My parents and I are traveling to England in September and we are looking to stay in the Cotswolds and Yorkshire area. Since my parents are retired farmers, we would like to stay on a working farm.
I'm not having any luck finding an inexpensive B&B--am I dreaming if I think I can find a place under 20 pounds per person per night? Should I even try to book in advance or just "wing it" and hope I can find something?
I wouldn't wing it. That's taking too big a chance, I think, in popular tourist areas, even at the end of the summer. Your desired rate may, indeed, be a bit hard to find, but you should be able to get something for 50-60 pounds for a double. Consider as well that the dollar keeps falling against the British pound, so that costs can keep going up.
I can't really help you with a "working farm." but - I have a great B & B to recommend in the Cotswolds. One of these days I'll get around to writing a review of it. It's called Leasow House, and it's just south of Broadway and north of Winchcombe. We've stayed there four times, the last for a week, and I'd readily return again. This is their new Website: http://www.leasow.co.uk/. It's a bit above your limit (now about 65 pounds for a double), but I think it's worth it. The hosts, Barbara and Gordon Meekings, are just wonderful, and they have great breakfasts! And, indeed, it is partly a working farm, and there are several all around them, including just across the road.
Have you checked the Smoothhound site? It may be the best for finding B & Bs in the UK. Go to: http://www.smoothhound.co.uk/index.html. Incidentally, they list a double for Leasow House at less than the latter's own site - up to 57 pounds, still above your goal, but not at all bad. Check it out for different Cotswold towns.
Beth, I hate to burst your bubble, but 20 pounds is nearly what I've paid for dorm beds in youth hostels in some places in England.
When I stayed in Cheltenham earlier this year I had a private room in the YMCA which was 25 pounds a night (and pretty dodgy too.) Dorm beds in the YMCA were about 11 pounds, and these are probably the cheapest beds in the Cotswolds.
Personally, I wouldn't expect to find a room in a B&B for less than 25 pounds per person per night.
Beth - I had a look around on the web and found this site which covers the Cotswolds: Stay on a Farmand certainly one of them says 'from' £20 per night but I stress I know nothing about any of them. You would get more for your money doing self-catering and I think some of these farms do that as well.
Beth, I would also like to encourage you to consider staying in a self-catering accommodation. Our family spent 11 weeks in the UK in the summer of 2004, most of it in self-catering places. We had some absolutely wonderful experiences and very economical. Because you can also cook some of your own meals, there are substantial savings also on food. You can likely get the best rate by renting directly from an owner. There are many properties on farms and in the countryside.
One place we stayed was a cottage on the grounds of an estate in Yorkshire, about 10 minutes from Harrogate. There were sheep and horses on the farm and absolutely beautiful grounds. At the time (two years ago) we paid about 350 GBP for a two bedroom/two bath cottage. That would be 50 GBP per night for your family. (You and your parents, right??) Here is a link to the website where I found this cottage, and there are many others listed. Ours was the "Dovecote" and I have a review on Slow Travel here.
Another farm we stayed on was in south Somerset, about 30 minutes from Bath. You don't mention this as one of your target areas, but we loved it and it may be less expensive than the more touristed Cotswolds (which we also love). Look at the website for Gants Mill here. We rented a three bedroom cottage adjacent to the old mill. This is a sheep farm and also has absolutely beautiful show gardens. The prices are a bit higher than when we were there in 2004, but depending on the time of year, you could still rent this cottage for 20 GBP per person. (They also have B&B for 30 GBP per person.) See my review of our week at Gants Mill here.
Also, I second the recommendation of the Smoothound site... but still think you would find self-catering more economical-- and lots more room to spread out too! And I also agree you should not "wing it"-- unless you just want a bed to sleep in and don't really care where.
Hello all, Thanks for all the advice you have given so far. I should clarify for all of you--we are only spending 2 nights in the Cotswolds area on only 1 or 2 in the Yorkshire area, so I don't think self-catering is really an option. Aren't all of those for a week at a time?
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