Things to do in Hay-on-Wye

Hey All

A few weeks ago I wrote about C and I's stay at Cosy under Canvas, this week I thought I'd share what we got up to in Hay-On-Wye and what there is to do and explore in the surrounding area if you take a trip and fancy some adventures.

Explore Hay-On-Wye

Hay-on-Wye is a little market town which is great for a explore around. It's got lots of shop to pop in to especially book shops. We enjoyed browsing around the shop and popping in to cafes for a cup of tea here! I don't have photos of Hay-On-Wye as it absolutely tipped it down as we were here!

Canoeing 

I was sceptical about going canoeing as I'd gone once when I was in school and was awful but this was really good! We opted for the short route which I think is a five mile trip. You canoe down, call the company and they come and pick you up. It was great to be out on the river and nice to relax. It's a really easy canoe ride too so great if you're a beginner! We went with Wye Valley Canoes and couldn't fault them. As it was October when we went we didn't need to book but if there are large groups or it's peak seasons I'd recommend booking. At Wye Valley Canoes there is also an amazing accommodation including a slide to get down stairs! C and I loved it and would love to go back with a big group of friends or on stag/hen dos!

Cafes

Next to Wye Valley Canoes is the River Cafe. We visited this cafe three times and we were only there 5 days! We loved it, amazing cakes, great coffee and really nice surroundings. We only samples a variety of cakes and didn't try the food but that looked great too!

Clay pigeon shooting and archery

Lastly we decided to go and do something we wouldn't normally do. After a quick google and emailing various companies Black Mountain Adventures got back to me. We weren't sure what we wanted to do and they offered loads of different activites we could do and in the end we decided on Clay pigeon shooting and archery. Both of which are half day activities so we combined them to have a full day. Black mountain offer lots from high ropes courses, bike riding and canoeing. 

We loved doing this day as it wasn't something we'd have booked to do if we weren't away for a break. These would be great for team bonding or trips with friends too!

Walking

One thing we didn't get to do when we were there was walks or hikes. Hay-On-Wye is a great base for some great hikes and walks but at the time I was still recovering from a badly sprain ankle so we thought we'd give it a miss. It's perfectly situated to take the Offa's Dyke path and this is something we want to go back to do.

So that was our whirlwind little trip. We spent all of our evenings in our dome and cooked all of our meals. We had planned to eat out but decided we preferred to relax on the site as it meant we could both enjoy a drink and then go in our hot tub!

Have you been to the Hay-On-Wye area? Do you enjoy a few adventure activities?

Love M

xxx

Travel: Cosy Under Canvas Review

Hey All

I've been meaning to write this for a while as C and I absolutely loved our glamping experience and I knew I had to share it. We had decided in late Sept/ early Oct we'd go away. We'd originally planned to go somewhere abroad but dates weren't working out so we decided to look for places to stay in Geodomes as friends of ours had stayed in some in Scotland and loved it. C and I have camped quite a few times since we've been together and loved it but this was a different holiday for us and we wanted a little bit more luxury. After googling we found Cosy under Canvas and we were instantly sold. We went towards the end of the Season and the Holly Dome was the last one available to book.

Cosy under Canvas is located near to Hay-On-Wye, and is a totally off grid site. We loved this as when you arrive you lose phone signal. A short walk up to the main house there is wifi you can use if you need to contact someone but we loved being totally switched off. There are gas hobs in the kitchen area, solar powered lights, composting toilets and wood-fired showers, how amazing is that!! There are 7 domes across the site which can sleep between 4-6 people. I love that it's been kept so small as you don't feel cramped in and have some privacy. Each Dome also comes with a wood fired hot tub and it's own toilet.

On arrival we were instantly wowed, nestled in between woodlands were these amazing domes. They are impressively spacious and looked great. No domes point towards each other as the front is see through so even though it's open you feel like you have privacy. We stayed in the Holly Dome which can sleep up to six people.

How amazing is it inside. Each dome comes with a bed. futons, bean bags, sheep skin rugs, torches, candles and holders and more. Ours even had a little hammock seat. We loved how cosy it was. It was cold as we went so late in the year but the wood burner inside heated it up and little touches like hot water bottles meant it was comfortable at night. We loved the homely feel to it!

We felt so chilled out here it was amazing. Above is the kitchen with a large dining table. There is also a chalk board with what's going on in the local area. Each dome also has a storage and freezer box in the kitchen to store food in. We ended up accidentally ordering a hello fresh box (you can see my review on them here) and it ended up being great as we had everything we needed to make tasty meals easily. The wooden seating is on the decking outside the dome as there are fire pits around the dome which can be used to cook on with tripods and pots also provided. We loved how secluded it all was and getting back to nature but chopping wood for fires and to cook! 

The hot tub was something we loved. On a cold day nothing beats sitting in a lovely warm hot tub. We did have a few issues getting ours lit but Emma came down to help us and got it sorted. We loved how welcoming they were and helpful. Follow the instructions as these do heat up and stay warm. We were concerned it would cool down so left it going too long and it ended up staying way to hot one evening. We also shoved extra logs on it before bed so we could use it in the mornings!

If you need anymore convicing here is the amazing sky views from Cosy Under Canvas!! It's so peaceful at night and we were treated to amazing clear skies.

We definitely want to go back. Have you considered glamping? For more info and some current discount codes check out cosyundercanvas.co.uk.

Love M

xxx