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Gardens of North Devon QQQQ

Devon, England

RHS Rosemoor Gardens
Visit this beautiful 65-acre garden.
Sea and sand
Your hotel offers unrivalled access to Saunton Sands’ stunning beach and rolling waves.
Marwood Hill Gardens
Explore this beautiful garden, home ot the national Astilbe collection

2 passengers

Please call 0800 096 0085 for latest availability

No fly
Half board

Explore some of North Devon’s beautiful and interesting gardens

Enjoy a four night stay at the Saunton Sands Hotel overlooking the Devon coast, including two horticultural talks and visits to some of the most beautiful gardens in the south west of England, guided by a horticultural host.

Including...

All breakfasts (B) and dinners (D)

Local expert guide

Plus...

Cancellation rights
Expert host talks
Hosted welcome drinks reception
Free Wi-Fi
Hotel porterage

Included garden visits

Arlington Court
Castle Hill Gardens
Hartland Abbey
Marwood Hill Garden
RHS Rosemoor Gardens

Holiday Details

Address

Saunton Sands Hotel, Saunton Rd, Braunton EX33 1LQ

Introduction

Stay in the 4-star Saunton Sands Hotel, a glamorous art deco hotel set on the headland overlooking glorious Saunton Sands and the mesmeric waves of the Atlantic Ocean. The hotel is the flagship property of family-owned Brend Hotels.

Accommodation

Saga guests’ rooms are inland facing. Guests also have full use of the leisure facilities and free parking.

Upgrade to a room with sea views, subject to availability.

Television
Wi-Fi
Safe
Hairdryer
Tea coffee making facilities
Telephone
Toiletries

Food and Drink

Your stay at Saunton Sands Hotel is on a half-board basis. Dining at the hotel is always considered an occasion to be relished, as you will discover every day! The Dining Room, which has two AA rosettes, offers a classic British menu prepared from the finest local produce by renowned head chef Mathias Oberg, formerly of the Michelin-starred restaurant, The Shade.

Dress smartly for fine dining at The Dining Room. Other restaurants include The Terrace Lounge, Saunton Al Fresco Terrace and the Beachside Grill, which is open in the spring and summer months on the beach.

Other Hotel Information

Facilities include indoor and outdoor pools, and a new state-of-the-art spa ‘Source Spa and Wellness’, providing daily fitness classes, treatments and pampering (extra charge), tennis courts and a surf school (extra charge)

The spacious accommodation of Saunton Sands Hotel

Climate

Amenities

Holiday Location

Staying on the South West Coast Path you are perfectly positioned to take advantage of the natural wonders of North Devon, epitomised by the unspoilt expanse of golden sand beach washed by the Atlantic. The clean consistent waves of Saunton Sands provide the perfect classroom for would-be surfers. For those with experience of wave riding the world-famous surfing beach of Croyde is just around the headland. Further afield, Ilfracombe boasts beaches reached through Victorian hand-hewn tunnels, and a restaurant owned by artist Damian Hurst, whose 66-foot statue, Verity, stands sword drawn, at the harbour mouth.

There’s plenty more than seaside to discover too. Braunton Burrows dunes, part of the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve due to the huge variety of wild flowers and wildlife they sustain, are just steps away from the hotel. Take the opportunity to visit the historic houses of North Devon, including Arlington Court, where you’ll find the National Trust Carriage Museum and Tapely Park with its Italian garden. Gardeners will be drawn to the RHS Rosemoor Gardens, with special holiday dates arranged to view the spring blooms and the renowned Rose Festival.

At Instow, enjoy the English summer chorus of leather on willow at a unique cricket ground set among the sand dunes, with a thatched club house. While on the opposite side of the estuary, in arty Appledore, you’ll find a churchyard inhabited by a much quieter crew of 'drownded mariners'. North Devon’s main town, Barnstaple is just under eight miles from Saunton Sands and home to an historic working Pannier Market, the tiny artisan food shops of Butchers' Row, a thriving theatre and many independent shops and restaurants. Walkers can take to the South West Coast Path and cyclists can explore North Devon’s coast and countryside on 163 miles of car-free Tarka Trail.

Excursions

Arlington Court

Visit the gardens and house of Arlington Court. Now owned by the National Trust, this elegant Regency mansion was the home of the Chichester family. The landscaped gardens comprise some 30 acres of pleasures gardens designed in the ‘picturesque’ style, together with a Victorian Garden with water feature and a walled kitchen garden. Entry to the house which is home to various collection, is also included together with the carriage museum.

Included on 4 nights itinerary

Castle Hill Gardens

Visit picturesque Castle Hill Gardens this afternoon. Situated on the Southern edge of Exmoor and in the rolling hills of North Devon, these beautiful gardens showcase 50 acres of historic Parkland set against the breath-taking 18th-century Palladian Mansion House which provides a fantastic photograph opportunity.

Explore the grounds at Castle Hill, Devon

Included on 4 nights itinerary

Hartland Abbey

Built in the 12th Century, Hartland Abbey survived as a monastery longer than any other in the country. In 1539 Henry VIII gifted the Abbey to the Keeper of his Wine Cellar and today the house still remains in the family. The extensive grounds and stunning valley leading down to the rugged Atlantic cove and cottage at Blackpool Mill, have been the location for many notable films including the BBC adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility and John Le Carre’s The Night Manager starring Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston and Olivia Colman.

The Abbey is considered the most historically important ancestral home in North Devon and contains architecture and decoration from the Medieval, Queen Anne, Georgian, Regency and Victorian periods and paintings, furniture, Chinese artefacts and porcelain collected over many generations.

Included on 4 nights itinerary

Marwood Hill Garden

Transfer by coach to Marwood Hill Garden in Barnstaple. Located in a steep valley, Marwood Hill is packed with displays which will delight both green-fingered and casual visitors alike. From the splendour of the camellias and rhododendrons, to the bog gardens with their carpet of primulas and iris, there’s lots to catch your eye.

The garden is also home to three national collections, including the Astilbes collection which numbers 140 different types. Watch for wildlife too, including kingfishers in the lake area.

Included on 4 nights itinerary

RHS Rosemoor Gardens

Look forward to spending a day at the 65-acre RHS Rosemoor Gardens, nestled in the Torridge Valley near Great Torrington, known as the 'cavalier town' due to the part it played in the Civil War. Rosemoor is an enchanting place to visit in every season. The gardens feature innovative seasonal planting displays as well as the largest rose garden in the South West.

The show of blooms will vary depending on the time of year that you visit, with cherry trees blossoming in the spring and the iconic Hot Garden dazzling with vibrant colours in summer. During your visit you can look forward to seeing the Rose Festival in full bloom.