New Year, new deals - save £200 on short breaks in Devon!

Happy New Year! We hope all our followers enjoyed the festive season as much as we did. This update is slightly later than planned, thanks to a hectic couple of weeks with lots of bookings coming in for 2015. People are as organised as ever and booking early, so if you're thinking of a Devon holiday this year, please get in touch!
We haven't had any snow yet and although the children are hoping that will change, I'm not! At the moment we're enjoying bright, cold, perfect winter days and the Blackdown Hills are every bit as beautiful as at any other time of year.

Luggs Barn enjoys an idyllic situation: the perfect base from which to explore the West Country

To start the New Year in a purse-friendly fashion, we're offering a huge reduction of £200 on all January and February short breaks (excluding half term) - 3 or 4 nights beginning on Friday or Monday. Price is now just £495 and as Luggs Barn sleeps 8 plus cots, that's just £15-20 per person per night on a 3 or 4 night stay. Take a look at our availability calendar and feel free to call or email to double check your preferred dates.

We've spotted the first of the snowdrops peeping through in a sheltered corner of the drive, and are looking forward to seeing the crocuses and daffodils before long. The mild winter has confused a few plants as usual - the magnolia tree has had tiny buds since mid December! Last week we even spotted swathes of daffodils in full flower by the side of the road during a visit to Yeovil!

This year we're excited to have two expectant ewes, hopefully due to lamb in April. We're also hoping to have a couple of pigs again this Spring - they're great fun to watch and feed, and Luggs sausages are always popular with our guests.

If you fancy a top class country retreat in glorious Devon scenery, look no further than Luggs Barn. There are numerous beautiful walks on the doorstep, as well as the all-important cosy country pubs and some wonderful local food and drink to sample. Call now on 01823 681605 or email luggsbarn@gmail.com to reserve your preferred dates.

This is Sausage - he and his brother Crackling were great characters!
Hopefully a couple of new piglets will arrive in a month or so.

Black Friday deals on short breaks!

Not to be outdone, we're offering some great deals on short breaks up until Christmas! Quote Black Friday to receive 20% off all list prices from now until 31 January when you book and pay for your break before midnight on Friday 28 November.

Luggs in 1950: romantic memories from a very special guest

Somehow half term has been and gone, along with three short break bookings back to back, so we've been as busy as ever! All our visitors recently have been lovely, as have their dogs, and we consider ourselves very lucky to meet so many great people. Monty and Ted, as usual, have adored all the company and the attention.

This weekend has been particularly exciting as we've had a very special guest staying in Luggs Barn. Six years ago, a lovely lady knocked on the door of the farmhouse and told us that her late husband had proposed to her here - his family owned Luggs for many years. At the time we were planning the conversion of the Barn into a holiday let and since that first visit while on holiday from her home in Sussex, we've corresponded several times.

The current Bill is threatening to re-enact this athletic pose one day - watch this space! 

Along with her two sons and daughters in law, Valerie has finally been able to enjoy another holiday at Luggs! This morning, she came in for a chat and brought with her some wonderful photographs of the family visiting their aunt here back in 1950.

Our special guest here at Luggs back in 1950!

Auntie Sybil (Griffin) was the owner of Luggs. I think the Edward Griffin who we know undertook a lot of work to the main house in 1920s, installing the bathrooms and so on, must have been her husband.

The beautiful young lady called Valerie in these photos was barely eighteen years old then and is our lovely visitor. Her late husband was Tom; he and his brother used to visit Luggs regularly for holidays as children. Tom proposed to Valerie here around this time, adding even more to the romance of this story!

It's amazing to see the thatched porch on the farmhouse and the wooden hayloft doors at the top of the stone steps on the Barn, but even better to be able to welcome a visitor with such a strong connection to Luggs. We have various names in the deeds, but learned today that many of them were related to the Griffins. We had no idea that various branches of the family were custodians of Luggs for so long. 

What a lovely way to start a Monday - fascinating for us, and hopefully a wonderful break for Valerie and her family revisiting old haunts. We hope it won't be long before they, and plenty of our other guests, are back again!

I'm inspired to start putting all our treasured memories in albums - although my writing's not quite up to Tom's standard!

Back to school...with a shiny new website!

Walks to Culmstock Beacon are a highlight of our week!

After a very successful summer season, we're now in the back to school mindset! Early Autumn is my favourite time of year - I love the colours, the weather's usually lovely, bookings are quieter and I can focus on all the jobs that have piled up during the summer holidays!

The old orchard at Luggs is always productive

This September, the big news here at Luggs is that we have a new website! It's just gone live so please take a look at www.luggsbarn.co.uk and let us know what you think. We loved the style of our old site but knew we needed to update the functionality for visitors, especially those using tablets or phones to visit. We also wanted to make sure that our search engine rankings are as high as possible; Marmalade Designs of Wellington have created a superb site which brings Luggs Barn up to date while retaining our established brand and subtly refreshing the original style which we loved.

Woodland walks around Culm Davy

Bookings for Autumn/Winter 2014 are definitely up on this time last year which is excellent - we're seeing a lot more advance bookings for periods that would normally only fill up at the last minute. Our new website will hopefully make the process even easier for guests, featuring an availability calendar and interactive enquiry and booking forms. We've also added lots more glowing testimonials from our Visitors' Book which reflect how much previous guests have enjoyed their stay with us.









Trip Advisor continues to be instrumental in securing new bookings, and we were pleased to receive a special Trip Advisor key ring in the post a few weeks ago! Hopefully it'll encourage guests to leave us a review and therefore help prospective visitors make an informed choice.

Whatever the weather, you'll be cosy at Luggs Barn. Curl up in front of the wood burning stove and enjoy the peace and the stunning views! The balcony is an ideal spot to relax at sunset, while old beams and squashy sofas create a haven for all ages

Christmas and New Year are fully booked as usual, but at the time of writing October half term is still available. Our girls go back to school on 8th September so I'll be back in the office properly from next week; in the meantime, please let us know what you think of our beautiful new website and if you're considering an Autumn or Winter break, get in touch to secure your preferred dates!

Summer sunshine and last minute deals: June short breaks in Devon

Can't believe how long it's been since I've updated this blog! Sorry for radio silence lately - I know most of our followers keep in touch via Facebook these days, but hello to those of you who enjoy reading news and updates from us here at Luggs Barn. Do keep in touch and let me know if you'd like to see more pictures of particular views, rooms - or dogs! Many of our previous guests consider themselves part of the Monty and Ted fan club...

Luggs Barn's picturesque setting: down a private track in Devon's Blackdown Hills AONB

We've had a very busy Spring, with guests in Luggs Barn almost every week and some beautiful sunshine, especially during May. Now we're into June, the wisteria and bluebells which have cheered us all so much for the past month are giving way to roses and lupins. The garden's looking glorious at the moment; many of our recent guests have taken advantage of the barbecue and had long leisurely meals overlooking our spectacular views. With a huge fenced private garden, children and dogs have plenty of space to let off steam, while adults can often be found on the balcony with a glass of wine!

Luggs Barn is an atmospheric location for a summer party or wedding reception

One particularly memorable time was in late May - our guests stayed for a 10 day break to mark a special birthday, culminating in a black tie dinner party catered by Twisted Willow Catering with entertainment by the incomparable Edward Jacobs on the piano. The warm and sunny evening meant that the music and laughter floated across to the farmhouse, along with the scent of the wisteria, and we loved seeing such glamorous guests enjoying their champagne in the garden! Photos will hopefully follow soon but for now, here's a wonderful shot taken at dusk at a wedding reception here last summer.

We've had several families here for short breaks during half term, with one little girl particularly enamoured with Ted the Jack Russell. Issy and her family were here for the second time from Hampshire and are already planning their next break!

At the moment, we have a couple of short breaks in June still available at just £495 - that's almost half price (usually £895). 9-13 and 13-16 June are still available, so why not get friends and family together for a long-awaited catch up in these beautiful surroundings? Working out at just £20 pppn for a 3 night stay, and only £15 pppn for 4 nights, that's a last minute bargain for anyone in need of some rest and relaxation! These breaks are advertised on all our usual pages as well as this blog, so please get in touch now if you're interested. 01823 681605 or luggsbarn@gmail.co.uk

There's also availability in July at present, although we're expecting that to change soon now that half term is over. Some schools break up earlier than others, so come and enjoy a break in Devon before the August crowds; we're within easy reach of beaches and countryside attractions for family friendly days out. There are also plenty of options for cycling and walking, with a network of scenic paths on the doorstep.

Finally, looking ahead to August: we've had a cancellation which means that the first week, 1-8 August, is unexpectedly reavailable. Price is £1600 which for peak season in accommodation of this size and quality is great value. All the school summer holidays have been booked since New Year, so this is an ideal opportunity for anyone who, like me, wasn't quite that organised in January!

Family friendly beaches abound in Devon 

Countdown to Christmas

The Christmas countdown is well under way here at Luggs - the Barn has long been booked for the festive season but we're already taking bookings for 2014.

The weather's been lovely lately, fairly mild most days but sunny and I've been taking advantage of this with lots of long walks with Monty and Ted up to Culmstock Beacon to enjoy the panoramic views.


The mild weather means that our gorgeous Devon countryside still looks very autumnal rather than wintry. The girls are hoping to be snowed in soon, but I'm keeping everything crossed that the snow can wait until the New Year so that all our guests can get here safely! We've traded in our trusty Land Rover for a more economical (and still 4x4) Skoda Octavia estate which we're delighted with, so fingers crossed it lives up to expectations when the weather turns.

It's been lovely to see some of this year's peak season guests taking advantage of our last minute deals and coming back for short breaks this season. We love seeing people return time after time, and enjoy the fact that Luggs provides a haven for so many people as well as ourselves.

I'm proud (and perhaps slightly smug!) to say that I've bought and wrapped all but one present already this year, and have also done my food shopping online for delivery just before Christmas. All the main supermarkets deliver regularly to Luggs Barn; many of our guests love the convenience of arriving to a well-stocked kitchen, especially this time of year. We're looking forward to welcoming the party from Christmas 2011 for their second festive season at Luggs Barn - they booked on Boxing Day last year, saying 'It just wasn't the same this year - can we come back next Christmas?!'

We're hoping to get up into the attic this week to find all the decorations, and will enjoy making Luggs Barn and our own farmhouse look even more beautiful for the festive season. We'll be collecting holly and ivy from the surrounding woods and are looking forward to choosing some gorgeous trees from our friends at Dunkeswell - we go every year and it's always a very special occasion. I like to wait until the week before to put all the decorations up, so that they still look their best for Christmas - and so that we're not all sick of them before twelfth night! Needless to say, chocolate advent calendars and a great deal of seasonal craft projects are ensuring that our kitchen looks appropriately festive already!

If you're thinking of planning a visit to Luggs Barn in 2014, now's the time to ensure your preferred dates don't get snapped up by someone else! Call now on 01823 681605 or email luggsbarn@gmail.com.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our guests past, current and future. We look forward to welcoming as many of you as possible during 2014 and beyond.

Summertime...

The last few weeks have seen  wonderful sunshine, prompting frequent barbecues and beach trips by our guests in Luggs Barn!

Farmers always watch the weather especially closely, and over the weekend everyone we know has been silaging - despite the odd shower, most of our friends are now happy to say their grass is now cut and stored. Their timing was perfect, as we're back to wind and rain today!

We spent a wonderful evening in our friends' garden on Saturday watching the huge machines at work. Another late night for the children, but a memorable sight for us all.

The wisteria on Luggs farmhouse is at its peak at the moment, taking over from the bluebells for scent and spectacle. Thanks to Bill's expert pruning, it's flourishing and on dry days, we can fling all the windows open and enjoy the scent all through the house.

A few vegetables are beginning to grow and hopefully the more seasonal weather now will push everything on a bit. Just in case, we're nurturing tiny butternut squash seedlings in our glass roofed entrance - Bill is still dreaming of a hardwood greenhouse but it may have to stay on the wish list for now!

We were also thrilled to receive a gift of a beautiful sketch of Luggs farmhouse by a very talented guest recently. Watch this space, as hopefully it will soon be framed for future guests to appreciate. The same party also bought a stunning seaside painting by Trudy Crook as a souvenir of their holiday here, so we're eagerly awaiting its replacement as the artwork in Luggs Barn is enjoyed by all our guests.