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We set off for our cottage in the Cotswolds after Jon had finished work for the day. It was one of the closest sites to home – just 90 minutes away. It was only 25 minutes away from Cheltenham where Callum was at University – and as he had Reading Week, he would be joining us on Saturday. The roads were pretty clear and even spotted Jeremy Clarkson’s pub, The Farmers Dog, on the way.
HPB Buckland Court was one of the smallest HPB sites with just 12 cottages. As there were so few cottages, they get booked up quickly. I was lucky enough to spot a cancellation and booked it quick.
HPB Buckland Court was located very close to the upmarket Buckland Manor Hotel – bonus that it was sign-posted from the main road. The HPB site was another 200 yards up the road. The roads were narrow but two cars could easily pass. Nowhere near as narrow as the roads around Sibton Park.
The site was formerly outbuildings for Buckland Manor (before it became a hotel) and each cottage was named after its original use. Our cottage was The Haywain. The cottage next to the pond was the Mill House and the cutest cottage of them all, The Nest, was the former Ice House. All the buildings retained their Cotswold Charm and built using the traditional Cotswold Stone.
The Haywain (Cottage 4) was a two-bedroomed end-Terrace Cottage. There was a large open-plan living/dining/kitchen area with single over and large fridge/freezer.
The double bedroom was down three steps off the living area with a shower room next door. The twin bedroom upstairs was huge with two large wardrobes. A very large bathroom completed the top floor area.
The car park was right outside the front door. Very handy to unload/load if you could get the space right next to the cottage although if anyone was parked next to you AND Cottage 3 had parked in front of the garage, it was a little tight to get out. All in all, there was enough space for 12 cars to park on site – if families brought two cars, it would be a little tight and a battle for space. Two charging stations had been put installed next to the Club House.
In the summer, the outside garden space would be a great social space as the cottages were in an L shape overlooking the garden in the middle. With the nights drawing in, outside lights had been put up to add a little atmosphere to the outside space.
Site facilities were limited – there was a newly renovated Club Room but Jon was a little disappointed there was no pool/snooker room so he could thrash Callum a couple of times each evening!
The Club Room had a TV and seating that anyone could use, great social space if you knew others on site. A small fridge and freezer had supplies of milk and frozen ready-meals that you could buy (honesty system). Two large bookcases full of DVDs that could be borrowed and another couple of shelves with reading books and local guide books and map/walk books. There was a lot of flyers for local places of interest you could take along with the HPB Walking Maps that were in a binder and you could just take a copy of the map of interest.
Sally was the Site Manager and very friendly. She even phoned us Thursday evening when we hadn’t arrived to ensure we were still coming. We were about 30 minutes away and she said she would leave our cottage open with the keys inside and heating on! Sally organises a little soiree each Thursday evening for the residents – you bring your wine/beer/drinks and they provided glasses and nibbles. We missed this but they are usually well attended.
We were just about settled in and unpacked before The Traitors started. We’d eaten at lunchtime so we just had a couple of cheese and biscuits.
