YORKSHIRE NORTH STAR CLUB
North Star Club is a luxury woodland retreat consisting of eight cabins (called suites) nestled in 500 acres of private woodland in the Yorkshire Wolds. The clues that our stay will be outdoor-focused (it was January!) are there from the start; on arrival, we are greeted by the smell of wood smoke from a blaze in the communal fire pit.
Each suite is themed around an inspirational local figure or place – aviator Amy Johnson, poet Edith Sitwell, painter Atkinson Grimshaw… The decor of ours channelled 15th-century queen and power player Elizabeth Woodville. Think natural tones, wall sconces, faux-fur throws, a large portrait of the woman herself and furniture made from striking pieces of wood.
The second clue comes in the suite’s layout. As well as a vast bathroom (more later) and huge master bedroom (with wood-burning stove), there’s a small bedroom with bunk beds and a surprisingly compact sitting area with fridge. A spacious veranda houses a large table and high stools, barbecue and double seat. The message is clear – unless you’re sleeping you should be enjoying life outdoors.
And we do, despite the seasonally appropriate chilly drizzle. The woodland is perfect for free-range exploring (areas off limits are well marked). My children immediately disappear off to make dens, even as the light fades. Next morning, after breakfast on the veranda, albeit with rugs over our knees, they invent the ‘jump the river’ game, i.e. leaping over a small water-filled ditch, the cause of the first set of wet trousers and socks. A muddy walk around the woods, re-enacting
The Gruffalo, leads to a second change.
For grown-up tribes, North Star Club offers spa treatments in your suite – hence the spacious bathroom. For this reason it’s popular with hen parties.
Food-wise, cooking facilities are limited (North Star Club wasn’t intended to be self-catering) but as well as barbecues, there’s a communal pizza oven, and the fire pit is perfect for toasting marshmallows. And we dine like queens – and kings – at the North Star Club’s award-winning local pub, The Star Inn at Sancton. A definite recommendation.
We leave the Yorkshire Wolds with glowing cheeks, full tummies and damp socks. As my daughter writes in the visitors’ book, ‘I liked the cabin because it was like camping in the winter! I wish I could stay here for ever!’