The Snug at Caphays: peaceful country retreat

The Snug is a cosy, self-contained retreat down a no through lane, set in beautiful fields with just two neighbours. It's a perfect spot from which to explore the countryside, with the coast 45 minutes away, Sherborne and its history just 10 minutes and country pubs even closer. The Snug provides your own entrance, ensuite and mini-kitchen with a double bed and sofa bed, perfect for children. We provide a breakfast hamper for your first morning, with homemade & locally sourced ingredients. The Snug is your own personal cosy spot in a rural idyll. It is small but perfectly formed, with a small en-suite and a mini-kitchen (including a small fridge, hob, toaster and kettle with all the essentials for preparing a simple supper or decadent breakfast). It has been completely refurbished and we have tried to add a personal touch with some recycled and home-crafted elements. We hope you will love the space inside as much as we are sure you will love the space outside! There is a double bed and a sofa bed for lounging. The sofa bed is best suited to children or a close friend, since there is no division between the bed and sofa. Please let us know if you need the sofa bed as well as the bed for two guests, as there is an additional charge for the sofa bed (due to laundry). If you’re bringing an infant, you will need to bring your own travel cot please. Outside, you'll find your own seating area in summer, and plenty of parking. You are welcome to explore our garden and meet the chickens and cats. We love having guests to stay. We aim to be a support to making sure you have the best time possible, without any intrusion. We live in the house, to which The Snug is attached. Please communicate with us as early as possible about arrival and departure, so that we can make sure we leave things ready for you. We may well be out and leave you a key. We have a welcome book with local recommendations, walks and other things to help you find your way around, but we are always on the end of the phone if not next door! Your first breakfast with us is included and we would love to add a further breakfast hamper to your stay, with homemade and locally sourced ingredients - just let us know after booking. Please be sure to use the directions provided, as the postcode doesn't bring you right to the house. We are a secret that is hard to find! This is a spectacular place to live. There is so much to see and do but also so much space in which to do nothing at all! With a footpath literally on our doorstep, there are fantastic walks to be had here and locally. We have created a walking guide for walks from the doorstep with varied distances that you can find in The Snug. We have local pubs within a few minutes drive, or an hour or so walk, and a fantastic range of historical, cultural and leisure facilities, as well as a huge range of restaurants in Sherborne ten minutes away. Sturminster Newton, with it's historic mill, is also 15 minutes away. Historic Dorchester and Shaftesbury are both half an hour away, with even more choice, and a huge range of things to see. Even more locally, you can find Oxfords Bakery on an hour long loop walk from The Snug (or less than 5 minutes drive!) and you can buy Dorset Blue Vinney from it's home at Woodbridge Farm just 5 minutes away. For nature lovers, we are ten minutes from both Alners Gorse, a 35 acre reserve owned by butterfly conservationists, and Lydlinch Common, an exceptional haven for a number of rare butterflies as well as a nightingale hotspot. It would be rare for beady-eyed visitors to The Snug not to see a deer or three or to hear an owl overnight. We have also enjoyed fox cubs, hares and badgers on our evening walks in summer. Local attractions include a golf course at Folke (5 minutes drive), Henley Hillbillies for quad biking, The Toy Barn in Sherborne for children and a summer maize maze, the Cerne Abbas giant, Sherborne Castles and Gardens, Sherborne Abbey and Sturminster Mill. A walk on Okeford, Hambledon or Hod Hill is also not to be missed. For National Trust properties, Stourhead House and Gardens and Montecute House are half an hour away, and Kingston Lacy House and Gardens is a short while longer. The hill fort at Badbury Rings also offers fabulous views and history. We are also a great spot from which to visit events such as the Great Dorset Steam Fair, Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival, Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show or Larmer Tree Festival. We are about 45 minutes from lots of spots along the Jurassic Coast (Weymouth, Lulworth and Durdle Door or West Bay, for example). Within an hour are lots of other options too: Longleat, Monkey World, The Tank Museum, Corfe Castle, Abbotsbury Swannery, Weymouth Sea Life Centre, Dorset Adventure Park, Wookey Hole, Splashdown Water Park. With all this to do, it's also worth remembering that the best times may well be had wandering the paths down our no through lane, sitting out in your courtyard space in the evening, or watching the sun go down. If we can help with any of the above, please just let us know. You won't meet a bigger fan of Dorset than us! We have made a guide containing lots of local walks. Cycling is also a great option from our place. Unless you really are looking to get away from it all, you will need a car to get around. That said, there is a station in Sherborne, less than ten minutes away, from which either we or taxis could collect you, should you want to be really stuck in your country retreat!