The Independent described Sweffling Hall’s safari tents as “so good they make your real home look a bit tatty”. By the time you’ve loaded the car, searched for the dog, locked all the doors and counted the kids, though, it’s fair to say most people leave for the hills with the house in a serious state. But the glowing five-star reviews don’t get this place wrong. No matter how disheveled you may be by the time you arrive, it exudes an atmosphere so relaxing you can’t help but sink into a chair and let out a deep breath of satisfaction. There’s an elegance to the interior that’s worthy of a spread in Country Life or Suffolk Living. While the exterior is a bit more Farmer’s Weekly, with acres of space to explore and animals for little ones to befriend. If you’re to compete with other vying voices on the internet then bring a pen and paper to make notes – that way your own, gushing, “we’ve returned from paradise” review can be as radiant as the rest of them.
Set on the grounds of a picturesque, working farm, Sweffling Hall is a glamping site that does nothing by halves. The four furnished safari tents are decked out with all the kit and kaboodle needed for a relaxing outdoor holiday and are designed to teeter precariously on the edge of outdoor camping and a full-on self catered cottage.Don’t worry though campers, the line is tread carefully and even with three separate bedrooms, a bathroom with proper flushing loos, and a cosy family living room, these canvas cottages still have a real out-amid-nature feel. For starters they are completely off grid – lighting is either battery powered fairy lights or quaint, flickering oil lanterns – and the only notable absentee in the kitchen is the fridge, replaced instead by a hefty little coolbox. The solid wood floor extends out through the tent to a porch and veranda area, where you can really roll back the canvas and enjoy the fresh country air, while inside a wide, cast iron wood burner is a hub of warmth in the evenings.
Since the site is part of a free-range chicken farm (some 13,000 hens totter about amongst the shrubbery) parking isn’t allowed next to the tents. Instead inimitable owners, Andrew and Laura, have provided a couple of wheelbarrows for you to use, so you can chuck bags straight from the car and meander through the camping field – soon to be playground. The free-range policy extends from the chickens to your own brood. Kids can safely explore the nooks and crannies of the surroundings – another bonus of the no-car policy – and enjoy petting Milly the goat or Crumble the Shetland pony. By the time you actually decide to get out and explore Framlingham Castle, Sutton Hoo, Snape Maltings and Aldeburgh a few days might have already been misplaced. All the more reason to book a couple more and put off the mess that’s waiting for you when you finally get back home.
