How to find a stylish countryside escape without compromising on comfort

The luxurious yet suitably earthy Aller Dorset was just the escape Chloe Hubbard’s jangled brain and stress-addled body needed

Blissful isolation at Aller Dorset (Aller Dorset)

Above me the branches of an ancient oak tree were gently swaying in the wind. The leaves of the canopy were just beginning to turn, with edges of amber catching in the morning sun.

I was lying admiring this beautiful tree and its gnarled mossy tentacles while completely naked in an outdoor roll-top bath, enjoying a moment of being utterly present and completely alone with the sky and land.

The bath itself was huge and standing in the middle of an ostentatiously tiled outdoor bathroom with just three walls, and no roof. The garish pink decor pops against the green of the surrounding field. I had brought a bluetooth speaker with me and I was playing Kate Bush’s Aerial album as I soaked.

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I am aware I must have painted an almost obscenely decadent picture, but considering I spend most weekends covered in miscellaneous toddler gunge, I decided to just enjoy it. The uptight Londoner in me had filled the bath as high as possible, just in case one of my friends staying in one of the other huts at the Aller Dorset retreat decided to pop around.

But other than that trifling niggle, it felt like a moment of pure relaxation.

Outdoor bathing gets guests back to nature (Aller Dorset)

Having a 20-month-old toddler meant it had been some time since I had been able to do anything at all without rushing around caring for a small person. This trip to the luxurious yet suitably earthy Aller Dorset was the exact escape my jangled brain and stress-addled body so badly needed.

Aller Dorset offers four luxury shepherd’s huts as accommodation, scattered around a natural spring lake on the owner’s family farmland. Each hut has been thoughtfully designed to an impeccably high standard, giving them the feel of a boutique hotel than a glamping experience. I am not a fan of glamping. I think it’s better to call a spade a spade and just say what it is: camping, in other words. Dress it up however you like, you’ll usually be inconvenienced in some way and less comfortable than you’d like.

For a precious and long-awaited weekend with my friends away from our beloved but noisy families, we simply were not prepared to suffer the horrors of a communal shower.

Huts combine stripped-back authenticity with luxe touches (Aller Dorset)

But we did want to be outdoors and away from it all. Aller solved this for us; it is the great outdoors for uptight, harangued people like me, who want to throw themselves in a freezing lake and eat under the stars… as long as there’s a nice fluffy towel, good water pressure and a decent dressing gown in the vicinity. It’s the ideal stylish countryside escape without any compromise on comfort.

We decided upon Aller after doing some research for spots not far from London or Bristol, where we could stay somewhere scenic, eat good food, walk and enjoy some peace, as well as each other’s company. There were four of us in total, and we opted to each book our own hut. While this wasn’t strictly necessary – each hut has more than enough room for two people – we all wanted completely uninterrupted sleep and our own space to retreat back to.

If you’re not travelling in a group, rest assured that the huts are far enough apart and obscured by enough greenery that they give the impression that each is entirely alone.

Lakeside views from the interior of the hut (Aller Dorset)

Travelling to Aller was a pretty straightforward drive and there is allocated parking for each hut. There’s even an electric charging port if you have a hybrid or electric car. Though I would recommend arriving in daylight if possible – this is the proper countryside we’re talking about, and it’s very dark at night!

Next to the parking bay for each hut is a wheelbarrow for guests to transfer their luggage along the perfectly mown lawn pathways to each hut. Chucking our cases into a wheelbarrow and stomping off into the fields felt like a wonderfully disarming process – gone immediately was the journey, and here we were on the land, ready for the weekend ahead.

We excitedly explored each hut, noticing the tasteful quirks of each, complimenting Cat Earps’ excellent taste as we went. Cat is one half of the couple who run Aller, and the interior design is all her handiwork. She and her husband Ant opened the business on Ant’s family farm in 2021 amid the end of lockdown. The pair and their young children left London, and Cat a job in high-end fashion PR, to curate what is a totally unique haven in rural Dorset.

The huts’ remote location offers the chance to truly switch off (The Independent)

Cat’s career has undoubtedly given her a meticulous eye for detail. She has essentially created a highly Instagrammable retreat fit for the centre-spread of Vogue, and popped it next to a lake befitting a Pre-Raphaelite painting.

But the finery never overwhelms the inescapable earthiness of the location, and grounding activities such as yoga and reflexology are on offer, as well as cocktails and an excellent supply of fantastic local wines (guests can get them delivered to the huts by simply scanning a QR code).

As a group we partook of everything Aller had to offer, from the incredible reflexologist who gives sessions in the huts for £65 an hour, to cooking our own communal sunset dinner over a fire pit. Cat prepares the fire pit supper (£120 for two) and personally delivers and explains the ingredients to guests. For the carnivores and pescatarians there were locally sourced steaks and lobster tails, complete with home-made responsibly sourced condiments, while the vegans and vegetarians enjoyed skewered vegetables, potatoes baked in the embers and sweetcorn. We also got stuck into the Langham sparkling rose, the perfect meal accompaniment in the unseasonably warm autumn sunshine.

The fire pit supper is a cut above, with steak and lobster tail (The Independent)

We loved cooking our own food over the flames and all returned to London covered in the whiff of bonfire. It felt freeing and grounding; the perfect antidote to our usually frazzled and full-on lives.

Beyond lazing around in the huts, we also thoroughly embraced some truly wild swimming in the bracing lake. Not for the faint-hearted, the lake is surrounded by willows, full of pond weed and home to a pair of swans (who thankfully keep their distance). The smart guest would heed our advice and pre-run their bathtub and get the log burner going to help with the thawing process afterwards.

Wild swimming is on tap for cold-water enthusiasts (The Independent)

We went for a group stomp around the Cerne Abbas Giant too using this guide, which blew away the cobwebs and allowed some room for the fizz and fire pit supper. The Giant is a 20-minute drive away, but there are also plenty of local walks detailed in the information pack provided by Aller.

While Aller offers one-night stays over the winter, I’d say that this magical spot deserves a longer stint. It made an ideal escape-to-nature girls’ weekend, but would equally suit solo travellers, couples or creatives wanting to get inspired, hunker down, and crack on with some writing completely undisturbed. We visited in autumn, but I can imagine this place would be equally enchanting and cosy in the depths of winter. I may just have to return to test my theory...

Travel essentials

Getting there

Aller Dorset is in rural Dorset, a three-hour drive from London or 50-minute drive from Bournemouth, the nearest big town.

Staying there

Huts at Aller Dorset start at £185 a night and include a breakfast hamper of granola and a sourdough loaf.

Read more of our best Dorset hotel reviews