Cadhay Review

Cadhay, Ottery St Mary, Devon EX11 1QT

Cadhay will feature on the main Landed Houses site shortly but here is a preview. By chance much of the house was built around the same time as Pekes (reviewed above) in 1550. As with all old houses extensions have been added on and the result is a charming rectangular house with a courtyard in the centre. Outdoor furniture is provided in the courtyard for use in warmer weather and inside the dining room happily caters for all up-to-22 guests. Cadhay's grounds are impressive and its gardens are open to the public on Friday afternoons when public tours are conducted around the house (the only one I have seen with 'brown road signs' on surrounding roads!). There are two full-time gardeners who were hard at work when I arrived planting beds for the summer months and maintaining the winter ones. Of all the houses seen to date Cadhay is the only one with such extensive gardens, which explains why it is so popular for weddings. Inside there is a multitude of sitting rooms and plenty of seating - the main sitting room also has a fireplace and wood is included. All of Cadhay's downstairs rooms are light and airy with original features such as wooden beams on view. There is a good balance struck between having old paintings and furniture and the avoiding too much clutter.

Upstairs the bedrooms are well presented, comfortable and clean. Some of the beds are four-poster, some regular doubles and some twins. Much of the bedroom accommodation and bathrooms are closer to the luxury end of comfort and if you are willing to pay a small premium for the privilege of living like kings and queens in Cadhay then it is a good bet. I have no criticism for it; the kitchen has both an Aga and regular cooker and the rest of the house over-delivers rather than under-delivers. One of our best options for those with a larger group than 18 and those that value gardens and comfort. In case readers are interested there are two additional properties available for rent a hundred yards away, though owing to dining room capacity in Cadhay they are considered completely separate (the dining room chairs in Cadhay are enormous!). It is also worth mentioning that wedding groups often have drinks on the first floor in the roof chamber (with original roof timbers) and on the same floor there is a gallery that is effectively a museum of household artefacts. Floor plans.