. High ceilings throughout.

BEDROOM 2 — KING
King size bed. Original period fireplace — a beautiful feature of this room. Large enough to accommodate a travel cot with plenty of space. Large double glazed sash windows with beautiful natural views. 65 inch smart TV. Dressing table. Bedside cabinets and lamps. Wardrobe. Individual heater and radiator. Carpeted. High ceilings.

BEDROOM 3 — SUPER-KING
Dual aspect double glazed sash windows — natural light flooding in from two directions with beautiful valley views from both. Super-king zip and link bed — splits to two singles on request. 65 inch OLED smart TV. Dressing table. Bedside cabinets and lamps. Wardrobe. Individual heater and radiator. Carpeted. Spacious with room to move comfortably.

BEDROOM 4 — SINGLE
Full size adult single bed. Large sash window with beautiful views. No television in this room — a deliberate and thoughtful decision for families with younger children, giving parents the choice of a screen-free space. Wardrobe. Bedside lamp. Cosy and characterful.

All bedrooms feature original double glazed sash windows — replaced in the last four years, kept in keeping with the 1910 character of the house. Natural light and views from every bedroom. No other houses visible from any window.

THE LIVING SPACES

Fully equipped kitchen — a genuine home from home. Everything you need for everyday meals through to large family gatherings.

Living room with electric recliners and 85 inch smart TV. Baby grand piano. Original commissioned hand painted artwork in the hallway — a unique piece created specifically for The Woodlands House Estate by a well known local artist over several days. Dining room with 65 inch smart TV. Large dining table — space for all guests together.

All smart TVs include Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, YouTube Premium and Nebula.

Superfast broadband throughout. Solar powered with air source heat pumps and energy efficient lighting. Individual room heaters in every bedroom for topping up warmth.

THE BATHROOMS — 1.5 BATHROOMS

One full bathroom: Original Victorian cast iron roll-top bath — deep, long and completely indulgent — with rainfall shower overhead. This bathroom is unlike anything else in North Devon. The extraordinary tortoiseshell painted exterior of the bath, the dramatic original artwork, the antique carved Victorian sideboard, the tropical wallpaper — a room with a personality entirely its own. Refillable shampoo, conditioner, bubble bath, body wash and hand soap provided throughout. Vintage glass bowls with cotton wool and extras on the sideboard. No single use plastics anywhere at The Woodlands.

One downstairs WC with sink — perfectly practical for a full house.

THE CONCIERGE EXPERIENCE

Every stay is personally tailored by host Saffron before arrival. Not a form. Not a questionnaire. A genuine conversation about who you are, what you love and what would make your holiday perfect. A bespoke welcome and local recommendation guide is created specifically for every group.

On arrival you will find:

Fresh organic milk collected that morning from the farm half a mile down the lane. Organic free-range eggs laid that day by our resident chickens — our tiny raptors, as we call them with enormous affection. Ground coffee waiting for the cafetière. Tea, coffee, sugar and everything you need to make that first cup before you have even unpacked.

An In Case You Forgot basket — because life is busy and packing is imperfect. Deodorant, toothbrush, ladies essentials, toiletries. The things you only realise you have forgotten when you are two hours from home. They are already here.

Fresh strawberries and raspberries from the estate when in season. Fresh herbs from our garden for cooking.

PRE-BOOKABLE BEFORE YOU ARRIVE

Private specialist chef — for a birthday, an anniversary, a celebration or simply because someone deserves a night off cooking.
Massage and yoga on the lawn.
Cheese and charcuterie platters.
Champagne and prosecco arrival arrangements.
Locally grown fruit and vegetables.
Picnic supplies and chairs for days on Exmoor — just take them and go.
Guided dark sky stargazing experience — £45 (see below for full details).
Complimentary estate transfers in our seven seat Land Rover Discovery — village pub, Combe Martin or anywhere within four miles until 9:30pm. Dogs welcome in the back. No designated driver needed.


FOR YOUR DOGS

We mean it when we say dogs are welcomed as family here. Not just permitted. Not tolerated. Genuinely, wholeheartedly welcomed.

Up to four dogs. Always.

Dog beds and blankets are ready in the house. Dog shampoo and spare leads are available. Every dog receives a holiday ID tag — engraved with the estate name and Saffron's number — because dogs get curious and valleys are large and peace of mind matters.

Our local vet contact is provided for every guest. A pet sitting service is available for evenings when you want to go out without worrying. Dog crate hire can be arranged.

The enclosed top lawn is safe for dogs of every size. The valley is theirs to explore. They will sleep better here than they do at home.

Where dogs are welcomed as family, not just allowed.

FOR FAMILIES WITH YOUNG CHILDREN

Everything is ready before you walk through the door:

Travel cot — on request.
High chair — on request.
Children's cutlery and cups provided.
Toys and books for younger ages.
Children's teepee — indoor or outdoor use — with age appropriate toys inside, including a tiger face rug and children's torch. All toys sanitised before arrival.
Built-in sash style window child locking mechanism — activated by Saffron prior to arrival on request. These l windows have a built-in safety feature that Saffron activates before families with young children arrive, protecting both the children and the period style windows.

Outdoor games for all ages:
Football pitch for older children.
Swingball.
Croquet set for all the family.
Additional outdoor games.

The enclosed top lawn is safe for children of all ages. Three generations can spread out across the estate and everyone has space.


THE GROUNDS AND OUTDOOR EXPERIENCES

Two private lawns surround the house.

The enclosed top lawn wraps around the house — private, safe for children and dogs, with garden furniture, the estate herb garden and the bird feeder stations that attracts remarkable wildlife every morning.

The large bottom lawn is where the evenings happen.

OUTDOOR CINEMA
Our large inflatable cinema screen goes up on the bottom lawn as the sun goes down. Gather under the stars with blankets, drinks and the fire pit glowing beside you. A proper outdoor cinema experience in a completely private Devon valley.

FIRE PIT
The fire pit burns estate firewood — sourced from storm fallen or safety managed trees only, processed on site by our qualified tree surgeon Shelby using solar charged battery machinery, air dried to the correct moisture content for a clean hot burn. The fire pit bowl glows beautifully in the evenings.

BBQ
Choice of charcoal or gas BBQ. Applewood available to purchase for smoking — another product of this estate, offered to you directly.

DARK SKY STARGAZING — £45
North Devon is one of England's darkest sky areas. The Sterridge Valley has zero light pollution. On a clear night the stars feel like they are falling on you.

Our passionate stargazing hobbyists Shelby and Saffron will set up our professional Meade telescope on the bottom lawn and spend around 20 minutes showing you exactly how to use it — how to locate planets, adjust the focus and find your way around the night sky. After that the telescope is yours for up to 3 hours.

No experience needed. Just curiosity and a clear sky.

Pre-bookable — £45. Includes full setup, personal tuition and up to 3 hours with the equipment. Available from dusk, latest collection 11pm. Pre-book before arrival — subject to clear skies and availability.

EV charging point. ( please confirm available as we are having new install) Parking for three cars.


FOR BIRDWATCHERS

The Woodlands House Estate sits within a living wildlife corridor in the Sterridge Valley. Our resident bird population is extraordinary — recorded on the estate using professional bird identification equipment:

Green woodpecker. Tawny owl. Buzzard. Sparrowhawk. Goldcrest. Song thrush. European robin. Eurasian blackcap. Common chaffinch. Common chiffchaff. Eurasian blue tit. Dunnock. Eurasian jackdaw. Carrion crow. Common wood pigeon. Eurasian blackbird.

And Gary — our resident wild pheasant — who has called The Woodlands home for over five years. He arrives for breakfast every morning with his companion Brittany and their daughter. A wild animal who chooses to stay is the greatest endorsement a place can receive.

Hedgehogs visit at night. A mother deer and her young one have returned every year for the past three or four years along the stream that borders the property.

Exmoor National Park is 12 minutes away — one of England's finest birdwatching locations. The South West Coast Path is 1.3 miles from the estate — coastal species abound.

Bring your binoculars. Set your alarm for the dawn chorus. The valley will do the rest.

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FOR REMOTE WORKERS

Superfast broadband throughout the estate. Multiple private rooms where you can close a door and work undisturbed while the rest of your group does exactly as they please.
Work in the morning. Walk the coast path in the afternoon. Sit by the fire pit in the evening under a sky full of stars.


SUSTAINABILITY

We manage The Woodlands House Estate with the long term in mind — with patience, respect and a view to the very long term.

Solar powered. Air source heat pumps. Energy efficient lighting throughout. Battery operated machinery charged by our own solar power. No single use plastics anywhere. Refillable products throughout.

All firewood sourced from the estate — storm fallen or safety managed trees only. Processed on site by Shelby our qualified tree surgeon using solar charged battery machinery. Air dried to the correct moisture content — lower emissions, cleaner burn.

Fire pit ash is separated by guests into two tins — wood ash returned to the ground as natural fertiliser, remnants fed to our chickens as a completely natural health supplement. Those same chickens lay the organic eggs waiting for you in the kitchen on arrival.

From solar panel to breakfast egg. Nothing wasted. Everything connected.

We plant ash, birch and oak — traditional Devon species that take generations to mature. We will never see them fully grown. We plant them anyway.

Plant today for our grandchildren and great grandchildren.

We have removed and recycled over 190 tonnes of metal and scrap from this land over five years of restoration. Every item we replace — kettles, linen, towels — is donated to local North Devon charities for people in need.

No hot tub — a deliberate choice to protect our natural ecosystem and septic system.

Staying here is a values decision as much as a holiday decision.

THE LOCATION

Berrynarbor sits at the heart of everything North Devon offers — yet feels entirely removed from all of it.

Ye Olde Globe Inn village pub — 0.5 miles, walkable
The Sawmill Inn — 1 mile, walkable
Berrynarbor village shop and post office — 0.5 miles
South West Coast Path — 1.3 mile walk through the valley
Combe Martin village and beach — 2 miles
Watermouth Castle — 2 miles
Combe Martin Wildlife and Dinosaur Park — 2.5 miles
Ilfracombe Golf Club 18 hole — 3 miles
Key Pits quad biking adventure — 3 miles
Hele Bay beach, pub and original Devon mill for cream teas — 7 minutes drive
Ilfracombe harbour — 5 miles
Saunton Sands UNESCO Biosphere Reserve — 8.2 miles
Woolacombe Beach — 8.7 miles Award winning beach Number 1 UK and first Surf Reserve
Exmoor National Park — 12 minutes
Clovelly — one of England's most iconic villages — 30-40 minutes
Tarr Steps and wild Exmoor ponies — Exmoor
Watersmeet National Trust — Exmoor

Coast and country. Moors and beaches. Ancient valleys and wild open skies. All within reach. All without sacrificing a single moment of your privacy.


THE STORY

Some places choose you. The Woodlands House Estate chose us — twice.

My mother found this 1910 country house nestled in the Sterridge Valley in Berrynarbor and made it a family home. I grew up here — late summer evenings on the front lawn, soft grass underfoot, stars so bright they felt like they were falling on you. The birds. The complete, extraordinary privacy of a valley that felt like it belonged only to us.

I left when my daughter was four. We were gone for twenty five years.

When we came home we found devastation. Fly-tipping where there had once been lawns. A shell of something that had meant everything. The sensible thing would have been to walk away.

We chose to stay.

Five years of restoration — 190 tonnes of metal recycled, solar power installed, land restored, wildlife habitats created, trees planted for generations not yet born. My partner Shelby — a Californian who arrived never having experienced a British winter — now manages this estate with his hands and has fallen completely in love with it. Our daughter has returned and is building her future here, farming this land.

Three generations. One valley. An extraordinary home shared with people who will love it the way it deserves to be loved.


AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

Airbnb Guest Favourite
Airbnb Superhost
Booking.com Traveller Review Award — four consecutive years
5-star Google rating
Solar powered and sustainably managed

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