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Holiday cottages with literary connections

From Agatha Christie and Beatrix Potter, to Rudyard Kipling and William Wordsworth, the places we care for have inspired some of our nation’s most loved writers. Book a holiday to one of these cottages and discover the inspiration behind the words for yourself.

View of the exterior of Greenway house

Greenway, Devon 

Greenway was the scene of the crime in Agatha Christie's 'Dead Man's Folly'. The property also had a starring role in her personal life as her beloved holiday home. We have four holiday cottages at Greenway: The Lodge, Ferry Cottage, South Lodge and an apartment within the house itself. Ideal if you’re an Agatha Christie fan, or just looking for a great place to stay in the English Riviera. And for that extra special experience, guests at the cottages and apartment enjoy access to Greenway garden after-hours.

Stay at Greenway
Exterior of Fyne Court Cottage in Somerset

Fyne Court Cottage, Somerset 

This former gardener’s cottage is located on the Fyne Court estate, home of the Crosse family until 1894. Fyne's most famous resident was the scientist and poet, Andrew Crosse. Crosse was fascinated with electricity and used to conduct controversial experiments on his friends. He once gave a lecture on his findings that was rumoured to have been attended by Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein, and her poet husband Percy Bysshe Shelley. This has led to the belief that Crosse was the real-life inspiration for Doctor Frankenstein.

Stay at Fyne Court Cottage
The garden at The Summer House holiday cottage

Beatrix Potter's Lake District 

Beatrix Potter bought Hill Top in the Lake District with the royalties earned from her first book, the Tale of Peter Rabbit. Beatrix used the house and surrounding countryside as inspiration for many of her subsequent books. We have five holiday cottages within a few miles off Hill Top, offering the perfect base for exploring Beatrix’s treasured home. Tanner Brow, Low and High Strawberry Gardens are all situated on the edge of Lake Windermere, Trees, is a 1930s log cabin above Lake Windermere and The Summer House can be found in the grounds of Wray Castle.

Escape to the countryside that inspired Beatrix Potter
Exterior of Priest's House and White Garden

Priest's House, Sissinghurst Castle 

Priest's House is believed to be part of the former Elizabethan mansion which made up Sissinghurst Castle. Sissinghurst was once the home of the Bloomsbury poet and writer Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson. Vita wrote many of her books at Sissinghurst and you can visit her old writing room in the castle tower. If you’d like even more literary inspiration, Bateman’s, the former home of Rudyard Kipling is only a 30 minute drive from the cottage.

Stay at Priest's House
The exterior of Millbeck Towers holiday cottage

Millbeck Towers, Lake District 

With two imposing turrets, a large rambling garden and uninterrupted views over the northern Lakes, Millbeck Towers has a fairy-tale look. It's easy to imagine it as the home of Cinderella or Rapunzel. The house is also just a 20 minute drive to Wordsworth House, birthplace and childhood home of the great Romantic poet William Wordsworth. Wordsworth House has been carefully presented as it would have been in the 1770s, so a visit to the house is like a step back in time.

Stay in Millbeck Towers

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By staying at one of our holiday cottages, you help to support our work looking after these special places, for ever, for everyone.

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