Cherry Tree Cottage

We would like to welcome you to our beautiful home away from home, a quintessential English country cottage perfect for getting away from it all and exploring the hidden gems of the historic Vale of Belvoir.

With three double bedrooms, luxury bathroom, well equipped kitchen, living room and separate dining room we are happy to welcome groups of up to six guests for holidays, weekend breaks and short-term accommodation.

The cottage is cleaned to the enhanced Airbnb standard. Dogs are welcome in the downstairs rooms and have secure space for exercise in the garden. Humans and dogs will find the cottage an excellent start point for wonderful walks in the countryside, exploring the fields leading up to nearby Belvoir Castle – home of the Duke and Duchess of Rutland – or enjoying wonderful wildlife habitat along the Nottingham-Grantham canal.

Charlotte, Henry and Jonny, November 2021

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To make an enquiry or booking request you are welcome to call or text our accommodation manager Ruth Russell on +44 (0) 7949 845346 / ruth@visitbelvoir.co.uk or find us on airbnb. Ruth is happy to answer any questions you have and to discuss your particular requirements.

You can also check availability and complete an enquiry form here.

The cottage is in Barkestone Le Vale, Leicestershire. We are easy to find on Google Maps.

The village is a short drive from the A52 which runs between Nottingham and Grantham and joins the A1 Great North Road and A46 Fosse Way. Nearby Grantham is just over an hour away from London by train.

If traveling by public transport we would recommend taking a train to Grantham, Bottesford or Melton Mowbray and completing your journey by taxi.

Cherry Tree Cottage in the small village of Barkestone, in the historic Vale of Belvoir, is a beautiful self-catering holiday cottage dating back, we believe, to the 16th century. The cottage offers a comfortable, convenient and engaging country home from home for all visitors to the Vale. Our guests enjoy three double bedrooms each decorated and fitted out in a simple traditional style, a well-appointed kitchen and dining room and cosy living room with free access to streaming Internet TV and WiFi.

To book your are welcome to call or text our accommodation manager Ruth Russell on +44 (0) 7949 845346 or find us on airbnb.

Rooms and facilities

Downstairs you will find a living room, well-equipped kitchen and separate dining room. Upstairs we have three double bedrooms and a bathroom with luxury freestanding vintage bath and shower. Outside there is a garden with lawn and patio area with table, chairs, chiminea and small barbecue.

All three of the cottage bedrooms sleep two people. The Butterfly Bedroom is perhaps most chic, Cushions Bedroom most cosy for kids and at the end of the corridor the Master Bedroom is the most luxurious – read more.

Enhanced cleaning standards

We love Cherry Tree Cottage and take great care of it so that we, and you, can expect to be delighted by its cleanliness and warmth on arrival and throughout each stay. The housekeeping team (usually us, the owners) clean to the Airbnb ‘enhanced clean’ standards every time and don’t leave until the place is sparkling and the beds freshly made with crisp cotton linen.

Pet friendly

Warm and sustainable

The cottage’s electrical supply benefits from a roof of solar panels generating power from sun so please feel free to make full reasonable use of the house electricity.

We are pleased to say that our local council operates a comprehensive recycling scheme and we encourage guests to put all recyclables in the brown wheelie bin. If you are interested, the council’s website lists what they recycle here. At time of writing (October 2021) the items they recycle include glass, plastic bags and plastic film, along with the usual list of tins, paper and plastic bottles.

Cherry Tree Cottage is a fantastic place to come to if you are looking for serenity and a countryside experience but it also the perfect spot to access everything the Vale has to offer, as well as the excitements and history of nearby Nottingham, Melton Mowbray, Grantham, Leicester, Newark and Lincoln – all within 20-50 minutes by car. Come for a weekend or a week and you’ll never have an excuse to be bored – or hungry!

We have packed these pages with links to help you find places of interest but our top tip is simple: we recommend you take time to explore the area. Even a short walk through Barkestone’s streets has surprises in store…

Jump to: Shopping, Food & drink, Walks, Things to see and do, Barkestone Hub

Shopping

For essential groceries we recommend the village shops at Bottesford (9 mins by car) or Bingham (12 mins). Both are lovely rural spots. Bottesford has a sleepier feel, Bingham is bigger and has better supermarket options. Note for sat-nav purposes you want the Leicestershire Bottesford not the one in Lincolnshire. Stathern also has a village store and coffee shop to look out for if you’re going that way.

For fine local produce within minutes we suggest you check out The Country Victualler and Jorge Artisan Foods up at the Belvoir Estate’s Engine Yard.

For an extended shopping trip I think we’d recommend the town of Melton Mowbray (24 mins) over Grantham (20 mins). Melton is a more pleasant drive with less traffic and is the regional food capital, known for its pork pies and cattle market. On the way back from Melton you can detour to the renowned Long Clawson Dairy to try their Blue Stilton and Red Leicester cheeses. But if you need something more prosaic – screen wash, lightbulbs, a carpet (!) – Grantham has it.

If high street shopping’s on your list of must-do’s then Nottingham‘s the place to head. Known for its wide choice of big brand and independent shops as well as refreshment choices, it’s less than 20 miles away and easy to drive to along the A52. Note the centre is notoriously tricky to navigate for newcomers so you might prefer to check the train timetable from Bottesford or Bingham.

Food and drink

Fine dining and pubs are both within a short walk of the cottage door.

Walk, cycle or drive west out of the village and you’ll quickly find yourself at Dickies Farm Dining (0.7miles) and only a few minutes more away from The Anchor Inn (1.1 miles). If you don’t fancy walking along Plungar Lane you can reach The Anchor via the canal towpath. Please book in advance to secure a table.

Alternatively you can walk, cycle or drive east to the Windmill Inn at Redmile for a drink or a tasty meal. If the weather’s good and you can manage stiles and the occasional cow then the walk is very much recommended. From the cottage, nip over the road into Fishponds Lane, take the style just past the cow byre on the left and head along the marked path towards Redmile church steeple, to the left of Belvoir Castle.

For the finest of dining the restaurant at Langar Hall is under 6 miles away. Highly recommended for a special meal.

Walks

Belvoir is a fabulous place to experience tranquil English countryside, from woodlands and waterways to hills and pastures, and no visit to Cherry Tree Cottage is complete without at least once walking the stretch of canalside that runs just 500m from our door.

We are building up a data bank of walk descriptions with maps for guests. Please feel free to follow these (and it would be great hear how you got on) or to use the map on our kitchen wall to plan your own walks. If you’d like your own maps of the area, try Ordnance Survey Explorer maps 246 and 247.

Things to see and do

Barkestone Hub

From the cottage walk to the right along New Causeway, left down the alley, right on Middle Street and left into Rutland Square and you’ll find Barkestone Hub, also known as Chequers, the old village pub name.

The Hub is open to all at certain times of the week and it’s a nice spot to have a coffee, snack or beer – depending on time of day – and say hello to the friendly folk of the village. The Hub’s a community non-profit so every £1 spent supports social activities and people in need in the village and surrounding areas, and occasionally national charities. Currently (June 2023) you can go along for coffee on Wednesdays 10am to 12pm, soup lunch on Fridays 12pm to 1.30pm and drinks/social on Friday evenings from 6pm.

It’s well worth checking out the Hub’s facebook page or the noticeboards at the bus stop (up near the old school house) and outside the Hub for up to date timings and special events. It’s not uncommon for the Hub to organise gigs with touring musicians and worth watching out for other special events and fairs.

And if you’d like to rent space for your own party or event then the Hub may be able to help.

Hub facebook page: facebook.com/BarkestoneHub

We hugely appreciate the positive feedback we have received from our guests. This is just a selection.

You can read more reviews on our Airbnb page, hosted by accommodation manager Ruth.