Sometimes they are people who already love to camp remaining cheery no matter what the weather is like and regard a sleeping bag as top-end comfort – in which case they see glamping here as the very height of luxury.
Sometimes they are people taking a giant step with their first off-grid holiday having decided to brave a few days without the tv, hairdryer and laptop. Some people just want the chance to take life slowly for a few days and enjoy the countryside. Either way it isn’t long after they’ve checked in that they all comment on how relaxed and at home they feel here.
It’s the peace and quiet, it’s the closeness of nature, it’s the comfortable surroundings and the fact that we’ve tried hard to think of most things that will make your stay relaxing and enjoyable – like top of the range campfire cooking equipment, a wind up radio, books and games and the all-important bottle opener – to name just a few of the things we regard as essential.
We have two tent-cabins and two quirky cottages-on-wheels which are our own rather eccentric designs – you won’t find anything similar around. Each of our units sleeps four people (one double bed and two singles). 
What’s a typical day like here? Imagine waking to bird-song with sunlight on the canvas of your roomy bell-tent or streaming in through the window of your cottage.
Outside there’s woodland, meadow, ponds, and hedgerow everywhere. You light the wood for the eco shower, and within half an hour there’s steaming hot water. Breakfast is at your own pace and however you like it – cooked over the campfire perhaps.
Visiting children might start the day helping us to feed the animals. Grown-ups might like to play farmer and learn how to drive a tractor.
If that sounds too strenuous, you can simply wander around the farm, with its ponds teeming with life, wild-flower meadows, hedge-lined green lanes, and the glades in the coppice wood.
Whatever you do, it’s about as comfortable as camping gets, and as peaceful. It’s also a holiday or short-break where your environmental impact is as close to zero as it’s possible to get.
This is eco-camping at Swallowtail Hill Farm in the Weald of East Sussex. Five miles from historic Rye, six from the sea at Camber, loads to do nearby.
Of course no-one can guarantee the weather, and it would be unfair to suggest that it is always sunny and warm at Swallowtail Hill! So we can always suggest a range of wet weather activities, and part of the joy (challenge?) of camping is that you take the weather as it comes. To some, the patter of rain on canvas or cottage roof is as alluring as the sunshine!
Keep reading for more info, or contact us for details.
More about Bell Tents More about Meadow Keeper’s Cottage More about Woodcutter’s Cottage
The Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) is funded by Defra and the EU. The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD): Europe investing in rural areas
