ROMANCE CLOSER TO HOME
Enjoy an intimate getaway for two on one of these UK breaks
OXFORDSHIRE
The Botticelli Suite at Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’saisons offers the antithesis of the dirty weekend. The bathroom, at the top of a spiral staircase, has two Victorian baths next to each other under a Moroccan-style canopy, surrounded by ocean murals; manoir.com
NORTH WALES
Rent new narrowboat Nelson on the Llangollen Canal. It has a double bed, TV, bathroom, flushing loo, stove, kitchen, central heating and wi-fi. Ellesmere, the Shropshire ‘Lake District’, and the World Heritage-listed Pontcysyllte Aqueduct are within range; drifters.co.uk
WEST WALES
Part shepherd’s hut, part railway carriage, Hutty is a beautiful, handcrafted wooden structure. You’ll find it far from everyone else, nestled between the Preseli Hills and the St David’s Peninsula in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park; qualityunearthed.co.uk
SOUTH DEVON
The Bowcombe Boathouse is a delightful waterside retreat for two, hidden in the trees just above the estuary of the River Avon. You will find lots of art and artefacts, a wood burner and a dresser laden with a selection of ‘welcome’ gins; canopyandstars.co.uk
SCOTLAND
Private island Eilean Shona, the inspiration for Neverland in
J M Barrie’s Peter Pan, is home to Shepherd’s Cottage, a romantic bolthole for two with spectacular west-facing views towards the isles of Eigg and Rùm; eileanshona.com
CORNWALL
The Water Tower at Trelissick could pass as Rapunzel’s fairy-tale tower. The topsy-turvy hideaway has a circular room on each floor linked by a spiral staircase, with the kitchen at the top, sitting room below, and bedroom on the first floor; nationaltrustholidays.org.uk