Country walks are all well and good, but when you get back to your B&B, do you want to steal the cushions and track down its interior designer? Do the antiquing opportunities make you wish you’d left more space in the car? The mood-boosting abilities of a well-designed interior don’t end when you leave your own home. From restaurants to shops and sculpture parks to hotels; there’s plenty of design inspiration beyond the M25. These are nine destinations to consider for your next weekend break, all within three hours of London…
Rye
There’s a lot to love about the seaside town of Rye in East Sussex, especially as it’s reachable from London by train in just over an hour. Rye has several fantastic interiors shops and top of our list are Soap & Salvation, Merchant & Mills, Puckhaber, McCully & Crane, Rae, Alex MacArthur Interiors. Stop for a casual lunch at The Fig or The Union Rye for more of a treat. Sleep at The George boutique hotel (reopened and redesigned after a devastating fire).
Outside the town itself, it’s just a 10-minute drive from dreamy walks through sand dunes at Camber. You'll want to stay the night (or at least make a dinner reservation) at beautiful beach hotel The Gallivant Camber Sands, which has recently opened French restaurant, Harry's, led by Matthew Harris, formerly of Bibendum. You're also 25 minutes from the otherworldly vibe and patchwork of interesting architecture at Dungeness.
10 minutes inland – in the verdant High Weald area of outstanding natural beauty – Tillingham is an unmissable winery, vineyard and restaurant with 11 thoughtfully decorated rooms. If you’re driving from London, consider stopping at Great Dixter along the way for garden inspiration and a tour of the house.
Tisbury
You might miss the village of Tisbury on a map of Wiltshire but base yourself around this idyllic area and there are plenty of ways for an interiors lover to fill a weekend. This cottage on Kip Hideaways is an aesthetically pleasing choice if you’re travelling with the family or a couple of friends, or perhaps The Beckford Arms, which is just five minutes drive (The Arch is our ‘room’ of choice). For an Instagram-famous view check out Gold Hill in the market town of Shaftesbury or contemplate the meaning of art in respected gallery, Messums Wiltshire.
Don’t miss lunch at the ever-so-charming Pythouse Kitchen Garden or for a unique setting, grab a beer and a burger with a view at Compton Abbas Airfield. Stourhead (Palladian house and the filming location for Pride and Prejudice) is 20 minutes drive away and a floriferous place for a walk. If you’re feeling short on Victorian furniture or 1960s glassware, Visit Semley for a small but decent selection of antiquing spots along Station Road.
Lewes
Famous for its wild bonfire night celebrations, the historic East Sussex town of Lewes – just an hour from London by train – has a reputation as a mecca for creative types and artists. The Bloomsbury Group’s Charleston is just next door to Lewes in nearby Firle and it’s a must-see for decorative art inspiration (artist Tess Newall lives nearby and she’s running one of the farmhouse’s many workshops and talks this year). Pop into the village’s storybook-pretty Firle Stores if you need snacks. Glyndebourne Festival Opera is also on the doorstep for world-class music in a sensational rural setting.
Lewes is known for championing independent shopping, with several antiques shops in the town, including Lewes Flea Market and the Lewes Antiques Centre. Other homeware shops worth a snoop include Closet & Botts and Freight HHG. For delicious food in a stylish and contemporary wood-clad restaurant, book a table at Fork. For the rocket fuel you’ll need to tackle Lewes’s hill walks, it’s Trading Post Coffee Roasters. And for additional indie interiors shopping and antiques, neighbouring Brighton is only 15 minutes away by train (the North Laine area is the place to be).
Plan your dates strategically and if you’re arriving by car, visit Ardingly Antiques Fair or the beautiful Wakehurst botanical garden (sister to Kew), which are both around half an hour north of Lewes. This is an area where homestays appeal more than hotels, so Airbnb has the widest choice.
Bruton
The tiny but much-hyped Somerset town of Bruton makes a brilliant base, with weekenders flocking there ever since the Hauser & Wirth gallery opened with its contemporary art, meadow-style gardens, grill restaurant and Durslade Farmhouse. On the main high street, Osip is the foodie highlight – renowned for its fine dining in a stylish, pared-back dining room. Number One Bruton is the restaurant’s adjoining hotel, with unfussy but appealing interiors. For a restaurant and bakery with wow factor; At The Chapel is an impressive spot and you can also book to stay there.
Just outside Bruton in the village of Batcombe, The Three Horseshoes pub and restaurant with five chic rooms is a new venture by chef Margot Henderson. For design lovers looking for a real treat, The Newt in Somerset is just spectacular. With sprawling gardens, a spa, museums and top-notch food, it’s much more than a luxe country hotel – it’s a destination in itself.
Besides the handful of antiques and homeware shops in Bruton, shoppers can get their fix in nearby Frome (the first Sunday of the month draws crowds for the Independent market) or the huge antiques market in Shepton Mallet, which is held every couple of months.
Tetbury
Tetbury is well known for its impressive gaggle of antiques shops along Long Street including (but certainly not limited to) Lorfords, Gallery B.R, Top Banana, Twig Ltd and Brownrigg. If you’ve admired Robin Myerscough’s furniture and mirrors on Instagram, Tetbury is where you’ll find his store.
This Gloucestershire town could keep you occupied with furniture shopping alone but you’ll need to sleep at some point, so try The Rectory, which is less than 15 minutes away (with The Potting Shed pub next door) or The Close, in the centre of town. Otherwise, Airbnb has several charming cottages in the area. Nearby, Westonbirt Arboretum has one of the world’s most important collections of plants, trees and shrubs. Peckish? Book a table for tapas and Spanish wines at the family-run Lola & Co.
Blakeney
Now, we’ve picked the pretty village of Blakeney so you can pop a pin in a map, but the shops, antiques centres and cafes of North Norfolk are scattered along the coast, so a car will serve you well as you’ll mostly need to drive from one recommendation to the next.
The good folk of North Norfolk have excellent taste in cottages, so the holiday home rentals on Kip Hideaways or Plum Guide are a great option for that live-like-a-local feeling. For another self-catering option, interior designer Flora Soames recently breathed some new life into the Barsham Barns estate, which is about 25 minutes drive from Blakeney. Further along the coast, the late, great Robert Kime designed the timeless interiors at The Gunton Arms pub with rooms.
To add to your to-do list for the weekend: Houghton Hall is a draw for history and homeware buffs alike, with lavish staterooms inside and significant contemporary sculptures in the grounds. Reset with a very long, very scenic beach walk at Wells-next-the-Sea, stock up on keep-forever tableware in Holt at Made In Cley pottery (and grab a sandwich from Picnic Fayre or a fresh catch from Cley Smokehouse). Wiveton Hall’s Cafe and Stiffkey Stores are both very close to Blakeney and make for a handy coffee stop, plus Back to the Garden is an award-winning farm shop, if you’re cooking for yourself. Restaurants that are pleasing to the eye, as well as the palate, include The Hero, Barsham Arms and Socius.
Bath
Bath has everything going for it – history, proximity to the countryside, architecture, some of the best interiors shopping outside of London and, unlike many of the destinations in the article, you don’t need a car to visit.
Starting with the shops; Berdoulat and 8 Holland St are two House & Garden favourites, with the latter recently expanding to include a three-bedroomed townhouse for short stays. It’s not the cheapest option but it’s undoubtedly the most stylish place to stay in the city. Other interiors shopping highlights include Nām for all your John Derian and Astier de Villatte needs, Jim Lawrence for the best lighting and curtain poles, design classics at the new Holloways of Ludlow store and beautiful quality paint in the calming surrounds of the new Atelier Ellis townhouse. For a considered selection of artworks, Francis Gallery (founded by Cereal editor Rosa Park) is another for your list.
You must visit Landrace Bakery at least once for the best sandwiches and pastries in town, plus The Beckford Bottle Shop, Chequers gastropub and Colonna & Small’s for coffee. Somewhat surprisingly, Bath isn’t bursting with design-led hotels but The Yard and No15 by Guesthouse are the best options. If you’re willing to travel 15 minutes out of the city by car or taxi, The Pig near Bath is reliably lovely for undone luxe.
Petworth
Picture-perfect Petworth has a jammy location – surrounded by the greenery and idyllic walks of the South Downs and only 30 minutes drive from the sea (try West Wittering for long beach walks). Petworth is also known amongst the interiors crowd as a hotspot for antiquing, not least because there’s an antiques and fine art fair held in the town each May. Don’t worry if you’re visiting in any other month as there are plenty of shops, including Antiquities, Dickson Rendall, BEAR Petworth and KiKi Design. To refuel, The Horse Guards Inn in nearby Tillington is a characterful gem.
Get your culture fix within the walls of an 18th-century townhouse at the wonderful Newlands House gallery, and for those of you with National Trust issues (namely that you can’t get enough of their houses), save an afternoon for the vast Petworth House and Park, with its substantial art collection and 700 acres of grounds. Hotel options aren’t the strongest in this area but there are some lovely Airbnbs, or drive 20 minutes to The Pig in the South Downs for a boutique country hotel with locally grown food that is guaranteed to be worth the extra time in the car.
Stow-on-the-Wold
Now this is Cotswolds prime-time. Stow-on-the-Wold is home to Amanda Cutter Brooks’ flawless homeware edit in her eponymous shop (Amanda also has a guest house for holiday rentals), and then a couple of doors down, you’ll find one of the small unsung heroes of the indie interiors shops world; Unpolished. D’Ambrosi Fine Foods is a much-loved deli mere minutes away, should you get peckish. Just a stone’s throw away (nine minutes in a car) is the ever-expanding Daylesford Organic, which now has an unexpectedly large selection of homeware and several options for lunch. For fine dining in a beautiful setting, The Wild Rabbit in nearby Kingham is wonderful but book well in advance.
A little further away, the vast Burford Garden Centre is always busy and Soho Farmhouse (if you’re a member) has a well-edited selection of fashion and interiors in its two on-site shops – Soho Home and The Store. If you’re in the area, visiting a grand old house is virtually obligatory. We recommend Sezincote House, which is unique in that the architecture is inspired by the Mogul style of Rajasthan. And of course, there’s the incomparable Blenheim Palace within easy driving distance.
So where to stay? The options are plentiful in this part of the world. For a cosy and design-led inn, try The Fox at Oddington and The Wild Rabbit. For a little more space and your own kitchen, you can’t go wrong with Daylesford Cottages, Sand & Stone Escapes and Kip Hideaways. Not yet open at the time of writing but two of the most anticipated openings of the year for interiors lovers are Cowley Manor, which has been bought and completely refurbished by the Experimental Group, plus Estelle Manor – a country hotel by the Ennismore group founder.
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