The Cotswolds hotel making autumn work for the whole family

Treehouses, shepherds huts and 500 acres of countryside give The Fish an unusually broad brief this autumn, with families, couples and dogs all being encouraged to make the most of the quieter season.

There is something about the Cotswolds that makes considerably more sense once summer has departed. The crowds begin to thin, the landscape changes colour and the prospect of a wood burning stove becomes rather more attractive than it seemed in July.

Above Broadway, The Fish Hotel is preparing for precisely that season.

Set within the 500 acre Farncombe Estate, the hotel has built itself around a rather different interpretation of the traditional country escape. Instead of concentrating everything within one grand house, its 66 places to stay are spread across rooms, suites, treehouses and shepherds huts, allowing families and couples to occupy quite different versions of the same estate.

This autumn, that flexibility becomes particularly useful.

Half term in the trees

For families, the treehouses are likely to remain the main attraction. Sleeping up to four people among the woodland, they come with private heated outdoor baths on their decks and provide the sort of accommodation capable of becoming as important to children as the holiday itself.

During the October half term period, The Fish is also bringing back its Kids Stay Free offer. The usual £60 per child, per night supplement on family rooms and suites will be waived, with breakfast included. A family of four staying for two nights could therefore save as much as £240.

The timing coincides with a longer two week half term for some schools this year.

There is a new den building experience too, taking children into the estate to forage for natural materials before constructing their own woodland shelter. Elsewhere across Farncombe, activities range from birds of prey experiences to rifle shooting, while younger guests have their own Tiddlers menus.

The attraction is less about filling every hour with organised entertainment than having sufficient space for children to disappear outdoors for a while.

A rather quieter version for adults

The same hotel takes on a different character once children are removed from the equation.

Its Hilly and Hideaway shepherds huts are deliberately secluded, with wood burning stoves and private hot tubs. Guests can even use an intercom to have drinks brought to the hut, neatly eliminating one of the few remaining reasons to leave.

The Boaty hut takes the idea further. It has its own private lake, paddle boat and deck, creating something closer to an isolated little retreat within the larger estate.

There are walking routes directly from the hotel, while dogs are permitted in a selection of rooms and have their own outdoor play area.

Food is spread across the estate too. The Fish is home to Hook by Martin Burge, where the menu is led by seafood, while nearby sister hotel Dormy House offers The Back Garden, with a greater emphasis on produce from the Cotswolds.

The arrangement means The Fish occupies a useful middle ground. It is neither the hushed country house hotel where parents spend dinner worrying about their children making noise, nor a family resort that couples would instinctively avoid.

Instead, its greatest asset may simply be space. Five hundred acres provide enough of it for families to build dens, couples to retreat to hot tubs and dogs to exhaust themselves without everybody having to pursue the same idea of a countryside weekend.

Rooms at The Fish start from £275 per night including breakfast. Its three nights for the price of two Duvet Days offer starts from £489 per stay.