Middle Stolford Cottage

Why you'll love staying here

Middle Stolford Cottage is a beautifully restored 16th-century farmhouse, tucked away in a sheltered valley in the Brendon Hills. It offers stylish holiday accommodation for families or groups of friends keen to discover this unspoilt part of Somerset and the nearby Exmoor National Park. Lovingly renovated, the farmhouse retains many period features, including exposed timber beams, sloping ceilings, and stone walls.

The cottage is entered through the original Exmoor oak farmhouse door into a practical boot room, with plenty of space to store coats, boots, and outdoor gear after a day exploring the moors. The heart of the home is the impressive open-plan kitchen and dining room, which forms the earliest part of the farmhouse. This is evident in the two inglenook fireplaces at either end of the room, along with the wooden struts that have been cleverly exposed to help define the space.

The contemporary Shaker-style kitchen is fully equipped with modern appliances to make cooking a breeze, while the central island forms a sociable spot for gathering and enjoying a pre-dinner drink. Set beside one of the fireplaces, the farmhouse-style dining table, with a mix of chairs and benches, is a lovely place to enjoy home-cooked meals and plan the day’s adventures. Throughout the room, charming country details such as an old cartwheel and vintage signs add to the relaxed farmhouse atmosphere.

Next door is the spacious sitting room, where generous seating is arranged around a cosy wood-burning stove, while a small table offers a perfect spot for casual meals, card games, or board games. Leaded windows on three sides of the room provide lovely views across the surrounding farmland and countryside. A utility room and shower room complete the ground floor.

A traditional narrow staircase leads upstairs, where there are five bedrooms offering a mix of double, twin, and single beds. Each room is designed with comfort in mind, with luxurious cotton bed linen and soothing neutral décor with individual pops of colour. The master bedroom benefits from its own walk-in shower room, while the remaining bedrooms share a well-appointed family bathroom with a generous bath.

Outside, the cottage has a wonderful private garden, laid mainly to lawn, with plenty of space for children to play and dogs to run freely. A sunny terrace is equipped with a picnic table, sun loungers, a barbecue, a pizza oven, and a covered seating area, allowing for outdoor dining whatever the weather. There is also a hot tub, perfect for relaxing in the bubbles after a day of walking or cycling, and a firepit ideal for toasting marshmallows while admiring Exmoor’s spectacular night skies. Children will love their dedicated play area with swings, a slide, and climbing frame, while guests of all ages can enjoy the full-size tennis court before cooling off with a refreshing glass of Pimm’s.

Stolford is run as a traditional Exmoor hill farm, with grazing licensed between April and December to a local farming family. Around 500 sheep - a mix of Texel and Jacob ewes and followers - graze the surrounding slopes and pastures throughout spring, summer, and autumn. When grazing is plentiful, areas of hay and silage ground are mown.

During autumn, the focus shifts to forestry, carried out in a sustainable and considered way, using only windfall trees. Approximately two-thirds of the woodland is beech, with the remainder made up of oak and ash. All logs are seasoned for a mandatory 12 months and are available for guests to purchase.

Guests are welcome to explore the 270 acres of land, which includes 36 acres of woodland and 30 acres of scrub. Remnants of the old farm buildings can still be seen, with the north-facing wall of the original stone farmhouse now forming part of a tractor and log shed.