We know the better weather is coming, when we hear that one of our favourite glamping locations, Somerset Yurts, have been busy setting up their yurt field. Helen and I were lucky enough to experience these incredible yurts last Summer with our families,  so we’ve both shared our insights into a family stay below. However, more importantly, today we’re really excited to have Emma Cavill, from Somerset Yurts, to share an update on what’s been happening in ‘yurtville’.

A few years ago not many people had heard of glamping, let alone a yurt!

Emma Cavill

As we head into our fifth season at Somerset Yurts, we are looking forward to what the year ahead will bring. One thing is for sure, we will continue to welcome lovely families looking for an experimential holiday, where they can unwind from the daily stresses of work, school, hectic lives etc. and get back to nature in the countryside.

When we opened we knew we had a great spot, and fabulous yurts, but we were overwhelmed by how much our guests seemed to be almost surprised by how relaxing it is here. The number of times we have heard mums and dads amazement that their kids are relishing the simple acts of running around in the yurt meadow, or jumping on the straw bales in the barn – and not insisting on playing on their iPads! We think it’s really important for kids to be kids – which they can really be here. We have also been really pleased with how much everyone loves the farm tour – it’s been so popular we now schedule in a tour every Saturday and Wednesday, so that everyone gets a chance to come and see the cows being milked, and the calves being fed. Connecting children with where food comes from is a big bonus of having the yurts located on our working dairy farm.

Somerset Yurts - take a farm tour and enjoy the home from home facilities

The trend for ‘glamping’ seems to be ever increasing – especially with groups this year. A few years ago not many people had heard of glamping, let alone a yurt! Now most people have at least heard of the various kinds of glamping experiences, and don’t look perplexed when we describe what we do!

Somerset Yurts - the perfect glamp

We are almost fully booked for weekends already, and lots of these are groups, from Hen parties looking for a non cliched Hen do experience, groups of siblings with their children looking for a great space to all come together, to 30th, 40th, 50th and even 60th birthday celebrations! This is a trend we didn’t expect when we opened, but is definitely on the increase. The yurts are perfect for this type of gathering as it’s very informal and relaxed, with excellent shared facilities in our dutch barn – a fully equipped kitchen, large dining area, and power showers!

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Putting in the communal campfire area has also been hugely popular. We did experiment with offering guests a personal fire pit, but to be honest we get so much great feedback from everyone on the communal campfire that we scrapped it! Our guests really enjoy getting together in the evening – the men typically building a big fire, and then all the kids and mums join them for some marshmallow toasting. It’s been brilliant to see families and couple that have never met before, all getting to know each other around the campfire (the kids have already got to know each other in the straw bales usually!!).

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Things we’d like to introduce in the future are more nature themed activities for families to do while staying with us. We’re looking into purchasing a couple of Batometers, as we get rare Lesser Horseshoe bats hunting at dusk. It’s amazing to watch them darting around in the fading evening light, and to hear their sonar clicks really adds to the experience. We’re also looking at installing some feeding stations for birds, and a bug hotel! Simple things like nature treasure hunts, and star gazing guides are also on the to do list!

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Find out how Helen and Penny’s families got along, rain and shine

Helen says:

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Somerset Yurts was a little weekend of heaven in the English countryside. We were there for a rainy weekend, but honestly, we hardly noticed that the weather was less than perfect. And why would you? When you have such a wonderful setup inside your yurt, it’s very easy to just stay put. Think cosy Sunday afternoon on the sofa with the family – minus the TV, but plus a log fire – and you’ve got all you need for family bliss.

My absolute favourite part of the yurt was the wood-burning stove. It was chilly when we arrived, late on a Friday evening, but within minutes we were roasting in there, and laid in our beds, the four of us together, watching the stars through our open door, and snuggling up. We borrowed games from the communal kitchen and had a Monopoly-off by the fire; and when we woke up chilly one morning, I quickly rekindled the embers and hopped back into bed to snooze until the yurt had warmed up enough to get up. It was the ultimate in lazy country bliss.

Of course, when we did manage to get outdoors the firepit was perfect for toasting marshmallows, and who cares about a little mud when there’s a proper indoor power shower on the other side of the field? Just remember to take your wellies with you 😉

Read Helen’s full post here

Penny says:

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As Emma says, we just couldn’t believe how much our weekend relaxed and transformed us. It was amazing to see the kids jumping on hay bales and running around the field. Emma really has thought of everything, from high chairs, power showers and wind up radios, to deckchairs, bunting and Moroccan style lanterns. The yurts themselves were magical, we loved their cosy, stylish charm and the kids thought they were magical toadstools in a field – a fairytale dream come true for all.

See for yourself in the video or read the post here.

NEED TO KNOW

To book Somerset Yurts

You can hire a yurt, or a pair,  or even all four and have the field to yourselves – perfect for a special occasion.

Visit the site Tweet Facebook Instagram Pinterest

e: emma@somersetyurts.co.uk
t: 07811 350 176

Days out

Fyne Court – Gorgeous National Trust gardens and tea shop with a real focus on play for children.

Cheddar Gorge – Penny – ‘we decided the caves were incredible but indoors and it was far too nice to be in a dark cave, so we just paid a few pounds to walk along the gorge instead, worth it for the amazing views. Its a long but incredible circular walk so pack a picnic and supplies’

Helen – ‘We worked up a fabulous appetite for the best cheese sandwich we’d ever had at Poppy’s, where they also served us the biggest ‘ooh can’t decide can we have one scoop made of 2 flavours?‘ ice-cream the kids had ever seen.’

Burnham On Sea beach – Penny – ‘the tide was a long way out when we went but the kids enjoyed playing in the sand, chips and ice creams. Lyme Regis is under an hour away on the Dorset coast which I would definitely recommend from childhood memory.

Sheppy’s Cider – Helen ‘no trip to Somerset would be complete without local cider, so we took the museum and orchard tour of Sheppy’s, bringing home several varieties to accompany that evening’s barbecue.’

There are lots more ideas here 

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