A new ‘digital detox’ cabin has been built just outside Greater Manchester, where guests are invited to lock their phones in a box.
The holiday home comes from Unplugged, a company that already has a similar cabin in Cheshire as well as a more than a dozen more across the country.
The aim is to allow guests to full switch-off and reset, in beautiful countryside locations.
This particular new pet-friendly cabin, known as Peggy, is situated just off Cheshire’s ‘Sandstone Trail’ near Tarporley, and has lush countryside views.
Unplugged says it wants its guests to embrace a tech-free weekend, saying it can ‘improve problems associated with high screentime, such as brain fog, poor sleep quality, anxiety and lack of productivity’.
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The bathroom in Peggy. Credit: SuppliedThe kitchen area in Unplugged’s Peggy cabin. Credit: SuppliedPeggy by Unplugged is surrounded by countryside. Credit: Supplied
On the three-night digital detoxes, you’re encouraged to stash your devices in a lockbox, which are swapped for an old-school Nokia (with Snake), a physical map of the surroundings, an instant camera with film, and a cassette player.
But although there’s no tech, there are still enough creature comforts to keep it feeling like a holiday, including a hot shower, hotel-quality bedding, and a fully-equipped kitchen with a gas hob.
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The business was created by entrepreneurs, friends and co-founders, Hector Hughes and Ben Elliot, who themselves felt they were spending too much time behind a screen.
Hector said: “Since we introduced Luna to the Cheshire region last October, we’ve been at an almost full capacity. This demonstrates there’s a demand for accessible destinations to help people living in these areas resolve problems associated with burn out, stress, tiredness – and too often these come associated with too much screentime.
Panoramic windows inside Unplugged’s Peggy cabin. Credit: Supplied
“As well as the health benefits enjoyed, we’re also noticing an increase in people choosing to stay to help them reconnect with themselves, as well as their partners. Digital detoxes allow for quality time without the constant distraction of their devices, and we’ve even hosted a few engagements too! It was therefore an easy, natural decision to give Luna a sister, and we’re delighted to welcome Peggy this spring.”
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Peggy runs solely on solar panels, and has panoramic windows allowing guests to swap ‘blue light’ for ‘starlight’.
All escapes are on a three-night minimum, and start from £390 per cabin.
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 -
7th May 2023 
