Quantock Cottages

Dogfriendly Magazine Review

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Quantock Cottages
Review by Steve Bennett

Our drive to the Quantock Hills brought back memories from my childhood. From the age of 11 to 15 years, I lived on the outskirts of Bristol and used to cycle with my mates to the coastal towns of Clevedon, Portishead and Weston Supermare. These were the names that were appearing on the motorway exit signs as we got closer to our destination. We had allowed extra time for our journey as the previous weekend there were reports of long delays on the M5, but we had a super journey, with no hold-ups and we arrived far too early to check in.

I noticed a hotel, called the Castle of Comfort Hotel and Restaurant (castleof-comfort.co.uk) advertising coffees and teas, just a short distance from our final destination, Kilve, so we pulled over and I knocked on the door of the hotel. Although it was the middle of August, we were surprised at how quiet the area was and the owner of the hotel seemed surprised to see us, explaining that they weren’t open for coffees at the moment. I asked if she could recommend somewhere close by and I think she took pity on us and invited us in, with a promise of ‘something to drink’. I am so pleased that she did, because we found a lovely dog friendly hotel that we will definitely visit again. We sat in the garden and enjoyed a wonderful cream tea, looking at the beautiful gardens and watching hotel residents enjoying the outside heated pool.

It was now time to check-in to our home for the next week, so we carried on along the A39 to Kilve. The directions that we had been given were clear and we turned left in the village heading into the Quantock Hills. The road to the cottages is very narrow with a couple of blind bends, so great care should be taken. The Quantock Cottages are literally at the very end of the road, right up in the Quantock Hills. I had a really good feeling about what we were about to see and, goodness me, we were not disappointed.

Our hosts, Emma and Simon, were there to welcome us with their dogs, Star and Ice. They showed us how to get our keys and also how to get through the electric gates that were keeping their horses safe and sound in the estate. We found our parking space and were encouraged to see a signpost to the enclosed ‘dog zone’ – our son wanted to go there immediately (and I am sure the dogs would have said the same thing too), but we won the argument to go to our cottage first and unload the car.

The walk from our car to the cottage was like a journey into Narnia, which at night was emphasised by the little white lights on the side of the path. As we approached the cottage, we walked down steps into an opening which reminded me of a luxury spa – outside seating with towels beautifully presented with flowers on them (yes, real flowers) and what our son had been waiting for, the hot tub on another level of the garden.

Just outside the front door was a bath for the dogs with a shower. This was just one of the clear signs that the owners really did understand what being dog friendly meant. The garden is split into three areas, with each being dog secure and gates to split off each section. The lower section had the seating, the second level had the hot tub, and the third layer was higher up the hill with an enticing hammock and room to play with the dogs. It was from this level that we got our first glimpse of the incredible views over the Bristol Channel to Wales.

The dogs were quite literally in heaven, and we did not need to worry about them escaping – absolutely everything had been clearly thought-out to ensure that the dogs were safe and sound. We were already amazed at what we had seen, and we hadn’t even opened the front door to the cottage yet! Our son won the competition to do that and from the look on his face when he walked in, we knew that we were in for a treat. 

The cottages are the ultimate in ‘luxury’ accommodation, with welcome hampers for us and our dogs. A huge hamper for the humans and a gift box for the dogs, including a personalised lead hook with our dog’s names and a lovely wooden plaque with our names, which we would find out later were made by Simon in his ‘spare’ time. The barn has a large living room, furnished beautifully and with items of interest all around, giving snippets of information about Emma and Simon’s fascinating family history. Large throws are provided for the dogs should they want to sit on the chairs. 

 The kitchen is perfectly situated in the corner of the ground floor, with a massive American fridge – and more gifts were in the fridge, including thick cut bacon and a selection of local cheeses, ice cream and beef steaks. Wow, we were being spoilt and we liked it! 

A small flight of stairs from the main room takes you to the first floor. Bathroom on the left, with a huge shower, double bedroom on the right, where our son fell onto the sumptuous bed and then our room, which was quite simply magnificent. En-suite facilities in the main room, a huge bed, a bath in the bedroom under the main window and drinks to make us feel even more welcome, if that was at all possible.

 Both Lin and I were dumbfounded by the quality of the cottage and the fittings and also the thought that had gone into making the cottages dog friendly – truly dog friendly! 

After settling in a little, we went to meet Emma and Simon, their dogs and the horses. Within a few minutes we felt as though we had known them for years. We were shown around the other two cottages on the estate, and they were just as luxurious as ours and Emma proudly pointed out all of the things that they had done to ensure that dogs were catered for – these cottages are something else.

On our first evening in the cottage, we decided to take the dogs to the enclosed dog area which is a short walk from the cottage. The dog area is within the woodland and is very big and safely fenced. Charlie and Angel had great fun running free, playing ball, and checking out the many smells, no doubt from past doggy visitors and other Somerset wildlife. On the walk to the dog area, we noticed the signpost to the Quantock Hills, so the next day we decided we were going to investigate. We all slept well in the sumptuous beds and enjoyed the bacon, eggs, beans, and thick cut toast that had been left by our hosts for breakfast and then we set off for a day’s walk into the hills.

Within 15 minutes of walking out of the cottage door, we were in the heather and gorse of the Quantock Hills. The views were incredible, and we met a number of horse riders, all of them wanting to stop and talk. We had a lovely day of walking – I am quite sure that we could have spent all week finding new places to walk without even getting into the car, but we wanted to investigate Somerset to see what it had to offer to travellers with dogs. The Quantock Cottages are the epitome of luxury – and if you don’t have a dog with you when you visit, you will be the odd one out! They are ideal for celebrating a special occasion and the cottage that we stayed in, Quantock Hide, would make a perfect honeymoon venue. Nothing about Quantock accommodation is cheap, but we will be saving our pennies to make sure that we can go again next year – something to really look forward to.

Quantock Cottages, review by Steve Bennett and appears in DogFriendly magazine issue 69. For more information on the DogFriendly magazine visit   https://www.dogfriendly.co.uk/magazine