Eat, Shop, Visit, Do... Explore
There are plenty of amazing places to do all of the above in Somerset and the surrounding area. Location: We are located two and a half hours from London and an hour and a quarter from Bristol and Bath. Castle Cary train station, with a direct route from London, is half an hour away. Glastonbury - home of the famous Glastonbury Festival and Glastonbury Tor, and Bruton, home of The Newt, and Hauser & Wirth, are half an hour to forty-five minutes from us. The Jurassic Coast (including West Bay, Lyme Regis and Bridport) are an hour away.
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Check out the guide below for activities, sites and things to do in beautiful Somerset.
Eat Out...
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The Halfway House is our fabulous local pub, within walking distance of the hut and offering a wide range of real ales, locally produced cider as well as bottled beer and wines from around the world. They also do great pub food too! Well worth booking in advance.
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For something that little bit special, 28 Market Place in Somerton (3 miles away) hosts a restaurant, bakery and wine shop, championing the very best of local producers and the West Country. The bakery is well worth checking out even if you don’t book for dinner.
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The White Hart in Somerton is another foodie pub (the kitchen team is led by Tom Blake who used to be River Cottage head chef) with a lovely beer garden to boot, and great cocktails.
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The Devonshire Arms also ticks all the boxes for a great evening out. It’s in the local village of Long Sutton (3 miles) and has a beautiful garden as well as a rather lovely bar and restaurant area inside the Grade II former hunting lodge.
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Osip in Bruton is a Michelin starred farm-to-table restaurant that offers a menu du jour or tasting menu with optional wine pairing. They don't have a menu as such, but serve what they have cultivated themselves and what is available that day.
There are some great cafes with our closest again in Pitney (we are very lucky) and some in Langport (3 miles away):
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Pitney Farm Cafe - you couldn’t get much more local - it’s just over a mile, or a leisurely 20 minute stroll, up the lane to the farm cafe and shop. The cafe uses everything grown, picked and produced from the farm itself, all of which is organic.
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Kitchen at the Wharf - offering freshly made and very tasty food from breakfasts through to lunch with cakes, coffee and cream teas too. Sit beside the river or inside the lovely high-ceilinged wharf building itself.
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The Bridge Bakery and Canteen - another opportunity to sit beside the river and enjoy great coffee and food guilt free - they recycle as much as possible and source all of their products to cut down on packaging, as well as using seasonal and local ingredients.
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Art Tea Zen - a quirky coffee shop in the heart of Langport which is worth a visit just for the interior of the loo alone, not to mention their delicious lunches, coffee and cakes!
Shop...
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The Pitney Farm Shop is right next to the Farm Cafe, needless to say, and is one of Somerset’s leading farm shops, providing organic produce to a number of the top restaurants in the area including 28 Market Place. They produce their own meat, eggs and veggies as well as selling other locally sourced organic ingredients, drinks and essentials such as milk.
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In Langport you’ll find a small Tesco as well as a great butcher (Black Sheep) and delicatessens (The Langport Stores and Parrett Deli & Dine), a local fresh wet fish van on a Friday and brilliant bakery (Little Bakery).
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In Somerton you’ll find a Co-Op, a great greengrocer (Nature’s Pantry), Market Bakery, Cobbs Wholefoods and local award winning bakers Burns The Bread.
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In the next door village of Upton is Upton Bridge Farm Shop, selling a wide range of 'sustainably reared, grassfed and pedigree -Beef, Pork and Chicken' as well as a whole variety of locally sourced products and produce including lovely gift items and more.
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Takeaways:
If you don’t fancy cooking in or eating out, there are various takeaway options in both Langport and Somerton. Both towns have fish and chips, Indian (Cardamom, Spice Gallery), Chinese, and Langport also has Chinese/Japanese and a fabulous Thai - the Thai Mango.
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Nearby Street hosts Clark's Village - an outlet shopping experience home to over 90 designer and high street shops with up to 60% off RRP. Street also has a large Sainsbury's, Tesco and Lidl
Visit...
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We have too many lovely places to mention so here are just a few...
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Glastonbury - home of the world famous Glastonbury Festival, Glastonbury is also home to the equally famous Glastonbury Tor which is visible across the landscape for miles around. Glastonbury has a rich history of spirituality, myths, legend and Ley-lines and the Abbey is the reputed burial place of King Arthur.
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Hauser & Wirth - Situated just outside Bruton, Hauser & Wirth showcases a 'dynamic schedule of exhibitions' featuring an ever-changing mix of artists and sculptures. Oudolf Field is their perennial meadow, designed by Piet Oudolf. They also have the Roth Bar & Grill restaurant and the fabulous Durslade farm shop on site.
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The Jurassic Coast - A UNESCO World Heritage site the Jurassic Coast includes 95 miles of coastline famous for its stunning walks, outstanding rocks, fossils, and geology. It includes towns such as Bridport, Weymouth and Lyme Regis as well as West Bay, famous for Chesil beach, one of Dorset's most iconic landmarks.
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Wells and Wells Cathedral - Steeped in history, the medieval city of Wells has plenty to see and do, including the cathedral and Bishop's Palace & gardens - the home to the Bishop of Bath & Wells for over 800 years. It has a fab local market on a Wednesday and Saturday selling local food, produce and goods.
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The beautiful and historical city of Bath is just over an hour away too. It's packed with plenty of attractions, such as the cathedral and spa, as well as tonnes of shops, restaurants and bars.
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National Trust Houses, Castles & Courts - If it's stately homes, iconic gardens or ancient castles you're after, Somerset has a few! From Lytes Cary (8 miles away) to Tintinhull Gardens (12 miles) there's plenty to visit in the local vicinity.
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Fleet Air Arm Museum and the Haynes Motor Museum - If the weather proves inclement, you can always pop in to the largest collection of Naval aircraft in Europe, or the multi-award winning motor museum. Both have various events on throughout the year and are well worth a visit.
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Do...
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​ We have some gentle circular walks right from our very own doorstep and some beautiful river walks starting in nearby Langport.
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Cider Tasting! - There are numerous places to sample the best that Somerset has to offer in the way of cider. Harry's is an award-winning artisan craft producer, located super close to us, in the next door village of Long Sutton. Just a few miles further on is the Bere Cider Company, who also create fabulous craft ciders from their working farm. The Somerset Cider Brandy Company & Burrow Hill Cider is also just over 8 miles away, where they distil their own award-winning cider into equally delicious (if a bit stronger) cider brandy. And not forgetting Heck's over in Street, who have a whole range of their own ciders and perrys available to sample in their farm shop and to purchase ready-bottled or straight from the barrel.
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Basket Making - The Willows & Wetlands Centre - Coates English Willow runs courses on basket making on select dates through the year. They also have a visitor centre and run guided tours on all aspects of growing and weaving willow.
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Alpaca Walking - There are lots of places offering alpaca walks in Somerset - we haven't tried any out so can't recommend any in particular, but a quick 'Google' will bring you up to speed!