Appletree Farm

What better way to start hols than by stopping to smell the roses? There are loads of opportunities nearby: Goodnestone Park Gardens is 15 minutes’ drive away, where you can trip around walled gardens and arboretums and pass some time lazing in the shade of the ancient Lebanese cedar tree. Otherwise, Mount Ephraim and Whitstable gardens are both a little under half an hour from base, and Westgate Gardens are 25 minutes from the site in Canterbury. When finished at Westgate, stick around Canterbury as there’s plenty more to do… Visits to the UNESCO World Heritage cathedral and St Augustine Abbey Ruins are obvious musts, and there are Roman museums, guided walks and trails, and boat rides on the Stour to round out itineraries. In this part of Kent, the coastline is nearly always within easy reach. If everyone fancies a splashy day at the beach, there’s a long sandy stretch along Sandwich Bay, about 20 minutes from the site, and the seaside towns of Margate and Ramsgate are both within 25 minutes. For bigger excursions, London’s an hour and a half’s train ride from Sturry (15 minutes away) and, if Blighty starts to bore, the site’s a mere 35-minute drive to Dover port and the Eurotunnel terminal at Folkestone, making France and Belgium easily reachable for handy day trips.