Tarrant Valley House - Sleeps 12 Tarrant Launceston

Tarrant Valley House is on the edge of Tarrant Launceston village. It's a big old farmhouse. We bought it because it had good bones, but we've done a lot to it. It sleeps twelve, which is why it suits families getting together. There are six bedrooms and they all have their own bathroom.

The garden is walled, so it's quite private. There's a good lawn, a tree swing, and space for games. We left the fruit trees in the orchard. There's a games room in one of the outbuildings.

Inside, the kitchen has an Aga and a big table. It's well set up for cooking for a crowd. The family room is where everyone ends up, it has a big corner sofa and a wood burner. There's a separate sitting room if some people want a quieter spot.

There's an indoor heated swimming pool and a sauna in a separate building. You book slots for it when you're here. It's not huge, but it's good for a swim or for the kids.

The stairs are normal. All the bedrooms are upstairs. They're all different sizes. Three of them have freestanding baths in the room as well as a shower.

You can walk to the village pub in about five minutes. It does food. For bigger shops, you'd drive to Blandford Forum, which is about ten minutes away.

Dorset's quite spread out, so you tend to drive to places. The Jurassic Coast is about half an hour's drive. We usually go to Studland Bay or Lulworth. Kingston Lacy, the National Trust house, is about twenty minutes away. For a longer day out, the Tank Museum at Bovington is very popular, or you can get to Salisbury.

Facilities: all bedding and towels are included. There's WiFi, parking, a cot and highchair. We allow up to two well-behaved dogs.

Useful links: National Trust Dorset for local places like Kingston Lacy, and Dorset Council's Jurassic Coast page for information on the coast.