The Bide

Rural Romance with Eco-Credibility

Handbuilt during lockdown by an architect and designer couple, this contemporary cabin on a working farm takes rural living to the next level. The compact structure showcases innovative styling and finely honed, sustainable details, from its hand-bolted, forest-certified framework to its sheep’s wool insulation, waterless toilet, locally produced organic mattress, and its picture window taking in the rolling, animal-dotted fields.

Constructed by an architect and design pro during lockdown, this cabin rental in England is a compact, next-generation rural getaway. Built using the Wikihouse design system, the cabin’s framework was cut by CNC router and bolted onsite by hand. Sheep’s wool and wood fiber insulation keep the tightly designed structure cozy, and innovative green features include a waterless toilet from Sweden, an exhilarating, vaporized, low-water shower, plus a wood-fired outdoor hot tub with ebony night skies as its starry backdrop.

Keeping it local and eco-friendly is the goal here, and the cabin’s owners provide loads of thoughtful extras that take this rural crib to the next level. Think food inspiration—a chef’s one-pot guidebook—for cool, creative meals created in the tiny blue kitchen, as well as locally produced wines and provisions (including estate-grown bubbly wines or breakfast boxes from a neighboring farm). Other features we love include a hand-picked wee library with locally-inspired titles, an in-house cinema for chilly nights, and curated playlists for every season and mood.

Created for rest and supreme relaxation, the lofty bedroom features a super-king-sized mattress from the next county over and a sweet dormer window that serves as a screen overlooking the natural world outside.

AROUND

This cabin rental in England is tucked into a wooded glen on a working farm in Dorset, outside the village of Milton Abbas, a picturesque community famous for its thatched dwellings and rolling, rural scenery. This is classic English countryside, northeast of Dorchester in an area of wildflower-dotted fields. The cabin’s nearest neighbors are the cows, geese, sheep and hens that graze the verdant landscape, and the village is accessible via fields and foothpath about a mile, or a 45-minute walk, away. 

There’s a local farm shop for supplies and a cozy pub set among the town’s 36 identical cottages. Hiking and exploring the Jubilee Trail on foot is possible right out the cabin’s door, as the trail from Somerset to Hampshire runs through the farm. Further afield, sightseeing opportunities, if you choose to leave the cabin’s cozy embrace, include the Jurassic Coast and beaches about a 35-minute drive away, and the South West Coastal Path trailhead.

LOCATION

Milton Abbas, Dorset, England, UK. Nearest airport: Bournemouth, Southampton

BEST TIME TO VISIT: Spring and summertime, but the cabin can be booked year-round as the structure is highly insulated.