High demand prompts expansion of Northumberland glamping site

Having seen a 100% occupancy since their launch in March, the newest edition to Hillside Huts & Cabins collection of shepherd’s huts is being installed on Earsdon Hill Farm, a few miles north of Morpeth.

Philip Gregory, who runs the business with his wife Fiona, said “We opened our first three shepherd’s huts to guests in March this year, by April we had achieved 100% occupancy, a trend which we have seen continue to date.

"We realised there was a desperate need for this sort of off-beat rustic chic accommodation in this area of Northumberland and we commissioned our fourth hut in the middle of the summer.”

The fourth hut is nestled on the edge of a wood overlooking a wildflower meadow.

The L-shaped cabin has been created using recycled materials with floorboards from a Cheshire mill and corrugated iron from an Ayrshire barn ravaged by Storm Arwen.

The interior has a large open plan bedroom, kitchen and sitting room with en-suite shower room. A beautiful back lit wall compliments the large picture windows. There is also a large, covered deck with outside shower and hot tub.

Four years ago, Philip and Fiona were clearing brambles from an overgrown wooded field edge on their farm when they realised that with the views across to the coast that they had stumbled across the perfect spot for their luxury glamping experience.

Philip had spent 25 years organising safari holidays in Africa and had a keen eye for what kind of upmarket holiday could work on the farm he’d grown up on.

Together they set about working with The Northumberland Shepherd’s Hut Company to create four huts and cabins built to their own precise specifications, all with the kind of rough and ready cosiness they had seen when they visited a cousin’s resort in the Canadian Rockies.

“It has been a big investment,” Philip continued, “With farm incomes being squeezed we knew we had to find another way of making income form the land.”

As for future expansion plans, they will begin offering guests yoga and pilates classes on the farm in the wildflower meadow and barn in 2023.