A Long Weekend at Blackdown Yurts

Press Trip

We first visited Devon as a family two years ago and it has been somewhere we have been looking to come back to ever since.  The beautiful countryside seems so much more green than at home, the beaches so much more dramatic, the people so friendly and we have spent months looking forward to visiting Blackdown Yurts this summer.  It was meant to be part of a bigger trip but due to the current climate, everything else got cancelled, so there was even more riding on our stay there.

Blackdown Yurts are in Cullompton, set properly in the countryside where you can feel like you have truly escaped from real life.  There are four yurts in total as well as some cottages but each one comes with so much outdoor space that it was easy to live in a little bubble of the six of us.  

The drive there took so much longer than expected thanks to traffic and by the time we arrived, the children were desperate to run and move and they couldn't contain their excitement to explore our yurt.  Many glamping sites seem to accomodate smaller families but it isn't often that we find one ideally set up for the six of us.  We stayed in Woodpecker which had one double bed and four singles so everyone had their space.  Outside our yurt we had our own compost toilet, our own table and benches, a campfire and our own camp kitchen with a tap.  Right in front of us was a huge field which we could go exploring in and if we walked past the sheep, we could go to see the two friendly ponies, Felix and Beau.  Everywhere we looked was fresh and green and there was so much space that they could run around to their hearts content.

We met Katie and Mark who showed us round and were happy to supply us with information and recommendations on the local area.  They made us feel immediately welcome and the children couldn't stop talking at them!  Everything was easy to find and understand and everything we needed was provided, from wood for the log burner inside the yurt and campfire outside, to a starter kit for our bbq.  There is also a main barn which would be lovely and cosy to spend an evening in.  At the moment it is used for necessities rather than socialising and there is a full kitchen in there as well as an individual fridge for each yurt.  There are also four flushable toilets and hot shower cubicles, one marked clearly for each yurt and hand sanitising stations all around.  As everything we used was reserved solely for our yurt it was easy to avoid any contamination or closeness with anyone else.  

Often with camping and glamping, I love the experience but look forward to getting home for a hot shower and a proper meal after but Blackdown Yurts is ideal for a longer stay as the equipment means you can sleep close to nature, step out each morning to see the rolling green hills of Devon, but also still have those home comforts like a warm wool duvet and a hot private shower.

I don't know if it was the beautiful surroundings or the knowledge that this long weekend was our whole summer holiday away, but there was something really special about our time there.  The children slept in every morning, we loved exploring the nature all around us and in the evenings after we had toasted marshmallows around the campfire, we lay on blankets and watched the stars in the night sky, amazed at how many were clear when you move away from all the street lights.  The children thrived with the freedom to run around and be wild, they needed the screen time detox which is so much harder to do at home and they all want to come back to Blackdown Yurts again.  It was ideal for us as a young family but during the same weekend there was also a group of six friends in their early twenties and a family with older children and a dog (The site is dog friendly but they must be in leads) so it caters to so many different groups.

If you are looking to experience glamping, or are a seasoned camper looking for some luxury then we can't recommend Blackdown Yurts enough.  If you want to book for the end of this season (Some of the yurts are open until the October Half Term and there are lots of midweek breaks before then too) then use the code MUMMY10 for a discount!

Thank you to Katie and Mark for hosting us, we will definitely be back!

The Yurt

Each bed came with a wool pillow and duvet and the beds were properly protected so everything could be washed well between visitors.  There was space to store things in the chest of drawers and a torch and tea lights provided.  We loved the fairy lights around the inside of the yurt too.

The Barn

I think this would be an amazing area to utilise if you visit as a bigger group as there is plenty of space for everyone to eat together.  At the moment the barn is just used for access to the fridges but one morning we entered to find some freshly grown vegetables available to be taken and they tasted delicious!

The Facilities

We had our own table and benches, fire pit with chairs, bbqq, kitchen and toilet so there was no need to share facilities. Everything was incredibly clean and we loved having a kitchen to make coffee and breakfast in each morning.

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A Child-Free Trip to Tunisia

It is often written about how mothers these days are tired to the point of exhaustion and I totally feel that, so when I was offered the chance to get away for a few days I was pretty excited.  I was nervous about leaving the children of course, until recently I had only left Cora overnight once and Ed isn't used to doing the school runs but I knew they would all be OK and the thought of some winter sun and cocktails on a beach was too much to keep me here.

After a night in an airport Premier Inn, my mum, sister and I boarded a flight to Tunis, Tunisia and left the cold, wet UK behind.  We had booked into Les Orangers bungalows and villas, a five star all inclusive hotel but we were still amazed when we arrived at the most beautiful reception in a large gated resort.  It was luxury from the moment we stepped through the front doors to be greeted with cocktails and our rooms were huge with large balconies overlooking the gardens and sea.

We spent 4 nights in Tunisia and it was amazing.  The resort was stunning and so quiet as it was heading towards the end of season.  The staff were always there for anything we needed, the food was fresh and there was so much choice and there was always someone offering me a cocktail.  We tried out the spa, the indoor and outdoor pools and spent our evenings listening to the live music in the bars.  We explored a little around the local area and got a taxi for a day to see the capital Tunis, the historic ruins of Carthage and a lovely town called Sidi Bou Said where everything is painted white and blue.

I felt like I could really relax, I had naps, I read books and I swam.  I missed my family of course, but I loved having some time for me too and I came back feeling refreshed and with my vitamin D topped up!  I would highly recommend the resort we stayed at as a great base in Hammamet for a child-free trip. 

Tunisia was such a fascinating place to visit and I would love to go back and see more, especially the Sahara desert. It is such a culturally different and wonderfully colourful country and gave us a little taste of Africa.  I didn't take my camera but of course my phone was always with me for taking pictures!

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Travelling with a toddler

We have travelled lots as a family and I travelled alone before I had children but this was the first time I had taken just a toddler overseas on my own and I would definitely do it again.  At nearly two and a half Cora has the language to tell me what she wants and to talk a bit about what we can see, but she also still has a nap in the middle of the day sometimes (especially if we go for a walk with the buggy) and she made a lovely travel companion.

We flew to Budapest in Hungary on the Monday night and due to RyanAir's strict new cabin bag policy and my stubbornness, we had a child's backpack and a handbag between us with all our luggage.  She isn't allowed the tablet at home but I had loaded it with some games I thought she might like and I was hoping that it would keep her occupied.  That and a magazine we bought at the airport provided enough entertainment for the 2.5 hour flight and we got a cab the other side to find our hostel.

We booked into a hostel as we are used to bed sharing (although she sleeps in her own room now) and we had a private double room for our stay which was perfect.  She amazed me with her ability to take it all in.  Budapest was a great city to explore on foot and she loved running around as well as taking it all in from the buggy.

Travelling with a two year old, I was aware that we had very different ideas of enjoyable so I made sure we spent an hour or so at a playground every morning as that is her favourite place.  We found some fantastic ones and generally had them all to ourselves! It was dry whilst we were there but I think it must have rained the day before we arrived as she found the best puddles to jump in!

Only having one child meant I could do everything at her pace and as we had nothing booked, it didn't matter if we walked the long way because she wanted to balance along a wall as we walked.  We found a pond on the way to the baths and spent ages talking to the ducks and watching them waddling around, at the Christmas market she was allowed to choose a toy to take home (she picked an adorable handmade unicorn soft toy) and we made sure to both try a selection of Hungarian treats.

I wasn't worried about flying with her or being in another country, but I am used to other adults and her to other children.  In fact, it wasn't until we were leaving that I realised how little time we spent together just the two of us as we are nearly always with friends or at playgroups during the school hours.  It turned out to be just what we both needed though, and I heard her language progress as she communicated with me.

Our hostel was small and our room was right near the shared kitchen which meant I could put her to bed in the evenings and then sit in the common area and chat to some of the other travellers which helped keep me sane.  The fact that it costs no extra to use your data abroad too meant I was always connected to the outside world if I needed a break from a toddler.

Having just Cora with me meant not needing to tell her off and no tantrums or upset other than the time I told her not to eat the fairy lights.  It was lovely to just be together, to enjoy each other and to share the experiences.

I do think it would have been quite different if she was much younger as it was lovely to chat to her and listen to her thoughts on the world and what we see.  She was able to tell me what she wanted and needed and it made everything easier.  I would love to travel more with her, or to take one of the boys on a similar trip and I am so glad we found the time to get away.

If you want to read more about our trip to Budapest, then check out what we got up to on our 72 hours in Budapest with a toddler.  Of course I have lots of photos of my little explorer that I wanted to share . . .

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