Canterbury luxury bed and breakfast, England
How this holiday makes a difference
Environment
The Kent Downs AONB is a special place and we rejoice in our position at its very heart by working hard to preserve it for future generations. We encourage our guests to share our appreciation of the countryside and its wildlife and being directly situated on the Elham Valley Way and North Downs Way, it is easy to share the pleasure we appreciated on a daily basis.
We work hard to do our bit to preserve its character, and both Lizzie and Martin are part of the Bishopsbourne Parish Council - Lizzie is passionate about reducing urbanisation in the village and is vocal about its upkeep and presentation. The village is a special place and by being involved gives both Lizzie and Martin a sense of satisfaction that they are 'doing their bit'.
Here in the Elham Valley, we have a long-established tradition of mixed farming (of arable, livestock and horticulture) which covers over 74% of the AONB. Expansive arable fields surround the village and although this is grazed mainly by sheep, our local landowner has recently introduced some old breed cattle - Dexter Browns - and these can be seen happily grazing in the fields around Beechborough B&B. There is also an increasing provision for leisure; including equine activities and shooting and we can happily recommend a couple of excellent horse riding facilities and shoots nearby (both within walking distance!)
Lizzie has also been involved in a new initiative called the Elham Valley Visitors Group (KEVVG for short). This has been started to promote the Elham Valley to a wider audience and aims to get visitors to the area involved in local crafts and really experience what the Elham Valley has to offer - of course if you want to know more, there is a website - www.kentselhamvalley.co.uk - where you can find out lots of information. Beechborough B&B is listed there too and Lizzie tries to give as much time to this group when she can.
Our District Council has been running an excellent recycling scheme for some time now. Plastic bottles, food packs, paper and cardboard are collected on a regular basis. Lizzie recycles all the glass via a bottle bank. Whilst we would like to recycle food waste, having a smaller garden means a compost would attract vermin, so garden waste is collected and anything over goes on the allotment. Food waste is something that does not occur in our house - Martin has an excellent appetite, anything he can't eat gets finished by the dog! Needless to say, our landfill waste is therefore minimal.
Much of the Elham Valley provides surprisingly tranquil and remote countryside (considering we are so crowded here in the South East) – offering dark night skies (Bishopsbourne has no street lighting and long may it stay that way) and peace away from road traffic. We would always recommend low carbon public transport during your stay - the bus stop is only a short walk up Frog Lane and provides direct access into Canterbury and most of the surrounding villages on the Elham Valley Way. It's easy to jump on and off and saves the hassle of parking.
Water is too precious to waste and, when it rains, we savour every drop. We gather rainwater in water butts and even on my allotment I've fashioned a shelter to collect rainwater!
And we of course choose suppliers that match our environmental values and shop locally where we can. Enjoy our locally farmed bacon - happy pigs do create yummy meat.
Community
Here at Beechborough B&B, and living in such a beautiful area, we benefit from being part of a close knit local community. We're proud of our our high quality local eggs, milk and produce, and serve it to you at breakfast, (along with freshly squeezed orange juice). Our jam is made locally and our bread is home baked daily.
We're always happy to recommend places where you can buy produce and food and locally made things to take back home from local shops, pubs, restaurants and in some cases farm gates!
We encourage our guests to visit our local pub, The Mermaid - CAMRA listed, where you will receive a warm welcome from Steve and Jackie. It's the place to try beer from Shepherd Neame, Britain's oldest brewery. It's based in Faversham, and it offers brewery tours if you want to know more.
We invite our guests to join us in keeping traditional tastes alive by visiting one of the local farmers markets held at weekends, where you can try before you buy and talk to producers. Another option is even more educational! We can point you in the direction of the national fruit collection at Brogdale, where you can learn everything there is to know about apples, orchards and fruit growing - and even buy the plants (in season) if you're interested.
We shop at a local produce shop which means that I can talk to the producer and find out how the food is grown, raised or produced and when it was picked.
And another important point is that our fresh local produce tastes better beacuse it's fresher. Food that hasn’t travelled for great distances will have retained more of its vitamins and minerals. We eat seasonally at Beechborough B&B and so can you! It also cuts down on 'food miles', the distance travelled to get your produce to us. The average item on supermarket shelves travels over 1000 miles increasing the use of fossil fuels and adds to global warning. So we all benefit.
We recognise local issues and actively campaign to address them as both Lizzie and Martin are members of the Parish Council.
We support local projects & people through volunteering, fundraising or charity and have recently helped with the fundraising efforts at our local church.
Landscape
We welcome guests from near and far and hope that although you arrive as strangers, you will leave as friends. Many have fallen in love with what the Elham Valley has to offer and we see many frequent visitors - always a pleasure to welcome back old friends! We try our best to help everyone feel welcome and hope that you enjoy the Garden of England as much as we do.
Even if you're thinking of visiting us for the first time, you can always be confident of a genuinely warm and friendly welcome, and we'll be ready with a nice cup of tea, a cold drink or a glass of wine if you need it, after a long drive or a hard day at work. The choice is yours.
We take pride on being local experts, so feel free to pick our brain about things to see and do in the local area. According to your interests and the weather we can recommend a variety of wonderful local walks from our door: such as a simple evening stroll through the meadow adjacent to the village church which has some stained glass that dates from the 13th Century. If you're interested in encountering our local wildlife, or seeing wild flowers, (in spring or early summer) we know where they can be found; and when you're most likely to have an opportunity to see (or hear) them. Just ask.
We're on the Elham Valley Way and many of our guests enjoy the beauty of this well maintained walk. It's a recreational route that runs all the way from Hythe to Canterbury, approximately following the courses of the Seabrook Stream and River Nailbourne (ask us about the legend involving St. Augustine). The route is easy to follow and marked with arrows. so really keen walkers can experience the whole route in both directions over a weekend. It passes through some of Kent's finest landscapes. We can help you plan your route on the map and give you tips about things to look out for, from the seaside bustle of Hythe, to the Seabrook Valley, the dramatic escarpment of the downs, un-spoilt villages such as Elham, and the ornamental parklands and ancient woodlands near Barham. Don't forget to bring your camera; and, if you have one, you could, like some of our guests, bring your bike too. If you need a picnic, please ask, as I'm happy to put together a little something for a small charge.
We find our guests welcome our no shoe policy inside the house; but don't worry, we always welcome walkers and cyclists, so we'll always find somewhere to dry wet clothes and store the muddiest of wellies and walking boots.
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