It’s late summer, when farm stands are full of colour, and piled high with fruits and vegetables in the weeks before the season ends. And what better place to enjoy the summer harvest – or try out activities like beekeeping, foraging, and even the art of ax throwing – than on a farm or vineyard hotel?
Whether you want to escape to a working farm just outside of Nashville; a farm and vineyard with an inn and “yurt village” in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains; Or a restored boutique hotel and distillery on a river in Cognac, France, where these havens for epicureans and country lovers await with fresh eggs, jams and food for the soul.
Bristol, Virginia
Nysunder Farm and Vineyards
Tour this 450-acre farm and vineyard amid the Blue Ridge Mountains (Viognier, Chardonnay, and Merlot won award Virginia Governor’s Cup competition) and you’ll find livestock, chickens, vegetable gardens—and a brand new lodge with 28 rooms and suites. Or you can stay in the “village yurt”: nine tents made of cedar wood, which make them look like cabins, are located between the inn and the wine tasting room. Book a yurt and you’ll have your own kitchenette and rain shower, plus a porch and back deck from which you can breathe in the mountain air. Each tent can accommodate two to six people; Pets are also welcome (for a fee).
As you might expect, the meals at Nicewonder are farm-to-table. Hickory Restaurant, located on the ground floor of the inn, serves seasonal, Appalachian-inspired dishes—like battered spam with house pickles, nori, yuzu hot sauce, and fried saltines—and overlooks the lake and vineyard. There is also a bar and, of course, a wine cellar. You can buy flowers, vegetables, jams and jellies at the property’s produce market. In fact, you could spend the entire weekend just eating and drinking. However, there are miles of trails to contend with, which lead you through trees, over hills, and near a creek. Go for a swim in the infinity pool, and next September, work out in the new “fitness tent” with bicycles and exercise equipment, or relax with a spa treatment in the next “spa yurt village”. Rates start at $335 per night in August and September, including breakfast.
Los Olivos, California
The Inn at Mattie’s Tavern, an Auberge Resort Collection
A former bus stop, this property is located near the vineyards and farms of the Santa Ynez Valley and has been welcoming guests since the late 1880’s. It closed in 2018, and reopened this year after a renovation that included new premises and a new name. You can choose from 67 rooms, four of which are restored cottages dating back to the early 20th century. New guest rooms, each with a patio, terrace or sun terrace, are located in buildings called guesthouses. Also new is the two-bedroom Courtyard Cottage with living room and private outdoor space where you can end the day By the outdoor fireplace or in the hot tub. Homestead Cottage has two bedrooms and a private outdoor space as well.
The Tavern is just outside your sleeping quarters, where many of the ingredients come from an on-site garden and the menu focuses on grilled proteins and vegetables, served indoors or outside under a trellis. For Chinese-inspired dishes – think duck, Chinese soy-braised eggplant, crispy pork belly, spicy peanuts, grilled shiitakes, and croutons – pop into Gin’s Tap Bar, named after the former chef. At the property, Gin Lung Gin. Need a caffeine fix? Try Felix Feed & Coffee, where you can also order freshly baked goods and breakfast. For a cocktail or a glass of wine, head to the bar. Or put on your swimsuit and visit Shed, a poolside bar serving casual, Mediterranean-inspired fare. After a snack and a swim, hop on a bike and take a ride through the vineyards – or stay put and learn how to infuse your own olive oil with herbs from the garden. Prices from $950 per night.
Cognac, France
La Neuve Hotel and Garden
While France is known for major wine regions such as Bordeaux and Champagne, this renovated distillery and boutique hotel aims to draw you into the cognac country of southwestern France, home to top producers such as Hennessy, Martell And Remy Martin. The hotel was opened in June in a beautiful period mansion next to the Charente River, which is part of Alma group of hotels as well as a member of the Hotels Network Castles relay. Its 12 suites are set among 12 acres of gardens filled with fruit trees, rose bushes, and vegetables. Unlock a favorite novel, relax by the pool, or follow the gardens down to the river. There, private boats await you. Or you can take the hotel’s boat and visit the city of Cognac. E-bikes are also available.
Meals can be taken in the fine Notes restaurant, which offers a four- or seven-course tasting menu that makes use of herbs and vegetables from the property’s gardens, as well as ingredients from local cognac distilleries and farms. Alternatively, head to the old distillery building, now the Brasserie des Flâneurs, where the French brasserie menu highlights seasonal produce such as ceviche with citrus from the property’s greenhouse. There is also a bar and tea room. Connected to a terrace where you can eat pastries (or two) with tea or coffee. If you prefer something a little stronger, You can order a cocktail, wine, or – what else? – cognac. Rates start at €450, or about $490, per night, including breakfast.
Amenia, New York
Trotpic
This popular rural area of the Hudson Valley, about two hours north of Manhattan, has attracted a long list of writers and thinkers, including Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, and Webb Du Bois. In the early 1900s, the property was purchased from its original owners, the Benton family, by Amy W Joel E Spingarn, co-founder of Harcourt, Brace & Co. and former president of the NAACP (was the creator of Spingarn Medalawarded annually by the NAACP). Today, the 250-acre hotel is a member of Design Hotels and features 37 rooms and suites. She recently opened the Benton House along Webutuck Creek, where you’ll find 13 guest rooms, each with a private outdoor space amid grass and wildflowers. Everyone looks to nature for inspiration, with textured wallpaper and beds by Connecticut-based furniture company Ian Ingersoll.
Head to the barns – covered in lumber reclaimed from the old Tappan Zee Bridge Cross the Hudson River – for a fitness or yoga class, or to use the gym and sauna. Outside, you can play tennis, take a dip in the pool, stroll through the walled garden built in 1916, or enjoy a private falconry session. You can go hiking and cycling at the property as well. Or venture a little further on a fly fishing trip, or take a trip to a nearby location Maitre’s farmwhere you can browse produce and flowers (private tours are also available). Bird watchers might want to check out Ripley’s Waterfowl Sanctuary. Other guests, in Trotbeck tradition, may simply wish to sit and chat over a meal. Settle into a booth in the dining room for seasonal dishes prepared with local ingredients, such as written Cavatelli ricotta with chanterelles and garlic flakes. to For on-the-go snacks and late-night snacks, The Pantry offers temptations like salty chocolate chip cookies, coffee cake, brownies and homemade blondies Available 24 hours. Prices from $400 a night.
Franklin, Tenn.
Southall Farm and Inn
Just 25 miles south of Nashville’s bustling music scene, this budding farm and lodge offers buzz of a different kind with seven apiaries housing millions of honey bees, plus some 1,300 apple trees, greenhouses (including an orangery), formal kitchen gardens, and crops. . And plenty of land to hunt for mushrooms and berries. While the property is reminiscent of a historic farmhouse, it has the comforts of a modern retreat. Choose from 62 rooms and suites, 16 townhouses and many more places to enjoy the bounty of the earth. For more casual meals, try Sojourner. Where you can start each day with pastries and eggs (lunch and dinner are also available). Even the cocktails are made with fresh herbs and juices. Stop by the Farm Stand for produce, picnic baskets, and preserves. And later this year, stay tuned in January for a restaurant with a dining room and outdoor patio Plans to offer multi-course menus with ingredients grown in Southall.
If pastoral views aren’t enough to de-stress, head to the 15,000-square-foot spa to relieve stress with treatments that use plants and ingredients, some from the farm. You can work out in the fitness center, float in the 104-degree spa pool (there’s also an outdoor pool), take a pose in the hilltop meditation and yoga space, or challenge yourself on the ropes and obstacles course. Runners and hikers can take advantage of more than five miles of trails. There is no shortage of additional outdoor activities (some for a fee), including falconry, fishing, beekeeping, archery and ax throwing. Rates start at $559 per night in August, and from $839 starting in September.
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