The Cholderton Estate

Discovering Kingsettle Stud delivers a tingle down the spine. It’s the same feeling a metal detectorist gets when unearthing treasure or by anyone lucky enough to catch sunrise at Stonehenge. It’s something akin to the excitement of discovering a secret walled garden, spotting a barn owl or seeing a peacock strutting its stuff. All these things happen around Kingsettle Stud, which sits in the organic 2,500-acre Cholderton Estate in Hampshire, a 15-minute drive down the road from the famous henge. Nature is in control here and the effects are magical.

With space for just three couples or families, Kingsettle Stud is a tiny glamping site on a big, private estate that’s rarely been glimpsed by the public – until now. This vast farmland, grazed by 1,000 cattle and 100 horses, is abuzz with birds, bees and butterflies. It’s been ecologically and organically farmed for upwards of 30 years, since long before 'rewilding' was a thing. It’s potentially a vision of the future of how estates could look, as well as a glimpse of the glorious past. You see that in the buildings, the Victorian walled kitchen garden and maze but more so in the landscape itself. It’s an extension of the Salisbury Plains and there are ancient earthworks in the fields; age-old trackways and Roman roads everywhere. The treasure most-recently found was a hoard of bronze axe heads, now on display at Andover Museum.

There’s just one shepherd’s hut and one cabin here. Both are self-contained, with simple cooking facilities and en suites, and each has a seating space outside with room for a campfire. They sit in a meadow just a short mown path away from the Victorian former stable and courtyard where weddings take place (though not while glampers are staying). The groom’s quarters next to the stables are now a comfortable Coach House Cottage too – it's not glamping, but it’s too quirky to fall into the ordinary 'self-catering cottage' category.

The birds and the bees, the farm animals, the gardens, grounds and location so near to Stonehenge make this place popular with couples and young families. It’s not been open long and, so far, many have used it as a stopover on the way to Cornwall. It’s well located for that, but this is a destination in its own right; a treasure we're thrilled to have detected. And once you arrive, slow down and fall into the pace of Kingsettle Stud life, you'll be glad you didn't drive any further.