There’s a barn conversion in the Peak District that has struck an almost-impossible balance between true rural countryside setting, and absolute luxury.
While most countryside staycations involve a degree of ruggedness – whether it’s shovelling sawdust into a toilet or having to wrestle a log burner to get some heat in the room – Stanage Barn has nothing of the sort.
This luxury converted barn is so remote you’re taken there by your hosts in an off-road buggy, but is fitted with absolutely every modern comfort you could dream of.
A spa-worthy bathroom, modern interiors, ultra-fast WiFi, a wine fridge, recliner chairs, and a premium bed all match with its incredible rural countryside location for a truly world-class staycation.
They’ve even pampered your four-legged friends with this conversion, factoring in a utility room with a dog wash sink in it.
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The family who run this spot shunned any quaint barn conversion template and instead drew on Scandi architecture and modern touches to deliver such luxury.
There are the angular tables and worktops, the wooden-clad walls, the indoor-outdoor element from huge picture windows and sliding doors. It really is an architectural marvel.
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Even the walk between the bedroom and the bathroom will take your breath away, with a floating walkway separating the two.
Inside Stanage Barn in the Peak District
There’s a kitchen fitted with – genuinely – everything you could need. Anyone ever stayed in a place where they give you Tupperware and a salad spinner?
And if you don’t want to spend a minute inside with such beautiful surroundings, there’s an outdoor BBQ too.
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With such comfortable accommodation it’s easy to forget that you are actually in proper Peak District countryside. Until you look out the window and a sheep’s looking back at you, that is.
Stanage Barn is right near Stanage Edge, one of the Peak’s most famous landmarks, and is walking distance from the village of Hathersage and its lido, country pubs and pretty cobbled streets.
Fair warning though – the walk back is beautiful, crossing streams and fields full of sheep, but that last stretch to the barn itself is steep. Nothing a chilled glass of wine in your private, enclosed courtyard as the sun sets can’t fix though.
If you’re on the hunt for a countryside escape but really aren’t here for the yurt life, Stanage Barn is, hands-down, the best Peak District spot for you.
The cosy Peak District pub serving a pick’n’mix sausage and mash menu
Daisy Jackson
There’s a Peak District pub that’s turned one of Britain’s most beloved comfort foods into a full-on pick’n’mix.
Tucked away in the postcard-perfect village of Castleton, Ye Olde Nags Head is serving up a fully customisable menu of sausage and mash dishes.
We’re talking near-endless combinations of proper pub grub.
You start by choosing your sausages from a daily rotating selection (not a sentence you hear every day, but we’re into it).
Expect classics like Cumberland alongside more adventurous options like venison and mustard, or even wild boar and orange, plus a veggie sausage daily.
Then it’s onto the mash – you can go for flavours like cheese and onion, wholegrain mustard, or even black pudding mash.
Classic cumberland, mustard mash, and mushroom sauceVeggie sausage with cheese and onion mash and classic gravyTucking in
To finish? A choice of rich, hearty gravies and sauces to bring it all together, whether that’s a classic onion gravy, a peppercorn sauce, or a creamy wild mushroom sauce.
And if that wasn’t enough, you can even upgrade your bangers and mash pick’n’mix by having it all served inside a giant Yorkshire pudding.
Ye Olde Nags Head is a historic 17th-century pub, with a roaring fire in every room and cosy bedrooms upstairs.
Inside Ye Olde Nags Head pub in the Peak DistrictYe Olde Nags Head pub is near Mam Tor
It’s one of those flagstone-floored, beamed-ceilinged, mismatched-furniture type pubs that welcomes everyone in every state, whether you’re caked in mud from a hike or popping in on a coach tour.
Another of the pub’s specialties is the Derbyshire Breakfast, a hearty plate of sausage, smoked bacon, black pudding, free range egg, grilled tomatoes, field mushrooms, baked beans and fried bread.
The pub also offers takeaway breakfast butties, so you can use it for both a pre-hike stop and a post-hike pint.
Given it’s just minutes from the ever-popular Mam Tor hike, this is one pub you’ll definitely want to add to your next Peak District day out itinerary.
The hillside farm in the Peak District making its own ice cream
Daisy Jackson
Did you know there’s a 300-year-old farm in the Peak District serving up some of the freshest ice cream you’ll ever taste? And yes, you can meet the cows that made it while you’re there.
Welcome to Hope Valley Ice Cream, a family-run gem where things are kept refreshingly simple: happy cows, proper farming, and seriously good ice cream.
Set in the heart of the Peak District countryside, this place is about as wholesome as it gets.
The ice cream is made on-site in the farmhouse, literally just metres from where the dairy herd are out grazing.
You can watch the animals, wander around the farm, and then tuck into a scoop or three perched on a milk pail stool, or a picnic bench (or even a decorative tractor).
Hope Valley Ice Cream has some amazing seasonal ice creams, like lemon curd, elderflower, and blackberry, alongside all the classics and a rather delicious tiramisu.
You can grab a cone, sit down with a coffee (again, made with milk from the nearby cows), or go all in with a freshly-made waffle if you’re feeling fancy.
Takeaway tubs from Hope Valley Ice CreamYou can get a mini pail of ice creamMeet the newborn calves at Hope Valley Ice CreamTuck into your ice cream on a milk pail stoolHope Valley Ice Cream
And if you’re the type who really loves ice cream? You can actually order a full pail of it, with four huge scoops plus whipped cream and sauce.
The farm itself is run by the Marsden family, who’ve been working this land for generations. It shows in everything – they’ve created a place that feels genuinely welcoming, not just another tourist stop.
Beyond the ice cream, you’ve got plenty of reasons to stick around. There are calves (including the newest tiny arrivals), plus donkeys and pigs to say hello to.
Whether you’re heading out on a hike or just fancy a drive into the Peaks, this is one pitstop that’s absolutely worth it – and honestly, it’s worth the trip on its own.
Daisy Jackson -
21st June 2025 
