The first things you’ll notice on a stay at Gotten Manor are the individual touches: fresh flowers, fluffy bathrobes, candles, crisp white sheets and flowing muslin drapes that decorate the huge claw foot iron baths which intrude into the rooms. It’s all very simple, uncluttered and yet Caroline Gurney- Champion has fashioned a wonderfully atmospheric environment in her hideaway house that sits in a sheltered hollow at the foot of St. Catherine’s Down in south Wight.

Everything here spells romance. Couples in the first flush of romance come to Gotten and get engaged, celebrate an anniversary or simply enjoy each other’s company. They describe it variously as “bliss,” “perfect”, “sensuous” or simply “paradise” and you can understand their point of view. Surrounded by open farmland with a lovely old woodland to one side (home to bats, badgers and all manner of wildlife), Gotten Manor is a very peaceful, private retreat. “We’re absolutely in the middle of nowhere,” says Caroline.

There are two rooms for bed and breakfast stays in the Old House, a separate part of the Manor complex which can trace its history back to Domesday times. These have been fashioned from reclaimed timbers and traditional materials, their walls decorated with lime wash in soft pastels and floors laid with wood planks. Guests breakfast in a beautiful dining room, once the farm creamery, on local organic andfree range fare and can taste Caroline’s astonishing collection of homemade jams. It couldn’t be more relaxing, more informal.

Across the way, old stone farm buildings – the Cart House and The Milk House – provide attractive self-catering accommodation for families and friends. In common with the rooms in the Old House, these have been converted with tremendous flair and using techniques to make them ecologically sound. “Why ever not,” said Caroline Gurney-Champion, “I was brought up to care and conserve, I have brought my own children up the same way. It is common sense to want to protect the environment – and it’s so easy to make an effort.”

A romantic adventure in the deepest countryside, with only cows for neighbours

On the door step
Climb St. Catherine’s Down for staggering views and spot rare plants as well as the edieval Pepper Pot, Britain’s second oldest lighthouse. Explore wilderness beaches elow the crumbling cliffs at Blackgang and Chale.

Going Green
Full recycling and energy efficiency made Gotten Manor Green Island Tourism’s top award winner in 2006. Look out too for Gotten’s wildlife audit kits.