Shaggy Sheep
Herefordshire, United Kingdom
Drover's Rest
- Safari tent for 4 from £50 per night (read our low price promise)
- 1 double room, 1 twin room
Suitable for children of all ages
Pets welcome
Children and pets are very welcome
Overview
Through a tunnel of trees and past the pretty stone farmhouse, you’ll find your meadow-dwelling safari tents - African in looks, but Welsh in spirit. Far enough away from each other to be private (Flock Off and The Black Sheep even more so – as the shy and retiring names suggest!), but neighbourly enough that you can handily borrow a box of matches for the campfire.
Your first tell-tale sign of the comfort and luxury is the chimney of a log burner popping out of the top of each tent and the rattan sofa with huge cushions on the porch. Beyond the farmhouse-worthy kitchen and living area padded out with sheepskins and cushions, there are two bedrooms; a twin and a double each with cast iron beds, welsh blankets and black sheepskin rugs. Unzip a flap in the twin room wall to go out onto the deck where you can sit at a bistro table and enjoy the sun all day long. All tents have their own hot monsoon shower and flushing loo in a fully-heated, no-expense-spared stable block, just a couple of minutes’ walk from the tents and torches are provided for night time trips.
The Hayloft barn is yours to share with other glampers and has WiFi, a café, a cocktail bar and its own farm shop. There’s also a lounge with bean bags and movie screenings and a dining area for group suppers. Pizzas, curries and BBQs are served up on different days of the week but if you’re keen to master the art of camp cookery yourself, there’s a BBQ outside each tent and a heavy-duty pot for cooking chillies and stews.
Please note there is a £500 damage deposit payable for all group bookings. This does not go through Canopy & Stars.
Essentials
The important stuff
- Check in: 15.30
- Check out: 10.00
- You are welcome to arrive a little earlier than the check in time of 15.30 and enjoy meeting the animals or hang out in the communal barn while you wait.
- Bring wellies, torches, old clothes and waterproofs
- Please note there is a £500 damage deposit for all group bookings. This does not go through Canopy & Stars and will be arranged with the owner after booking.
- Please note that the owners do not like taking adult groups during any school holidays as all the onsite activities are geared towards families
- For midweek breaks outside the season the owners are happy to discuss discounts
- There is a 10% discount on all whole site bookings! Call 0117 204 7830 to book & claim your discount.
- Sleeping arrangements
- 1 double room, 1 twin room
Extra space available
Space for 2 pets from £20 per pet per stay - will come into contact with owners' dog
Space for 1 baby no charge.
Kids & Pets
Children and pets are very welcome
Cooking
- Gas stove
- BBQ
- Fridge
Washing
- Hot shower and flushing loos in the Stable Block
Heating, lighting & bedding
- Wood burner
- Electric lighting and plug points
- Bed linen and towels are provided
Entertainment
- Cards, board games, books, café, cocktail bar, WiFi, Sky TV in the communal barn called the Hayloft
Getting there
Llanycoed Farm, Nr Hay-on-wye, Dorstone, Hereford, HR36AG
Entrance to the courtyard: ///flown.widely.yield
By train:
The nearest train stations are Hereford (40 min) and Abergavenney (1 hr) - picks ups can be arranged with owners (no charge if they are going that way, charge just for petrol if they make a special trip)
By bus:
The nearest bus station is Hay-on-Wye, a 10 minute drive away. Walking would take an hour due to hills but picks ups can be arranged with owners (no charge if they are going that way, charge just for petrol if they make a special trip)
By car:
Parking is 50 m from tents. There is parking for one car per tent. Please call Kesri if you wish to enquire about the possibility of parking more vehicles.
Whole site bookings can bring up to 6 cars.
Using Sat Nav HR36AG, it will take you to Meardy Farm with this on your left take the next right down a no through road
From Abergavenny, take the A465 to Pontrilas. In the village turn left onto the B4347 signed to Peterchurch and Dorstone. Turn left onto the B4348 to Dorstone. Here the road skirts the village and 200 yards after the church on your left is a junction where the main road curves to the right. Take the little road that goes straight on at this junction, sign posted to Mynydd brith (2nd left). Wind up and down this road for a couple of miles at the end, sign posted to Michaelchurch, and there is a definite fork in the road, take the RIGHT hand fork towards Archenfield. The road continues to climb until it flattens out. Continue on the flat for a few hundred yards and just after the entrance to the Maerdy Farm on your left the road after 20 yards there is a right hand turn through open woodland. Take this "No Through Road" turning, down to Drovers Rest (Llaycoed Farm)
From Hay on Wye, take the B4348 (Ross/Hardwicke road). After you leave Hay on Wye on the B4348 take the third turning right, to Archenfield, just after Hawkswood Farm. Follow this lane for about 1 mile before turning sharply left up a steep hill, towards Dorstone. Just as you approach the brow of the hill take the first "no through road" to the left, un-fenced and through a wood. About ½ mile down to the end of the road is Drovers Rest at Llanycoed Farm
Food & Drink
At Drover's Rest:
All farm's own and local produce
Welcome basket on arrival
There's a cafe in the Hayloft which serves tea, coffee and cake
Breakfast is served every day. Hampers can be delivered to your door or served in the Chill Out barn, these are £10 per person, children under 8 years are half price, under 2s go free!
Dinner is served three nights a week: Friday - Pizza night, Saturday - Curry night, Wednesday - BBQ night. Includes lush dessert, £15 per person. Children under 8 years are half price. Under 2s go free!
All groups must order the meal package for the weekend at £50 per person. Includes 2 breakfasts and 2 dinners (or you can mix and match to include high tea or lunch). Please contact Kesri after booking to arrange.
The bar is licensed until 11.30pm for music and bar activities.
Local shops:
There's a farm shop in the Hayloft barn
There's a shop in Hay-on-Wye, 3 miles away
You can do your shop online before you arrive and the owners will unpack for you
Pubs & Restaurants
Booths Cafe - Hay-on-Wye - Gorgeous food put together with unexpected combinations. They also have a cinema in Hay where you can combine a film & dinner
River Cafe - Glasbury, 7 miles - Lovely Italian food & wine. Fresh produce. Delicious!
The Griffin- towards Brecon in Felin Fach, 14 miles - For special occasions. Bit more pricey but worth it. Homegrown produce too.
The Stagg - Michelin star and not fussy gorgeous food - for celebrations
The Old Electric - Hay-on-wye, 3 miles - Vegan lunches
The Bridge Inn - Michael Church Escley, 7 miles - Great fusion of English and Colombian food
Activities
At Drover's Rest:
Check out the board for this week's activity including farm walks, feeding the animals, building dens, playing football, foraging, guided outdoor walks in the Brecon Beacons
There are lots of seasonal activities including Valentines fun, Easter egg hunts and toasted hot cross buns, camp fires, Halloween fun, farm activities, trailer rides and lots of special activities during the school holidays.
For dinners booked during stays at Easter, the Hay festival and in July/August, you will receive a free drumming evening or a bushcraft/foraging activity.
For the month of August the owners are trialing a supercharged drovers experience, with additional activities and food options.
Places to visit:
Hay-on-wye is 3 miles away & is known for its book festival held once a year for 10 days in May. If you have not been its a must. The festival has meant that the town has been able to sustain itself and is one of the best villages in Wales for thriving shops, restaurants & bars
Other places to visit include Hereford, Cardiff, Gower coast, Swansea, Croft Castle
There is a small breedsfarm in Kington
Thursday Farmers market in Hay on wye
Outdoor & Active:
Farm activities can be organised for your group, such as campfires with 'smores, farm walks or feeding the animals.
Fun local activities can be organised with local partners such as:
- belly dancing
- horse riding in the Brecon Beacons
- canoeing for beginners on the river Wye
- climbing and zip wires
- paintballing
- drumming
- basket weaving
- yoga, pilates or boot camp
- arrange for bikes to be dropped off and picked up straight from Drover's Rest
Meet your hosts
Meet Kesri & Paul:
"We moved from corporate life working for Unilever & BAA as directors about four years ago. We wanted to balance our live and spend more time with the kids doing what we love and hosting and entertaining like minded people. Letting them enjoy our gorgeous farm and givingn them time to relax, unplug and reconnect with the more important things in life which we often forgot back when we were busy trying to cope with the hectic life we were leading!"
Wildlife & Environment:
The farm was a place where Drovers driving their sheep used to stop and rest. Signs of life during the bronze ages are shown with bronze burial sites scattered around and Kesri and Paul's living room was once a church!
There are 40 acres of farm, woodland, meadows and orchards. Llanycoed is a working farm and also backs onto a 150 acre common called Little Mountain where the animals have grazing rights - it's also great for walking and wildlife spotting. There's a huge badger sett nearby and you'll often see badgers at night. There's lots of bird life on the farm due to the wild life corridors around the fields, so you're bound to wake up with birdsong in your ear. The bat boxes encourage bats to breed and you'll hear the hoots of the resident owl. Kesri and Paul farm organically so no artificial pesticides or fertilizers. The animals have the best life possible. Food is grown the proper way and cars are restricted to one per unit.
Our guests say...
Kesri and Paul have done such a good job of creating this family friendly haven, that there is almost no need to venture off site – everything you need is right there; a menagerie of animals to see and pet (including alpacas!) loads of space for kids to run around and play games (including football, games instigated by Kes and Paul’s son!) an honesty bar for the grownups, and film nights in the converted barn! The safari tents are really cosy, fully equipped with everything you’d need to get an awesome night's sleep then rustle up a storm on the outside gas stove, but relax in the mornings and let Kesri deliver you her special healthy breakfast, it’s delicious (tortilla, yum!). Haye on Wye is just down the road and we loved visiting Boothes Book Shop, we spent 3 hours drinking coffee and perusing 3 floors of books!
06/07/2015Nina, Canopy & Stars
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Booking Terms
Canopy & Stars low price promise
Book with us in confidence knowing you won’t find that place cheaper elsewhere. All of the prices we display are set and matched by our Owners. (In this world of foreign currency, we do have to say 'subject to exchange rates' for some of our European places.)
What does ‘from price’ mean?
Our ‘from price’ is based on a four night stay in low season and designed to help you to compare different prices across our collection. Some of our Owners vary their nightly rates and check in days throughout the year, so it may differ from the rate quoted below the calendar. It is quite common (although by no means universal) for places to charge a little more in peak season or for shorter stays, to cover changeover costs. Consider booking longer stays during the cooler months if you’re looking for the lowest nightly rates.
Agency Terms & Conditions
Except where otherwise specified, we Sawday’s Canopy & Stars Ltd Company No 09088366 of Merchants House, Wapping Road, Bristol, BS1 4RW act only as an Agent in respect of all bookings we take and/or make on your behalf. Sawday’s Canopy & Stars is part of the Alastair Sawday’s Group of Companies. We accept no liability in relation to any contract you enter into or for any services or arrangements you purchase (“Booking(s)”) or for the acts or omissions of any supplier(s) or other person(s) or party(ies) connected with any Booking. For all Bookings, your contract will be with the supplier of the Booking in question, and in most cases this will be the owner of the property you’ll be staying at (“Owner(s)”). When making your Booking we will arrange for you to enter into a contract with the Owner of the Booking. Your Booking with us is subject to these Agency Terms & Conditions and any specific booking conditions of the relevant Owner(s) you contract with. The Owner’s booking conditions may limit and/or exclude the Owner’s liability to you.
You may decide to make more than one Booking with us at the same time. The price charged in total for more than one Booking will always equal the prices charged separately for each individual Booking. All Bookings are available to be purchased separately at the same price as they are when more than one Booking is made. This means that any multiple Bookings do not constitute a package as defined in the Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992.
By making a booking, you agree that:-
- you have read these Agency Terms & Conditions and agree to be bound by them;
- you consent to our use of your information in accordance with our Privacy Policy;
and
- you are over 18 years of age and where there may be age restrictions in place, you declare that you and all members of your party are of the appropriate age.
The Canopy & Stars online booking system enables Guests to make Bookings 24 hours a day. A Booking is confirmed on receipt of a 25% non-refundable deposit for all Bookings with check in dates of more than 10 weeks away. For all Bookings that have a check in date of less than 10 weeks before check in, payment for the Booking will be required in full and the entire Booking will be non-refundable. The Canopy & Stars telephone booking line is open Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm. When using the online enquiry form, for those Properties without online booking, please allow 24 working hours for us to contact you by telephone to confirm the Booking. If we are unable to reach you by phone we will attempt to contact you by email. We will contact you during Canopy & Stars working hours (Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm). Online or email enquiries will be dealt with in the order they are received, but please be aware that we cannot guarantee reservation of your selected dates until the receipt of suitable payment. Therefore, if possible, we do recommend that you book on the Canopy & Stars website using the online booking system.
1. Booking and payments
1.1 In order to confirm your chosen Booking, you must pay a non-refundable deposit as required by the Owner of the Booking in question (or full payment if booking within 10 weeks of the date of your check-in).
1.2 Your Booking is confirmed and a contract between you and the Owner will exist when we receive payment of the deposit and send you a booking confirmation on the Owner’s behalf. This booking confirmation will normally be sent out within 24 hours in the case of email and seven working days in the case of post, and will contain the details of your Booking and of payments made and due. If you have not received your booking confirmation within the specified time, please notify us as soon as possible by email (bookings@canopyandstars.co.uk). Please check your confirmation carefully and report any incorrect or incomplete information to us immediately. As we act only as booking Agent, we have no responsibility for any errors in any documentation except where an error is made by us.
1.3 Where a deposit has been paid, full balance payment will be due 10 weeks in advance of your check in date and a reminder will be sent to you two weeks prior to this date, where applicable, by email. We automatically take the balance payment using the same card as used to make the deposit payment. It is your reponsibility to advise us if we should use a different card and to contact us by telephone (0117 204 7830) to arrange for alternative payment method. If the balance payment does not successfully go through as there is a problem with your card, such as it expiring, then we will contact you to try and take alternative payment. If we have been unable to take payment after two weeks of the balance due date, then with regret, we will notify the Owner who may cancel your Booking.
1.4 Except where otherwise advised or stated in the booking conditions of the Owner concerned, all monies you pay to us for a Booking will be held on behalf of the Owner(s) concerned.
1.5 Credit Card payments are processed via Alastair Sawday’s Publishing Co. Ltd who provide merchants services facilities to Sawday’s Canopy & Stars Ltd.
2. Cancellation and Amendment by You
2.1 Any cancellation or amendment request must be sent to us by email (bookings@canopyandstars.co.uk) and will be considered and responded to within one working day of receipt. You are also advised to confirm all changes to our Customer Services Department by calling 0117 204 7830. Please ensure that you have received written confirmation of any changes to your Booking prior to travel. Whilst we will always try to help, we cannot guarantee that such requests will be met.
2.2 Amendments and cancellations can only be accepted in accordance with the booking conditions of the Owner of your Arrangements. The Owner may charge the cancellation or amendment charges shown in their booking conditions (which may be as much as 100% of the cost of the Arrangements and will normally increase closer to the date of departure). The Owner may charge cancellation or amendment charges in accordance with its own booking conditions, however for the sake of convenience only, we have outlined the Owner’s charges at clause 2.3 and 2.4 below. Please note that these are the Owner’s own cancellation and amendments charges, not Canopy & Stars’, and therefore the Owner may vary their charges as they wish, without notice to us. The correct charges will be notified to you at the time of your cancellation or amendments.
2.3 Owner’s General Cancellation Charges:
2.3.1 Cancellation by you at any time will result in your deposit being forfeited, as all deposits are non-refundable.
2.3.2 All monies paid for a holiday (deposit and balance) are non-refundable within 10 weeks before check in date.
2.3.3 Cancellation of any holiday after it has been paid in full and at a date 10 weeks or more in advance of your check in date, will result in forfeiture of your deposit (or an amount equivalent where one was not paid as the holiday was paid in full) and the balance being returned to you.
2.3.4 Cancellation insurance is available but will be a third party arrangement and not involve Canopy & Stars or the Owner in any way.
2.4 Owner’s General Amendment Charges:
2.4.1 Alterations to your Booking can only be made more than 10 weeks prior to the check in date, after which time alterations will be treated as cancellation. All alterations are subject to availability and may incur a £30 adminstration fee.
2.4.2 Differences in the total amount payable resulting from alterations will be refunded to you in the case of a decrease in price and paid by you in the case of increases in price.
Special note: Generally Owners will charge the above cancellation and amendment charges, however we must stress that these are a guide only and charges may differ from those shown here depending on the Owner. The exact charges will be notified to you by the Owner at the time of cancellation and/or can be found in the Owner’s own booking conditions which are available from the Owner on request.
3. Changes and Cancellations by the Owner
We will inform you as soon as reasonably possible if the Owner needs to make a significant change to your confirmed Arrangements or to cancel them. We will also liaise between you and the Owner in relation to any alternative Booking offered by the Owner but we will have no further liability to you.
4. Complaints
Because the contract for your Booking is between you and the Owner, any queries or concerns should be addressed to them. In the event that you have any complaint about your stay, please notify the Owner as soon as possible. If you don’t follow this procedure there will be less opportunity for the Owner to investigate and resolve your complaint and so make your stay as enjoyable as possible. Delays may also mean that amount of compensation you may be entitled to may be reduced. Whether or not your complaint is dealt with satisfactorily, please also contact us as we appreciate all feedback. It’s important to us and the Owner to know that you’ve enjoyed your stay or if anything could have been improved.
5. Pricing
Canopy & Stars reserve the right to amend advertised prices at any time on behalf of the Owner. We also reserve the right to correct errors in both advertised and confirmed prices.Special note: changes and errors sometimes occur.
6. Information & Accuracy
The information and prices shown on this website are varied from time to time and may change between the time you first view a property and make a Booking. You should check that all the details are as you expect prior to making a Booking. It is always possible that, despite our best efforts, some of the properties (including the features and extras available) may be incorrectly described and/or priced. If we discover this is the case after you have made a Booking, we reserve the right to contact you with details of the correct information and/or pricing and will give you the option to:
(1) proceed with the Booking based on the correct information and/or pricing, which may require the payment of an additional amount by you;
OR
(2) subject to availability, change your booking dates to dates when the pricing can be honoured ad so no additional charge to you. In the event that a lower price can be offered for alternative dates then the difference would be refunded;
OR
(3) cancel the Booking. If we do not receive your instructions within 5 days of contacting you, we reserve the right to cancel your Booking without liability to you.
7. Our Responsibility for your Booking
Your contract is with the Owner and its booking conditions apply. As Agent, we accept no responsibility for the actual provision of the Booking. Our responsibilities are limited to making the Booking in accordance with your instructions and acting properly in accordance with our legal duties as an Agent. We accept no responsibility for any information about the Booking that we pass on to you in good faith. However, in the event that we are found liable to you on any basis whatsoever, our maximum liability to you is limited to twice the cost of your Booking (or the appropriate proportion of this if not everyone on the Booking is affected). We do not exclude or limit any liability for death or personal injury that arises as a result of our negligence or that of any of our employees whilst acting in the course of their employment.
8. Pets
Not all properties accept pets. If you wish to take your pet on holiday, please advise us before booking and we can check whether pets are accepted at the property. You must obtain the prior consent of the Owner before taking any pets to the property. A nightly charge may be made by the Owner for each pet and additional terms may apply.
9. VAT
Many of the Owners of properties in the Canopy & Stars portfolio are not registered for VAT in which case no tax is payable. Where VAT is payable, the tax is included in the advertised holiday rental price.
10. Visa, passport and health requirements.
Unless you tell us otherwise, we assume that all members of your party are British citizens who hold or will hold full British passports valid for the entire duration of the Arrangements you chose to purchase. Information on visa, passport and health requirements, where given and applicable, is so given on this basis. Requirements may change and you are therefore strongly recommended to check the up to date position with the Owner of the Booking, Passport Office, appropriate embassy or consulate or your doctor as applicable in good time before the commencement of your holiday.
11. Insurance
You are strongly recommended to take out personal travel insurance for all members of your party. It is your responsibility to ensure that the insurance you purchase is adequate and appropriate for your particular needs. Please read your policy details and take them with you on holiday.
12. Special requests
If you have any special requests (for example dietary requirements, cots or room location), please let us know at the time of booking. We will pass on all such requests to the Owner, but unfortunately, we can't guarantee that they will be met and we will have no liability to you if they are not.
13. Group Bookings
Not all Owners accept Bookings for a single sex group (for example, a stag or hen party). Guests wanting to make such a Booking should check with us beforehand to enable us to check whether the Owner is prepared to accept the Booking. We will then advise you accordingly. In event that an Owner does not accept this type of Booking then it is with regret, that the Booking may be cancelled and cancellation fees may apply. It is the Guest’s responsibility to enquire with Canopy & Stars and/or check on our website beforehand to make sure that this type of booking is permitted.
14. Maximum Numbers
Please note that except by prior arrangement confirmed in writing, only the number of persons specified on a booking confirmation may occupy a property. Most owners reserve the right to refuse admittance or revoke a booking if this condition is not observed and you are unlikely to receive any refund.
15. Your Responsibilities
Please note that you have a contract with the Owner of the property. As such you are under a responsibility to behave in a proper, appropriate and legal manner whilst staying at the property with due respect to the Owner, the Property and other guests and their property. You are responsible for informing the Owner of any losses or damage to the property as soon as possible. Please note that you will be liable to pay the Owner for any losses or damage to the property caused by you or a member of your party (except reasonable wear and tear). Some Owners will also require damage deposits. You must also leave the property by the check-out time specified on your booking. If any guest behaves inappropriately or improperly (of which the Owner will be the final judge on their Property), or illegally, the Owner reserves the right to ask the guest and their party (at their discretion) to leave the Property before the end of the holiday period and/or refuse any future bookings from you. Any refund for so doing will be at the entire discretion of the Owner. In addition, the Owner reserves the right to sue the guest for any loss, damage or injury caused to the Owner, the Property or to other guests and/or their property. As agent, we will have no liability to you in these circumstances.
16. Governing Law and Jurisdiction
These terms and conditions have been drafted in accordance with and are governed by English law and the courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction in relation to any and all disputes arising out of these Agency Terms & Conditions.
17. Discrepancies
In case of a discrepancy between these Agency Terms & Conditions and any other Canopy & Stars literature, these Agency Terms & Conditions shall prevail.
18. Validity clause
In the event that a court finds that a condition in these Agency Terms & Conditions is illegal or void, the illegal or void provision will be severed from the remainder of the Agency Terms & Conditions, which will continue to be valid and have full force and effect.
Kesri and Paul have done such a good job of creating this family friendly haven, that there is almost no need to venture off site – everything you need is right there; a menagerie of animals to see and pet (including alpacas!) loads of space for kids to run around and play games (including football, games instigated by Kes and Paul’s son!) an honesty bar for the grownups, and film nights in the converted barn! The safari tents are really cosy, fully equipped with everything you’d need to get an awesome night's sleep then rustle up a storm on the outside gas stove, but relax in the mornings and let Kesri deliver you her special healthy breakfast, it’s delicious (tortilla, yum!). Haye on Wye is just down the road and we loved visiting Boothes Book Shop, we spent 3 hours drinking coffee and perusing 3 floors of books!
06/07/2015