My sister and her family are joining us for a family celebration this October at Hotel Endsleigh and want to make a bit of a holiday out of their trip from Bristol where they’ll land. So they submitted me a holiday challenge !

The Challenge

• Going from Bristol to Tavistock and doing a nice road trip.
• They have two boys of 10 and 12 and want to stay in pretty English places at medium prices.
• Her husband is quite a chef so good food is one of their criteria.

I gathered a selection of stylish and affordable hotels with good cuisine along two possible itineraries : Bath, Somerset and Exeter today and Exmoor Park, North Cornwall coast and Dartmoor tomorrow. So come back to see the second one tomorrow.

I hope it’s also useful for those of you who want to explore that beautiful region. If you have any tips for her in terms of things to see or do, please do tell us in the comments !

The Pig near Bath

• From £159
• website

Before they head up to Devon, I of course will recommend them to go to Bath, as it’s only 46 min away by car. Beautiful city to visit and an opportunity to stay at the very popular and absolutely delightful (according to reviews) Pig near Bath.

Babington House

• From £240
• Website

 

From there, they can either go West towards Exmoor Park or go down to Longleat for the safari park which is really good fun. Mademoiselle still remembers the monkeys climbing all over the car.  And if they want to experience life as a British media personality with a swanky bar, posh bedrooms, spa and indoor pool, why not join the many of them who stay at Babington House  ( previously reviewed here).

At the Chapel

• 8 bedrooms
• From £150
• Website

I also recommend stopping At the Chapel in Bruton. You can sleep there but you should definitely try to eat.  It’s a fun place, a restaurant in a former chapel an the village of Bruton is typical “Londoners moving out to the country” with pretty boutiques.  You may again bump into a celebrity there. When we ate at the Chapel, I nearly knocked down Peter Gabriel on my way to the toilet !

The White Hart, Somerton

• 8 bedrooms
• From £85
• Website

Going from Somerset towards Exeter, you can top at the White Hart, in Somerton. It is really a pub with rooms and the food got some good reviews so that could be just a lunch break.

The Magdalen Chapter, Exeter

• 59 rooms
• From £105
• website

The Magdalen Chapter is a beautiful hotel in an Edwardian building that used to be a general hospital during the war (fitting as my sister and brother in law are both doctors !).  There is a Ren spa and a heated pool outside, which could be a fun experience at the end of October :-). A good base to do a city stop and shop or visit the cathedral and the university campus.