On the edge of the Dartmoor wilds amid a lush 450 acres, Fowlescombe Farm offers a new kind of rural British hospitality. The property is an ecosystem—a working regenerative farm where you are both guest and farmhand.

Hotel manager Pim leads guests to gather the speckled eggs that later appear alongside homemade beans and sausages from Fowlescombe's own pigs on a full English breakfast. Head gardener Shelley Hutcheon can also guide you through the herb garden to pick fresh leaves for your morning tea.

The estate dates to 1537, with 10 guest suites spread across original stone barns and the Victorian farmhouse. TAfter acquiring the property in 2019, the Owens family enlisted creative director Paul Glade, alongside Studio Gugger and Channel, to transform it while preserving its historic character and drawing inspiration from the surrounding landscape.

When

Since opening in May 2025, Fowlescombe has positioned itself as a place to return to season after season. The estate and farm are open year-round, with seasonal packages such as a January wellness weekend to start the year. What you eat, and the activities and experiences on offer, are highly seasonal. I visited in spring, when we harvested shocking-pink rhubarb and met a new crop of squealing Tamworth pigs and nosy Boer goats while walking the land with Shelley.

Devon is as famous for its clotted cream as it is for its rugged coastline and countryside. At Fowlescombe, you'll find dairy-laden desserts and sweeping views across 450 acres of pasture from your barn suite. The local terroir infuses everything here. "This is about showcasing the real Britain—a cultural grit in a very modern way," Owens tells me of Fowlescombe's mission.

Where

A drive through the bluebell-dusted valley toward the site brings the imposing, ivy-cloaked manor house into view—the long-rumored inspiration behind Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles—and you’ll be greeted by the herds of Beef Shorthorn cattle and once-at-risk Manx Loaghtan sheep.

A direct train from London Paddington to Totnes takes just over two and a half hours, with the property offering complimentary transfers. Driving from London takes just over three hours via the M3 and A303.

The Proprietors

Caitlin Owens and her partner, Paul Glade, took on Fowlescombe in 2019 and set about transforming it into a serene retreat with its history and the rhythms of its working farm at its heart. Owens grew up working in her family's nearby pub, which still operates today, before forging a career with Four Seasons and at hotels in London and Zermatt, Switzerland. She returned to Devon determined to create something both sustainable and luxurious. Swiss-born Glade, who has a background in design, has led the property's creative direction, architecture, and interiors. Together, they've considered every detail of the contemporary guest experience without losing sight of Fowlescombe's roots.

"Our hope has always been to leave Fowlescombe better than we found it," says Owens.

And if it's not Pim greeting you in The Refectory, Shelley and chef Elly Wentworth plotting the day's menu in the gardens, or Owens and Glade gathered around the fire pit, it'll be the farm dog, Basil, eager to help—or more likely coax you into an unrelenting game of fetch.

Design

Glade has overseen the transformation of the 16th-century farm and its once-uninhabitable Victorian barns and stone buildings, working with interior designer Sophie Gomm and architecture practices Studio Gugger and Channel.

The intention was to preserve original features while adapting buildings once home to animals. Local stone and lime, solid oak, and deadwood from the surrounding area were all put to use. Low doorways open into sun-drenched, double-height rooms. Earthy, moss-green palettes give way to views of the rolling hills beyond. The Long Barn suite's shared living area is bathed in sunlight, with one wall lined with the green raincoats made in collaboration with Glade's mother. The sleek chrome kitchen counter doubles as a cocktail bar, complete with a recipe book. Each of the 10 rooms is designed around its views, using the farm's own wool in the upholstery and mattresses.

Opposite the farmhouse sits a tranquil map room filled with books and board games. The Refectory, where guests gather for every meal, centers on a long communal table and open kitchen. In the busy kitchen garden, a greenhouse hosts afternoon cake, drinks, and yoga.

When I visited, work was underway on an organic swimming pond, sauna pods, and a new wellness area.

The Crowd

With Fowlescombe's proximity to London, the guest list skews toward city dwellers looking to trade restaurants celebrating Britain's farm-to-table revival for the real thing. On my visit, I met a Somerset couple who run their own inn, an older pair exploring the region's botanical gardens and Jurassic coastline, and two Belgians taking a break from a cycling trip across the UK. Everyone showed up for the farm tour.

“People aren't coming here just because it's a beautiful hotel,” Owens says. “Yes, the rooms are lovely, but people come here for the feeling of flow. This is a working farm that continues whether you're here or not. Someone's digging in the garden, the chef is writing the menu, and guests are baking bread because we need bread for breakfast and dinner."

That sense of participation is what sets Fowlescombe apart. The property never loses sight of its purpose as a working farm, yet it delivers the comforts and polish of a luxury stay. Dogs are welcomed just as enthusiastically as their owners—they joined us for breakfast, afternoon cake, and dinner during my stay—and children are equally at home.

Rooms

Each of Fowlescombe’s 10 rooms is unique, with rates including breakfast, afternoon cake, a four-course dinner, and the farm’s daily program of activities. Every room looks onto sweeping views of the valley or orchard. I stayed in the mossy-green Pond Suite on the first floor of the lime-washed Farmhouse, where homemade cookies awaited my arrival. A plush super-king bed is dressed in butter-soft linens, with a Naturalmat mattress handstuffed with Fowlescombe wool. The bathroom is stocked with Pelegrims’s low-intervention products.

Curated antiques lend each room a sense of personality, and televisions have been deliberately omitted. Instead, settle in with Fowlescombe’s comprehensive local guide or join fellow guests downstairs for a smoky cocktail mixed from the recipe book behind the honesty bar. A generous pantry is stocked with loose-leaf teas, freshly baked bread, and moreish Two Farmers crisps.

Service

Most of the staff are local, and they seem like a tight-knit crew. Pim, the Dutch hotel manager, is rarely far from The Refectory, ready with a cup of tea, a glass of local wine, or a chat with senior sous chef Brandon Head as they map out the evening's menu. Farm manager Rosie oversees 16 beehives and the estate's livestock, while head gardener Shelley Hutcheon leads colorful tours of the grounds, introducing guests to kiwi vines, newborn lambs, and squealing piglets. The kitchen quickly learns how you like your eggs and happily tweaks a dish when you mention a favorite herb. Each evening, the four-course menu is presented with pride, and it's easy to find yourself chatting with the team long after you've finished your espresso and the kitchen is being wiped down.

The staff are equally generous with local recommendations, arranging transfers to nearby towns and the coast, or pointing you toward favorite pubs, delis, and walks.

Dining

The menu at The Refectory, where guests gather for every meal, is farm-to-fork and hyper-seasonal, written each morning after the head chef, farm manager, and head gardener meet. Executive chef Elly Wentworth—a finalist on MasterChef: The Professionals and a competitor on Great British Menu—creates each evening's four-course menu.

One dinner opened with smoky beef agnolotti draped in ribbons of cucumber and black garlic before ending with a sphere of chocolate ganache set on spent coffee and makrut lime. Breakfast the next morning was a Salcombe Smokie with perfectly poached eggs. My final dinner included a delicate cheese-and-leek gougère, buttermilk-poached monkfish, and that spring rhubarb transformed into a baked vanilla cheesecake.

A handful of tables are open to non-guests, though dinner is included with every overnight stay.

Wellness

The property offers a curated program of experiences, all included in the stay: greenhouse yoga, guided walks through the quiet valley, herbal tea workshops, and garden games.

An organic swimming pond, saunas, and a wellness space are currently under construction. Until then, the hotel can arrange in-room treatments with local massage and beauty therapists.

Wellness at Fowlescombe isn't defined by juice cleanses or biohacking. It's found in the slower pace, fresh air, abundant gardens, and communal feel.

Impact

The regenerative farm holds itself to exacting standards. Perhaps nothing illustrates that better than Fowlescombe's thriving flock of once-endangered Manx Loaghtan sheep, now the largest in the country, whose wool is used throughout the rooms. Much of what lands on your plate is harvested or raised just steps away, and guests are encouraged to join farm tours, pick vegetables, and meet the animals to better understand the work behind the property.

Beyond

Fowlescombe is a short drive from Salcombe, where you can browse independent boutiques, go crabbing along the harbor wall, and stop into The Winking Prawn for an excellent half lobster. Finish with a generous scoop of clotted cream ice cream from Salcombe Dairy.

For lunch, drive to Totnes and settle into The Bull Inn, one of the area’s best gastropubs. Just be sure to book well in advance.