Warm umber tones and plush textures counterpoint the ascetic beauty of the North York Moors that surround this stone-clad barn. Lovingly renovated and carefully restored, your hosts have spared nothing to make this place the perfect rural retreat for a small family or selection of friends. The living room’s vaulted ceilings with timber beams add a sense of space, while the wood-burning stove in the kitchen-diner makes suppertime cosy. The views of Glaisdale are heady and head-turning. Sit out in the garden and sup it all back with a pot of tea and a wedge of parkin. Pull on your walking shoes and criss-cross the low dales and high moors. Should the wind whip up, retreat to the pub – a leisurely forty-minute stroll from your cottage – for slap-up grub with lashings of gravy and those all-important Yorkshire puddings.

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