Budget quirky glamping spaces with an unlimited supply of nature

Only 20 minutes from the sea, Moon Cocoon is the wild-seeking-traveller’s dream. City weary folk will love being immersed in farm life, finding eggs strewn about – left by the chickens who are your (optional) responsibility for your stay. When stretching your legs on your morning stroll, doing feed-the-chickens without the music, you’ll discover the full scope of the site. An undisturbed retreat for city dwellers looking to recharge, re-centre and rest, with views of the Cambrian mountains to wistfully ponder from your bed. Forget emails even exist, when you listen to the fire bowl crackle and count innumerable stars. No matter your reason for coming, you’ll struggle going.

When is a yurt not a yurt? When it’s also a cabin. Frustrated by the lack of views in conventional yurts, the owners designed this space to have huge picture windows that stretch the entire front of the structure. Step outside to make use of the Swedish hot tub on the deck, filled with unfiltered spring water that comes straight off the mountain. To rustle up an appetite, the site sits below the Cats Back, a stunning mountain ridge that leads you up to Offa’s Dyke and The Brecon Beacons, so you can enjoy a short stomp or lengthy expedition right from your door.

Sitting in four acres of private meadows and woodland, swathed in bluebells in spring. The adventurous will relish the complete dark at night (don’t forget your torch) and being able to cook outdoors with a griddle over the fire pit. Inside this handcrafted Spanish-built yurt there’s a full-length window, a sofa for gazing in comfort and a kitchen with a gas hob if you’d rather cook indoors. When the sun comes out again you can paddle in the stream, watch dragonflies and ducks on the pond, laze in the hammock, or sit in the lovely summer house, located right on the water, and feel very lucky to be here.

Hoover Hut began life transporting vacuums all over the industrial railways, and yet, nothing about it sucks. Positioned between High Weald AONB, South Downs National Park and the Surrey Hills AONB, Hoover Hut sounds like it should be only accessible via a hobbit-worthy epic hike – in fact, it’s under one and a half hours on the train from London. It’s off-grid, using solar panels to power the lighting in the carriage, and the festoon lights that stretch from it to the outdoor kitchen space. Pop five minutes down the road to The Peacock Inn for homemade food made with locally sourced and seasonal ingredients.

The lovingly converted horsebox is fittingly named for the colour of its verdant spot by the river and the flocks of Martins that come swooping over the water of the Trent. Its decor is a testament to owners Robin and Jose’s flair for recycling and upcycling, being full of ingenious and beautiful finds and creations. You’ll undoubtedly spend a lot of your time here watching the river – kingfishers, grebes, herons, and oyster catchers are all regularly spotted – but with owners Robin and Jose also running a canoe hire business from the farm, you shouldn’t miss the chance to drift on the water yourself.

Well-established, beautifully kitted-out and in a corner of dreamy Cornwall, you're welcomed to Tree of Life with produce from the organic smallholding next door - Marie and Sylvia run a veg box business, so know their stuff. You sleep on a double bed above the cab of the lorry itself, accessed by steps that double as the cupboards. Lighting is provided by solar panels, and romance by lanterns and tealights. Whip up a feast in the small, fitted kitchen with gas cooker and oven after a day on the beach in St Agnes.