Have some questions? Here’s a selection of questions posed to us, shared here with the intention for our website to be as informative as possible. If you have a question we haven’t covered, please do contact us.
We welcome bookings of up to 10 people, and may accommodate 2 extra infants staying in travel cots.
Much as we love dogs, we regret that we are not able to welcome them, or any other pets, to Barnfield House
Absolutely! Children always have a wonderful time staying at Barnfield House. There are lots of board games and garden games for older children, as well as children’s books. Teens will appreciate the fast speed WiFi throughout the house, as well as the smart TV with Netflix, Amazon Prime and Freesat.
A travel cot, baby bath and high chair is available on request. We also have a selection of toys and books
Children love playing ball games in the flat area of the garden, and building forts in the wilder areas. Parents should note that there is a large unfenced pond in the garden, so young children should be supervised.
No need! Every bed is ready for you, with freshly laundered cotton duvet covers, sheets and pillowcases. Duvets are a mix of microfibre and down, and pillows mostly microfibre. We also provide a hand towel and bath towel for every guest
Yes we have superfast broadband Wi-Fi throughout Barnfield House
Yes we have a Webber BBQ you are welcome to use. Please supply your own charcoal and clean up after use
In winter we supply a basket of logs that should be enough for the first fire. Thereafter you may purchase logs from the supermarket
Sorry, we don’t allow smoking inside Barnfield House, but you may do so outside, away from the house. If you do smoke please be careful to extinguish cigarettes carefully, and to discard your cigarette/cigar butts in the bin.
There is plenty of parking space available at Barnfield House….enough even if every guest is driving separately
Yes, the dining table has two extending leaves. We have 8 silk-upholstered dining chairs, and then you can use an extra two chairs from the kitchen
All our bedrooms are on the 2nd level, and only accessible by stairs
Yes of course. Tesco, Sainsbury, Waitrose and Ocade have all delivered to Barnfield House. You are welcome to arrange a delivery for after you arrive.
Considering we are in a rural area, you have a great choice! The Great House, Royal Oak and Eight Bells are a 10-to-20-minute walk or 5-minute drive from Barnfield House. There’s a Chinese, and Indian restaurant in the village, which do take-aways too. And there’s a fish and chip shop and kebab shop for takeaways too.
We can put you in touch with some excellent private chefs and local caterers who we’re happy to recommend
So sorry, we don’t accept bookings for events of any kind. Barnfield House is only available to families and groups of friends, and the guest limit is 10 (plus 2 infants)
In peak season we need extra time for same-day changeovers, so an early check-in is not possible. Out of season though, we do our best to be flexible on the timing of check-in so please do ask!
Yes of course. We provide the code to a key safe when we know you will be late
We’re on the outskirts of the small Kent village of Hawkhurst, close to the border with East Sussex, a 20-minute drive from Tunbridge Wells and half an hour from Rye and Hastings.
Less than a mile away is Hawkhurst village where there are supermarkets (Waitrose and Tesco), an excellent butcher, a baker — no candlestick maker but a florist, hairdresser, gift and interiors shops
Yes! Hawkhurst village is a 12-minute walk along the pavement
Waitrose and Tesco are less than a mile away; walk in 15 minutes
Fabulous! There’s a butcher in the Hawkhurst Colonnade, and various farm shops within a short drive
Yes you can. Either follow the pavement along the road to Hawkhurst village where you’ll find the Royal Oak and the Queen’s Inn, walk along a country lane to the Great House, or take the footpath up to the Eight Bells on the Moor
There are 4 pubs within a 5-minute drive or 10- to 20-minute walk:
https://elitepubs.com/the-great-house/
https://www.thequeensinnhawkhurst.co.uk/
The Royal Oak
There are plenty of nearby takeaways within a 15-minute walk
Indian (https://www.princeofkent.co.uk/)
Chinese (http://zanchineserestaurants.co.uk/)
Fish & Chips – Hawkhurst Fish Bar
Kebabs – Colonnade KPC
There’s a wonderful network of paths immediately outside Barnfield House. You’ll find Ordinance Survey maps and walking itineraries in your information pack
Please head to the Explore section of the website for ideas
Yes of course, but you will need to book 3 nights so that you can enjoy Barnfield House for the whole of the weekend (rather than check-out at 10am on Sunday).
Absolutely. We have been welcoming holiday renters to Barnfield House for 10 years, through Online Travel Agencies like Airbnb and VRBO, as well as directly. Some 160 family groups have enjoyed staying at the house, whether for 3 nights or a month. Do check our reviews on our website as well as on Trip Advisor and the other platforms to hear directly (and impartially) from past guests about their experience
The large listing sites are applying increasingly large commission and service fees to both owners and guests. We take bookings direct so our guests can avoid these fees and gain the possible price, as well as be in direct contact and start a relationship with us. Of course if you prefer, and don’t mind paying their high commissions, you are welcome to book through Airbnb or VRBO.
You can use our secure online booking system on this website. When you choose your dates (that are confirmed available), a form will appear asking for your details – name, email and address etc. When you go onto the next page it will ask for you to submit a deposit payment via credit card. Once this is submitted and the payment accepted, your reservation is confirmed, and your dates will show booked on our availability calendar. Most people choose to contact us first to check dates. Whatever method you use, we will send a booking form for you to complete. Accommodation is restricted to those included in the booking form.
Simply email us your details or call us and we can hold the dates for you. We will then send an invoice with a request for the deposit payment by card, cheque or BACs.
We trust that our guests will respect our family home and treat it with care and consideration. We take a security deposit of £250, which is refunded within a fortnight of your departure (often much faster). At the end of your holiday we inspect the house and you may be charged for any loss or damage found. We generally don’t charge for minor breakages such as the odd broken glass, and can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times we have had to withhold any part of the security deposit in the last 10 years due to damage, breakages or extra cleaning.
While there is no obligation for you to take our holiday insurance, we do recommend you arrange cover in case of potential cancellations or any accidental damage during your stay. A low cost UK single trip policy is available from many insurers.
When you make your booking we require a 50% deposit to confirm the booking. We will show the exact amount in the Booking Form we will send you… no need to reach for a calculator! The balance plus cleaning fee and security/damages deposit is payable 60 days before arrival, and we’ll send an email reminder so you don’t have to rely on your memory.
You have a choice of bank transfer or credit card, whichever suits you best. Just let us know your preference and we will send you our banking details or an invoice via Stripe (for secure credit card payments).
The rental gives you exclusive access to the house and grounds during your stay, and includes utility bills, WiFi, and a basket of logs (in winter). We provide tea towels, washing up liquid and liquid soap, and a starter pack of loo rolls and cleaning equipment.
We ask for a £120 cleaning fee which covers laundry of bedlinen and towels and contributes to light cleaning at the end of your stay. We do ask that guests leave Barnfield House clean and tidy, in the same condition as they found it, to avoid our having to retain a portion of the security deposit as payment for extra cleaning
4pm is the standard check-in time, and you can arrive any time after – but if you’d like to arrive earlier please always ask as out of high season we are able to be more flexible.
10am – but please always ask if this is a challenge for you as we can be more flexible on the timing when the next guests are not arriving that same day.