An octagonal, stone-built toll house shaded by trees.

Book Self-Catering Holidays in Quirky Holiday Cottages

Fancy a self-catering holiday in a quirky and unusual holiday property? Who wouldn’t say no to a holiday with friends in a luxury lighthouse or a beautifully restored Napoleonic Fort?

Search here to find an architecturally unique holiday cottage for a more than usually memorable holiday with family or friends. The UK has a splendid choice of distinctive and unusual character cottages appealing to those looking for something slightly different from a traditional house. 

While quirky cottages are not the ‘everyday’ holiday property, they still offer the same standards, facilities, and amenities you would expect to find in any decent holiday property worth its salt. Types of out-of-the-ordinary holiday lets include (but are not limited to):

  • Lighthouses
  • Windmills
  • Restored railway stations and carriages
  • Castles and Forts.
  • Shepherds Huts
  • Narrow Boats
  • Tree-houses
  • Signal boxes
  •  Follies 

View this collection of distinctive holiday properties to find one with that ‘must-stay’ funky factor for a long holiday or just a weekend break.

Semi detached cottage with conservatory and lawned garden.
Sleeps
8
Bedrooms
4

Blagdon Cottage is an elegant and isolated Exmoor holiday cottage in Wheddon Cross. It offers ample grounds with country views, a lovely garden, wooden panelling, an open-plan design, a delightful sunroom and the peaceful tranquillity that comes from its rural location high up on Exmoor. The large semi-detached cottage welcomes pets and sleeps 7/8 people.

  • Active Holidays
  • Agency Cottages
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Remote Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
Sleeps
4
Bedrooms
2

Part of a brand-new luxury apartment complex in the heart of Woolacombe, Devon, 2 Middlecombe is an accessible two-bedroom, pet-friendly apartment home offering sumptuous accommodation along the North Devon coast. It features a private patio and open-plan living space. Guests enjoy access to an indoor pool and sauna.

  • Accessible Cottages
  • Active Holidays
  • Agency Cottages
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Cottages With Games Rooms
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Holiday Cottages With a Pool
  • Luxury Holiday Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
Sleeps
4
Bedrooms
2

Diamond Cottage is ideally situated in beautiful Chipping Campden, within walking distance of shops, restaurants and pubs, perfect for those looking for some seriously indulgent time away from home.

  • Active Holidays
  • Agency Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Fishing Holidays
  • Luxury Holiday Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
A Cotswold Farm Barn Conversion within a walled garden
Sleeps
4
Bedrooms
2

Boasting Cotswolds yellow stone and exposed beams, Nellie’s Barn is a blend of charm and sophistication. The pet-friendly holiday cottage near Bourton-on-the-Water sits on a farm in the Windrush Valley and offers delightful gardens, on-site fishing, a summer house, a wood burner and countryside walks from the front door.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Farm Cottages
  • Fishing Holidays
  • Luxury Holiday Cottages
  • Remote Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
A double-fronted exterior of a converted coach house with large quartered windows overlooking a flagstoned courtyard.
Sleeps
6
Bedrooms
3

Enjoy relaxing self-catering holidays in a quiet rural corner of the Lancashire countryside at Balloo. This converted 3-bedroom coach house stands on 200 acres of grounds on the Wyreside House Estate with ponds and riverside picnic spots.

  • Active Holidays
  • Agency Cottages
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
Single storey exterior of a barn conversion with a hot tub on its terrace.
Sleeps
6
Bedrooms
3

A charming terraced Shropshire holiday cottage in Alberbury with original oak beams and trusses and a wood burner in the open-plan living area. It sleeps 6 in 3 delightful bedrooms, all en-suite. Add in the private patio with a hot tub, and this is a perfect country cottage for a family holiday!

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Cottages With Games Rooms
  • Cottages with Hot Tubs
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Farm Cottages
  • Independent Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
Sleeps
6
Bedrooms
3

Riverside Lodge is an eco-cottage in the rural village of Washford, Somerset that offers luxury accommodation for up to six guests on holiday in South West England, a pet-friendly lodge with amenities such as two wine fridges, a games room with Xbox and Wi-Fi, and under-floor heating.

  • Agency Cottages
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Eco Cottages
  • Luxury Holiday Cottages
  • Waterside Cottages
Exterior of a large holiday cottage surrounded by spacious lawns.
Sleeps
6
Bedrooms
3

Manicured gardens & open countryside surround Ardsley Cottage, a stylish rural holiday cottage with a hot tub at Longford Hall Farm in Hollington. The elegant cottage sits among the Peak District and Derbyshire Dales & features spacious grounds with lovely views, contemporary comforts and seclusion.

  • Active Holidays
  • Agency Cottages
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Farm Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
A stoine-built cottage overlooks a large lawn.
Sleeps
6
Bedrooms
2

From the delightful hamlet of Cleatlam in North Yorkshire, a stay at The Wood offers families and groups up to six comfortable accommodation from which to explore the region from a countryside cottage that features an attractive brick fireplace, exposed beams, and slate flooring.

  • Active Holidays
  • Agency Cottages
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays