We moved to North Norfolk from London in 2009, taking on a sizeable redundant farm barn conversion project, consisting of a pile of forgotten barns, out-buildings and a shabby farmhouse.
We continued to work in design businesses in London as the project took shape and whilst our daughter was small. Alongside the conversion of the Victorian red brick barns have also re-shaped the landscape around us. Once an open prairie we have planted over 6,000 trees and hedges – this was to be the start of our eco journey.
Over the years we have developed friendships with some of our regular guests who are keen to know what is next on the agenda for Cranmer Country Cottages. We never seek to impose ourselves on our visitors but we are available to offer first-hand experience of discovering the best places to visit and experience. We are hands-on and are supported by a great local team of employees contractors and craftsmen, some of whom have been working for us for over 20 years and really know how to pull out the stops in an emergency. We aim to deliver discreet and friendly service and someone is usually on hand or at the end of the phone to deal with life’s little emergencies.
We are a business that never stands still. We focus on high quality with a strong green ethos as part of our sustainable lifestyle strategy. We aim to deliver a memorable Norfolk holiday experience for all who visit and offer somewhere great to stay.
Cranmer Country Cottages
Our luxury Norfolk holiday barns and cottages are situated in the grounds of our home at Home Farm. The holiday barns and cottages are located in beautiful countryside close to the North Norfolk coast just a few miles away from Holkham, Wells-next-the Sea, Burnham Market and Brancaster.
The former dairy-barns have been sensitively restored to provide spacious single story holiday barns with a luxury indoor heated pool in the original magnificent threshing barn, and a guest laundry in the former bull barn.
Our 5-star luxury holiday barns were designed by a young local architect and added to the original holiday cottage cluster in 2019.
Eco Holiday Barns
Our luxury Norfolk holiday barns have great eco- credentials and are largely powered by sustainable energy sources earth wind & sun. The bright interiors offer spacious open plan living with a private walled terrace leading to gardens for alfresco dining. The eco-barns can be booked together to sleep up to 15 for corporate groups or family get-togethers.
What We Love About Norfolk….
We have a passion for boating, so Norfolk really comes alive for us from April once the sailing season begins. Wild-swimming through the creeks with the tide is great for the soul and sense of wellbeing. We also love to explore the wide-open sandy beaches, tidal creeks and sultry marshland walks in the winter months. We were not birdwatchers before we settled here but with all of our hedgerow and tree planting, we are continuing to notice a myriad of new visitors to the fields and gardens.
Other favourites include the wonderful autumnal tree walks around Blickling Hall and Sheringham Park. A picnic on Holkham beach is pretty hard to beat but the excitement of horse racing at Fakenham has also provided a number of memorable days out with friends. Pensthorpe Natural Park and Sculthorpe Moor are also great favourites I could go on and on, best to come and see for yourself by staying with us in our luxury Norfolk holiday barns and cottages.
Located in rural Farmland in working countryside
At home Farm Cranmer we offer the opportunity for a luxury farm stay in an unspoilt tranquil rural location close to North Norfolk’s Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Our well appointed self-catering farm holiday accommodation at Cranmer Country Cottages offers spacious interiors for parents to unwind and outdoor space for children to explore. Nature can be observed from the doorstep and Home Farm is within close proximity to some outstanding UK bird sanctuaries, internationally important nature reserves and National Trust sites. We hope to inspire the bird watchers and wildlife enthusiasts of tomorrow through our links with our local community Hawk and Owl Trust reserve at Sculthorpe and information that we provide to all of our visitors. We live in an area abundant with regional produce, scattered with small food producers and near by fishing harbours. We supply hampers of produce from farm to fork supplied to us directly from our local Walsingham Farms shop and home cooked meals from a fab local caterer. Through our active sustainable business ethos we aim to encourage our visitors to learn about responsible living, experience the UK countryside and discover the provenance of the food we eat as part of an authentic countryside holiday experience.
Our green tourism status means that we make the effort to respect our location. We are doing our bit to preserve our planet, its natural resources and protect the natural environment. We contribute responsibly to the local economy by ensuring that we have something to offer our guests year round. The benefit for our visitors is that we offer a UK holiday with a real sense of local distinctiveness and culture delivered with enthusiasm by the people who live here year round and really care. For further information see our links page
Home Farm
Home Farm Cranmer was originally a dairy farm. Built in 1852 the Victorian buildings were designed as a model farm during Norfolk’s high farming period. We purchased the decaying outbuildings in 1998 with 7 acres of the original farmland. Today we are custodians of a further 168 acres of the arable farmland. We are keen to work alongside nature in preserving our rural landscape and are passionate about safeguarding the countryside for the benefit of future generations.
Natural England Higher Level Stewardship Scheme
As part of our green commitment and dedication to ongoing conservation work at Home Farm our farmland has been entered into a HLS scheme managed by Natural England: primarily with preservation of the countryside and its inhabitants in mind.
“Natural England’s purpose is to conserve and enhance England’s natural environment – including its landscapes, biodiversity, geology and soils, natural resources, cultural heritage and other features of the built and natural environment.” naturalengland.org.uk
Our first winter stay and it was even better than we had hoped for! A beautiful place to relax in comfort, fill your lungs with fresh air and spend some time with the most hospitable owners, Lynne and John, who have become friends over the eight years we have been visiting. Thank you.
We had a wonderful family time in this perfect hideaway
I can't think of another five-star self-catering accommodation in the UK that is as green as Cranmer
If you're looking for a luxury, family stay in North Norfolk, this is it. If you're looking for a luxury, ecologically aware family stay, this is it too.
The cottage was immaculate and the on site facilities including the swimming pool, games room and the vast outdoor space were an added bonus. The surrounding area was beautiful and we managed to see so much of Norfolk in such a short space of time. The owners were extremely helpful and ensured we had everything we needed.Barbara
Another excellent stay at Cranmer that even Covid could not spoil!
Probably the coldest week in the last 12 months; ice, snow and very cold! Nevertheless we had a good time. It was always lovely to return to the warm welcoming cottage. We experimented by cooking with the Rayburn - great fun and good results. Try it!
Our family love visiting Cranmer Country Cottages and we have returned for the past 4 years. We all feel like its 'home from home' and are always made to feel so welcome by the wonderful staff. The children particularly love the yummy handmade chocolates on arrival and they are so excited to jump straight in the pool after our long journey from Hampshire. It is so worth the drive! It is brilliantly located for fantastic family days out and long strolls on amazing beaches. We have so many lovely memories
Another great Christmas in Tern, Swallow and Woodpecker Cottages. All very welcoming, warm and comfortable - everything we could need. Our Christmas dinner cooked in the Rayburn. All fantastic yet again!
