BY TIM HEDGLEY, GROUP TRAVEL EDITOR
| Premier Cottages’ collection features almost 300 properties with Electric Vehicle (EV) charge points on site making them ideal for eco-minded staycationers.Spread throughout the UK they include: Higher Wiscombe,Devon Located in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Higher Wiscombe features three luxurious cottages on 52 acres of rolling Devon countryside.Higher Wiscombe has invested significantly to minimise its environmental footprint whilst continuing to provide the highest quality self-catering holidays possible; winning various awards and being accredited the GTBS (Green Tourism Business Scheme). See environmental statement here On site are woodlands, an orchard, pasture and streams as well as enclosed gardens making the site super dog-friendly too. The Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, The South West Coast Path and the beaches of Beer, Branscombe and Sidmouth are all a short drive away.Electrical vehicle charging: Type-2 and Tesla EV charging on site.A March three night weekend break in Higher Wiscombe’s Flint for six guests is £1050. Other cottages are also available. (www.premiercottages.co.uk, 01404 871360). Images here  Heath Farm Holiday Cottages, OxfordshireHeath Farm Holiday Cottages sit in 70 acres of beautiful woodland and wild flower meadows, with tree lined avenues and stunning views of rolling Cotswold hills.The properties are filled with furniture and fittings made by Cotswolds’ craftsmen in English hardwoods, much from the farm’s own trees. Ongoing conservation work means there is plenty of wildlife to see including rabbits, hares, badgers, squirrels, roe deer and muntjac as well as a good variety of birds. Heath Farm has been awarded Gold for the Green Tourism Business Scheme since 2014 and eco-friendly features include: eco-laundry room, biomass & solar panels, recycling, composting and led lights throughout.Electric Vehicle charging: A Podpoint type two charger and a Tesla charger.Nearby attractions include Soho Farmhouse, the market town of Chipping Norton and Blenheim Palace. A March three night break in Heath Farm’s Cobnut for four guests is £784 and in Hazelnut for two guests is £420. (www.premiercottages.co.uk, 01608 683270) Image here  Cranmer Country Cottages, NorfolkSet in 175 acres of farmland Cranmer Country Cottages boasts a luxury heated indoor heated swimming pool, two all-weather tennis courts, games room and children’s adventure play area.This eco-friendly business gets all of its heating requirements from renewable sources onsite and 30% of the electrical energy used here comes from sun and wind. There is careful monitoring of energy and water use and waste reduction as well as ethical and local sourcing of foods, toiletries, and services. They are also committed to responsible tourism practices with an ongoing hedge and tree planting programme to safeguard wildlife corridors and offset carbon emissions.Electric vehicle charging: There are two type 2 sockets, each socket supply is 7.2kW (32 amp) available for shared guest use.There are 12 cottages on site sleeping between three and twelve guests.A March three-night break in Cranmer Country Cottage sleeps four Wagtail from £543, and in sleeps six Avocet from £595. Further cottages are also available.(www.premiercottages.co.uk, 01328 823135)  Ben and Holly’s Hideaways, AngleseyBen and Holly’s Hideaways are four luxury properties sleeping between four and twelve guests on the picturesque island of Anglesey. Just a five-minute walk from the beautiful town of Beaumaris with its choice of shops and restaurants, the properties feature fabulous views of SnowdoniaAttractions nearby include a nine and 18 hole golf course, Beaumaris Castle and Beaumaris Pier. From the pier visitors can enjoy a range of boat rides and fishing trips along the Menai Strait or Irish Sea.Electric vehicle charging: Two type 2 chargers with a capacity of 22 Kw each are on site (must be pre-booked).A March three-night weekend break in Ben and Holly’s Hideaway’s Low Tide for four guests is £600 and in High Tide for six guests is £750. Larger properties Ty Pinc for 12 guests and Ty Stable for eleven guests are also available.(www.premiercottages, 01565 270011)  Kernock Cottages, CornwallSet in 25 acres of mature gardens and woodland in the Lynher valley between Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor, Kernock Cottages offers four luxurious detached barns each with its own private hot tub featuring energy-efficient pumps and low energy LED lighting.Its extensive grounds are home to owls, badgers, foxes and rabbits galore. The cottages are also dog-friendly with enclosed gardens plus a six-acre dog-walking paddock “Central Bark” – with mown paths, a loop through the woods, and poo bins.Kernock has a robust sustainability policy across the entire site, from the big things to the little things. Major investments in green technology include a 150kw woodchip biomass boiler (which supplies hot water and heating for all the cottages, saving 59 tons of carbon a year); an environmentally-friendly waste treatment plant, which produces water clean enough to be discharged into a watercourse; and solar panels and Tesla Powerwalls to generate and store electricity on site. Other initiatives include wildflower and birdseed meadows, as part of the Countryside Stewardship scheme; eco-friendly cleaning materials; and its own borehole and pump room.Electrical vehicle charging: The site has both Tesla and Type 2 tethered charging points (free to guests).A March three-night weekend break in Kernock Cottage’s Tree Barn for four guests costs £680. Further cottages with March breaks are also available.(www.premiercottages.co.uk, 01579 350435) |
