, The Times
Not to jinx it but if the recent weather has taught us anything, it’s that Britain in the sunshine is seldom bettered for a stress-free holiday. Being near a beach or lake to cool off in is great but go one better and book a place to stay with a swimming pool and you definitely won’t be sorry you’re not in the airport queue.
Here, then, is a mix of holiday cottages, farmhouses, country estates and contemporary villas, all with their own swimming pools and enough to do nearby to keep everyone happy. All have some availability in July, August or September (and prices given are for the same period) — but you need to act fast if you want to secure one. This isn’t a race to get your towel on the lounger — it’s a race to get the lounger, full stop.
This article contains affiliate links that can earn us revenue
1. The Lost Manor, Chulmleigh, Devon
The Lost Manor is in a former rectory
Chulmleigh is a historic market town in rural north Devon, northwest of Exeter, where on its outskirts is the Lost Manor, a charming former rectory. It benefits from some added creature comforts, including a gym, sauna, snooker room, yoga studio and tennis court, and a heated outdoor pool. Each of the six bedrooms is individually decorated, some with William Morris wallpapers, others with hand-stitched quilts. Guests will have to fight over who gets the four-poster bed. The Red Lion pub is a five-minute walk away and Chulmleigh Golf Course has tee times for non members (£12 for 18 holes; chulmleighgolf.co.uk).
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for 12 from £5,246 (premiercottages.co.uk)
2. Woodsell Farm, Stalisfield, Kent
Woodsell Farm is a 20-minute drive away from Faversham
ADELE ROBERTSON/COTTAGES.COM
In the middle of the Kent Downs area of outstanding natural beauty, less than an hour’s drive from the beaches at Folkestone and Whitstable, the bright and airy Woodsell Farm has several cottages sleeping between two and four, with a shared outdoor pool. Stalisfield village is just a few houses, a church and a pub (the Plough is a 15-minute walk) but the market town of Faversham is a 20-minute drive away and has its own lido, Faversham Pools (favershampools.com). The local Shepherd Neame brewery, said to be Britain’s oldest, offers regular tours (£25; shepherdneame.co.uk).
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £1,005 (Cottages.com)
3. The Old Rectory at Hartwell House and Spa, Hartwell, Buckinghamshire
The Old Rectory at Hartwell House and Spa has its own private outdoor pool
You may feel as though you are stepping into an EM Forster novel at this National Trust cottage. Set in two acres of gardens, it has views over the village church of St Mary’s, as well as the Georgian-Jacobean Hartwell House, a hotel also managed by the Trust. The cottage has its own private outdoor pool but guests can use the spa, tennis courts and gym at the manor house, as well as the AA-accredited restaurant. The Bugle Horn pub is a five-minute walk away.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for seven from £4,725 (nationaltrust.org.uk)
4. Flock Cottage, Pudleston, Herefordshire
This handsome red-brick cottage in a 50-acre estate on the edge of the Cotswolds and the Teme Valley is perfect for a quiet secluded break, although the splendid isolation might also suit gregarious party hosts. There is a lovely children’s play area in the shape of a wooden fort and a heated indoor pool with a timber-framed glass roof, shared with other houses on the estate. The outdoor hot tub will be much appreciated for soothing weary limbs after days of walking around the estate and beyond. The National Trust’s Berrington Hall, with gardens by Capability Brown, is a 20-minute drive away.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for eight from £4,126 (luxurycottages.com), with good availability in August and September.
5. Walled Garden, Dyrham Park, South Gloucestershire
Walled Garden was once part of the neighbouring Dyrham Park estate
THE WALLED GARDEN/UNIQUE HOMESTAYS
Hiding behind the modest name of this holiday house is indeed a walled garden, with an orchard of pear and fig trees, a delightful natural swimming pool and a tennis court. The garden was once part of the neighbouring Dyrham Park estate, a baroque country house and deer park now run by the National Trust, but the real attraction here lies in losing yourself among the period features of the two-bedroom cottage and its grounds. The interior is all chic whites, with a modern kitchen and pantry, and beyond the garden walls is a peaceful waterway (with rowing boat) and quietly tumbling waterfall. Bath is a ten-minute drive if you can tear yourself away from the romantic setting.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £2,495 (uniquehomestays.com)
6. Elizabethan Manor, Pulborough, West Sussex
Elizabethan Manor has seven bedrooms and is grade II listed
Dating back to the late medieval period but significantly modified in Tudor times, this seven-bedroom manor house certainly deserves its grade II listing: its stone walls and exposed oak beams complement the inglenook fireplace and mullioned windows on the ground floor. Everything has been sympathetically upgraded to match the standards of modern living, from the Aga in the kitchen to the magnificent copper bathtub in the master bedroom and the outdoor heated pool. Goodwood racecourse is a 30-minute drive away andGlyndebourne 45 minutes, depending on your preferred soundtrack.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £6,495 (oliverstravel.com)
7. The Old Stable, Crynant, West Glamorgan
The Old Stable has a heated indoor pool
This three-bedroom farmhouse is a good choice for active families, as the views across the Dulais valley and the summit of March Hywel in the distance would suggest. There are mountain bike trails for all abilities at Afan Forest Park, a 40-minute drive away, while the sandy beach at Aberavon is 25 minutes’ drive. Small children will be kept busy with the little play park on site, while everyone will be happy with the magnificent heated indoor pool. There is a hot tub and sauna too, shared with one other property.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for five from £1,275 (holidaycottages.co.uk)
8. Equinox, Dorchester, Dorset
Modern and stylish, the three-bedroom Equinox is part of Silverlake, a new private development of holiday homes, all of which sit in landscaped grounds around a small lake. This house has a private deck at the water’s edge, plus shared use of a heated infinity pool with sauna and spa facilities. There is even a little sandy beach front near the pool. Decor is clean and minimal but not spartan: there is a wood-burner in the living room and soft, squishy sofas all round. Lulworth Cove and the Jurassic Coast are a 25-minute drive away for fossil hunting and beach frolicking.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for five from £1,740 (ruralretreats.co.uk)
9. Higher Menadew Farm Cottages, St Austell, Cornwall
Precious childhood memories often involve time spent with animals, and a farm stay can be something of a rite of passage. There are ducks and hens to feed at Higher Menadew, which has seven cottages on site, sleeping between two and six. All have use of the heated indoor pool and games room, and there is an outdoor play area with a trampoline and a nest swing. It’s fair to say young children are very well catered for; parents may prefer the beach, which is only 20 minutes’ drive away at Charlestown, near St Austell.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £725 (farmstay.co.uk)
10. Kington Grange, Claverdon, Warwickshire
Kington Grange has a swimming lake as well as a hot tub
If wilder swimming appeals, without the faff of Dryrobes or wetsuits or simply being caught out in the buff, consider the delightful swimming lake at this grand seven-bedroom country house, parts of which date to the 16th century. The garden room looks over the expansive natural pool, as well as a grass tennis court. There is a hot tub too, in case you overexert yourself. Flagstones and exposed oak beams contrast with the contemporary decor inside, lending the house a lived-in charm, perfect for large groups. Bedrooms are named after Shakespearean characters, and Stratford-upon-Avon is nearby for visiting Bard-related sites.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for 16 from £7,050 (boltholeretreats.co.uk)
11. Redmere Hall, Bishopstrow, Warminster, Wiltshire
As the gentry found out to their peril, very large homes can be ruinously expensive. Conversely, renting one and filling it with friends and family can be very good value. Round up the troops for this rambling collection of red-brick buildings, sleeping up to 22, with an elegant outdoor pool surrounded by cool loungers. Formerly a Victorian stable complex, they have been converted into very comfortable accommodation, set around a courtyard and pool. If you like the modish decor (plaster pink walls, textured monochrome fabrics, framed photo of cacti, chunky antiques) then Frome, with its independent boutiques and flea market, is 25 minutes away for sourcing more of the same.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for 22 from £9,250 (uniquehomestays.com)
