Terms & Conditions
Payment for your Stay
All bookings are made safely via our website using a credit or debit card. When you make a booking via our online reservation system you will receive an immediate automated booking summary by email to the email address you provided. The booking will then be formally confirmed by a personal email from us within 48hrs and this will form our contract. Please make sure you use an email address you check regularly and a mobile number (not landline).
The booking system on our website will take a 30% non-refundable deposit and the balance is then due 30 days before your arrival. If your stay is less than 30 days away the system will take the full amount. You will be sent an automated email with a link to pay your balance so please use an email which you check regularly. If your balance is not paid by the due date, we reserve the right to re let your accommodation and retain your deposit.
Middle Stone Farm only accepts bookings from persons over 18 years of age. We reserve the right, at all times, without statement of reasons, to refuse or cancel a booking.
Cancellation
Please ensure that you have adequate travel insurance to cover you in the event that you need to cancel your stay with us. If you cancel within 30 days of your stay, we will do our best to re-let your accommodation. If we take the same value booking, we will refund you in full less an administration fee of £40 to cover our time re-marketing. If we have to take a price reduction for a new booking this will be reflected in your refund along with the administration fee of £40. If the accommodation remains empty, we regret there will be no refund. (For peak holiday dates we should be able to easily re sell your booking when demand exceeds supply.)
If you cancel up to 60 days before your stay we would normally be able to re sell the date and give you a refund, less the administration fee. If however we do not take a new booking we will retain the deposit paid.
In the unlikely event that we need to cancel your stay (to perform maintenance for example) we will do our best to offer you a suitable alternative, either alternative dates or a different accommodation. We are not liable for any losses you incur linked to the changed booking.
If we cannot provide your holiday due to unforeseen events beyond our control for example: war, terrorism, civil unrest, industrial action, flooding, natural disaster, epidemics, pandemics, lockdowns, health risks and similar events (Force Majeure) we will do our best to offer you alternative dates, we will not be liable for refunds. We highly recommend you have appropriate travel insurance cover.
Please note in cases where we offer you any refund our administration charge is £40
Covid 19.
If your stay falls in a National Lockdown and have to close, we will offer to move your booking to a new date. Please note there could be a price adjustment depending on the season.
If you need to cancel your stay due a Local Lockdown in your region, or if you have to self isolate or have symptoms of Covid 19 please get in touch as soon as possible so we can re advertise your stay. If we cannot re book your stay and the accommodation remains empty then we will not unfortunately be able to give you a refund.
Check In 5pm
Check in from March to November is from 5pm. (If you are staying in the cottage or cabin during the winter, we will be able to offer a 4pm check in.) Please make sure you arrive in daylight if you are staying in a safari tent. Our latest arrival time for the tents is 8pm, if you think you'll arrive later please get in touch to discuss.
Parking
There is a designated parking space for each accommodation with space for 2 cars per safari lodge, 1 car for the cabin and 1 car for the cottage. If you think you are coming in more cars, please get in touch.
Note: We do not have an electric car charger on the farm and we do not allow cars to be charged from our domestic electrical sockets.
Check Out 9.30am
All accommodation must be empty by 9.30am and for you to be leaving the farm at this time please. We require guests to bag their linen and put out rubbish and recycling. Furniture, fittings and fixtures must be returned to please and shop purchases must be paid for before you leave. Please leave your accommodation nicely, do your washing up and let us know if anything is broken when it happens so we make sure we have replacements for our next guests.
Dog Stays
A single dog is welcome to stay in Kestrel, Hawk and Buzzard Lodges. These safari tents are fenced and gated but we require your dog to be on a lead at all times outside your lodge. We charge £25 to bring a dog and it must be booked in on the reservation form. We do not accept puppies under 8 months or any aggressive breeds (we will ask you the breed of your dog when we confirm your booking), dogs must be in control at all times, healthy without any skin conditions and up to date with injections. Please do not leave your dog on its own when you go out and don't let your dog onto our sofas, beds or hot tubs please. If any dogs appear to be out of control we reserve the right to ask you to leave immediately and there would not be a refund. We reserve the right to retrain money from your deposit if your dog causes damage or soiling.
A single dog may also stay in The Stable Cottage in the winter from November to March. Please do not let your dog into the carpeted bedrooms, sofas or in the hot tubs!
We do not allow dogs in any of our other accommodation and we do not allow any other pet to stay here, including small mammals, birds or reptiles.
Groups
We are not hosting groups at the moment, either groups of friends, families or adult groups due to the Rule of 6 and the Covid situation. Please do not make a group booking for 2021, it is better to wait and see what happens over the winter and if the rules are lifted please make your booking nearer the time.
Adult Stays
We are currently hosting a maximum of 4 adults per safari lodge. The cottage and cabin are both suitable for couple stays, with a maximum of 2 adults in either. Please note we only host families during the school holidays and Bank Holidays. Outside Covid we only host adult groups and hen weekends on certain weekends.
Noise Rules and 10pm noise curfew!
We are not a suitable venue for noisy gatherings and we ask guests to keep voices to a minimum after 10pm and children quiet before 8am, similar to the rules you'll find in lots of family campsites. If you're looking for somewhere to party into the early hours Middle Stone Farm won't be the right place for you.
Why? Because we're a quiet place surrounded by a farming community in beautiful unspoilt countryside and sound of noisy voices travels through the canvas tent walls to our neighbours and other families staying here. Quiet music inside your tent is fine during the day if no one else staying here can hear it, but not after 6pm when families might be settling young children to sleep. After 10pm we expect to hear quiet murmuring voices from guests enjoying the camp fires and hot tubs but not anything louder than this. If guests report noise from other glampers we will come out and ask you to be quiet and this is really embarrassing for all of us. So please consider this before you book to stay here. In exceptional circumstances we reserve the right to ask you to leave if there is repeated noise after having received a couple of warnings. As you will have breached the terms of your contract there would be no refund.
Smoking and Vaping
No smoking or vaping in or around any of our accommodation please.
Occupancy
Your booking form will specify how many people are booked into the accommodation. If you wish to change the makeup of your group please let us know well before you arrive. Please do not exceed our maximum occupancy, if you do we reserve the right to cancel your booking without a refund. We do not allow extra guests beyond what you have entered on your booking form or for extra people to turn up during your stay. We do not allow blow up beds, pitched tents or caravans etc.
· The Deckhouse Cabin sleeps 2 adults and 2 children under the age of 13.
· The Stable Cottage sleeps 2 adults and 2 children under the age of 13.
· Kestrel, Hawk, Buzzard, Fox and Badger Lodges all sleep 6 guests (maximum 4 adults).
· Stag sleeps 8 guests (maximum 4 adults). (During Covid we are restricting the number of guests in Stag to 6.)
We do not allow our accommodation to be used for business purposes (such as making a film) without prior approval.
If you have booked a safari tent we reserve the right to change the tent you are staying in if one is more appropriate, or for a weather related reason. We will let you know before you arrive if we have moved you.
Day Visitors
If you are meeting up with friends or family please do so off the farm remembering the Rule of 6. During Covid we need to know exactly who is on the farm and whose car is whose. So we politely ask you not to have day visitors at the moment, nor for any visitors to sleep over.
Hot Tubs
Each accommodation has its own private wood fired hot tub, these are optional extras and can be hired on the reservation form. Safety instructions for the use of the hot tubs must be adhered to. Children under the age of 5 are not allowed to use the hot tubs due to the risk of overheating. Details about how they work and further safety instructions are in each accommodation and on our website. We offer a hot tub pre heat service in the winter months from November to March, details are on the website.
Safety and Responsibility on The Farm
Due to the proximity of electric cables, livestock and thatched buildings we do not allow kite flying, drones, Chinese lanterns or fireworks on our farm please.
You will be staying on a farm with animals, potentially dangerous farm equipment and several ponds amongst other hazards and it is your responsibility to watch your children at all times. Guests have use of the two glamping fields, please do not enter any other fields.
Please be aware that some of the guest equipment, including the barbecues, hot tubs and wood burning stoves can be dangerous if misused. We will send you a video with fire instructions before you arrive, there are safety instructions in the accommodation and we're always available during your stay if you need our help. Please do not allow children to swing on the wooden tent poles, the tent ropes or the rope fences, they could snap and cause a nasty injury. Use of the facilities at Middle Stone Farm such as the playground is the responsibility of the guest and is done so at their own risk. Children must be supervised at all times.
The safari lodges are set in open fields which can be uneven with areas of long grass and rabbit holes, please make sure you wear suitable footwear - eg welly boots and please make sure you arrive in day light. The hedges and fences may have barbed or electric wire around them, please do not climb on them. The animals on the farm are not tame pets, do not feed them or stroke them unless you are with us or on our farm tour. If you do touch an animal, you must wash your hands with soap and water afterwards. Pregnant women should not touch any of the animals. Please do not wander through any closed gates on the farm. And please do not feed our dogs at any time otherwise they will become a nuisance.
All our accommodation has smoke and carbon monoxide detectors as well as fire extinguishers and fire blankets. Fire guards and heat proof gloves are provided. Each accommodation also has a barbecue which must be kept in the allocated safe area away from the property and must not be moved by guests.
Your Belongings
Whilst you're staying in a safe and peaceful area, please never leave valuables unattended including in your accommodation. We accept no liability for theft, loss or damage to your belongings that may arise from your stay. Please insurance that your home or holiday insurance covers any belongings you bring with you on holiday.
If you have left something here, we suggest you ask a courier to pick your items up so they are traced, or we can take smaller parcels to the post office to send back to you. In either instance we charge a minimum of £10 to do this to cover our time, packing and journey down to Taunton post office.
Damages Deposit
We require a damages deposit of £150 per accommodation and this is taken when you make your booking and refunded 48hrs after you check out. We do not charge for minor breakages, and we hold this in case of serious damage, significant mess, an unpaid shop bill or missing items. In the case of a major problem we reserve the right to charge your card in addition to drawing your damages deposit to cover us for any significant losses exceeding £150.
Cancellation
If you wish to cancel your stay please get in touch as soon as possible to either reschedule your stay or if you no longer wish to have a holiday on the farm, then if we have advance notice we can usually re sell the date so we can then refund you. If someone else books the date we will refund you less £40 to cover advertising and administration costs. Please note if the new booking was discounted this will be reflected in the amount we can refund. If we do not attract a new booking and the accommodation is empty then we unfortunately will be unable to refund your money. It is sensible to buy travel insurance even for holidays in the UK.
What's Included
We provide warm bedlinen (non-feather) and blankets in the cooler months. In the bathroom are towels, bathmats, loo paper, hand soap, non-slip mats and toddler potties. In the kitchen we provide washing up things, tea towels, kitchen paper, some tea, coffee and sugar for the start of your holiday, salt and pepper and kitchen paper. There are lots of books inside all our accommodation and a few board games. We are no longer lending lots of board games or baskets of children's toys unfortunately due to Covid as it is very hard to clean games like monopoly, teddies, toy cars and lego bricks thoroughly be sure they are germ free for the next guests. We also recommend you bring your own hot water bottles if you're glamping when it's cold.
We provide matches, some firelighters and a generous supply of dry seasoned logs and kindling, If you choose to burn the wood on your campfire that's up to you but we would recommend using charcoal from our shop (£5 a sack) or bringing some with you. If you are staying in a safari lodge for a short stay you will have 3 large sacks of logs, if you are staying a week we provide 5 sacks. If you have hired a hot tub there will be an additional 3 sacks of logs for a short stay and up to 5 sacks for a week to heat your water. If you wish to buy more wood after you have used this supply we charge £10 per sack. A large net of kindling is £5. You will find photos of our log bags on our website so you can see what is included in the rent.
Payment for your Stay
All bookings are made safely via our website using a credit or debit card. When you make a booking via our online reservation system you will receive an immediate automated booking summary by email to the email address you provided. The booking will then be formally confirmed by a personal email from us within 48hrs and this will form our contract. Please make sure you use an email address you check regularly and a mobile number (not landline).
The booking system on our website will take a 30% non-refundable deposit and the balance is then due 30 days before your arrival. If your stay is less than 30 days away the system will take the full amount. You will be sent an automated email with a link to pay your balance so please use an email which you check regularly. If your balance is not paid by the due date, we reserve the right to re let your accommodation and retain your deposit.
Middle Stone Farm only accepts bookings from persons over 18 years of age. We reserve the right, at all times, without statement of reasons, to refuse or cancel a booking.
Cancellation
Please ensure that you have adequate travel insurance to cover you in the event that you need to cancel your stay with us. If you cancel within 30 days of your stay, we will do our best to re-let your accommodation. If we take the same value booking, we will refund you in full less an administration fee of £40 to cover our time re-marketing. If we have to take a price reduction for a new booking this will be reflected in your refund along with the administration fee of £40. If the accommodation remains empty, we regret there will be no refund. (For peak holiday dates we should be able to easily re sell your booking when demand exceeds supply.)
If you cancel up to 60 days before your stay we would normally be able to re sell the date and give you a refund, less the administration fee. If however we do not take a new booking we will retain the deposit paid.
In the unlikely event that we need to cancel your stay (to perform maintenance for example) we will do our best to offer you a suitable alternative, either alternative dates or a different accommodation. We are not liable for any losses you incur linked to the changed booking.
If we cannot provide your holiday due to unforeseen events beyond our control for example: war, terrorism, civil unrest, industrial action, flooding, natural disaster, epidemics, pandemics, lockdowns, health risks and similar events (Force Majeure) we will do our best to offer you alternative dates, we will not be liable for refunds. We highly recommend you have appropriate travel insurance cover.
Please note in cases where we offer you any refund our administration charge is £40
Covid 19.
If your stay falls in a National Lockdown and have to close, we will offer to move your booking to a new date. Please note there could be a price adjustment depending on the season.
If you need to cancel your stay due a Local Lockdown in your region, or if you have to self isolate or have symptoms of Covid 19 please get in touch as soon as possible so we can re advertise your stay. If we cannot re book your stay and the accommodation remains empty then we will not unfortunately be able to give you a refund.
Check In 5pm
Check in from March to November is from 5pm. (If you are staying in the cottage or cabin during the winter, we will be able to offer a 4pm check in.) Please make sure you arrive in daylight if you are staying in a safari tent. Our latest arrival time for the tents is 8pm, if you think you'll arrive later please get in touch to discuss.
Parking
There is a designated parking space for each accommodation with space for 2 cars per safari lodge, 1 car for the cabin and 1 car for the cottage. If you think you are coming in more cars, please get in touch.
Note: We do not have an electric car charger on the farm and we do not allow cars to be charged from our domestic electrical sockets.
Check Out 9.30am
All accommodation must be empty by 9.30am and for you to be leaving the farm at this time please. We require guests to bag their linen and put out rubbish and recycling. Furniture, fittings and fixtures must be returned to please and shop purchases must be paid for before you leave. Please leave your accommodation nicely, do your washing up and let us know if anything is broken when it happens so we make sure we have replacements for our next guests.
Dog Stays
A single dog is welcome to stay in Kestrel, Hawk and Buzzard Lodges. These safari tents are fenced and gated but we require your dog to be on a lead at all times outside your lodge. We charge £25 to bring a dog and it must be booked in on the reservation form. We do not accept puppies under 8 months or any aggressive breeds (we will ask you the breed of your dog when we confirm your booking), dogs must be in control at all times, healthy without any skin conditions and up to date with injections. Please do not leave your dog on its own when you go out and don't let your dog onto our sofas, beds or hot tubs please. If any dogs appear to be out of control we reserve the right to ask you to leave immediately and there would not be a refund. We reserve the right to retrain money from your deposit if your dog causes damage or soiling.
A single dog may also stay in The Stable Cottage in the winter from November to March. Please do not let your dog into the carpeted bedrooms, sofas or in the hot tubs!
We do not allow dogs in any of our other accommodation and we do not allow any other pet to stay here, including small mammals, birds or reptiles.
Groups
We are not hosting groups at the moment, either groups of friends, families or adult groups due to the Rule of 6 and the Covid situation. Please do not make a group booking for 2021, it is better to wait and see what happens over the winter and if the rules are lifted please make your booking nearer the time.
Adult Stays
We are currently hosting a maximum of 4 adults per safari lodge. The cottage and cabin are both suitable for couple stays, with a maximum of 2 adults in either. Please note we only host families during the school holidays and Bank Holidays. Outside Covid we only host adult groups and hen weekends on certain weekends.
Noise Rules and 10pm noise curfew!
We are not a suitable venue for noisy gatherings and we ask guests to keep voices to a minimum after 10pm and children quiet before 8am, similar to the rules you'll find in lots of family campsites. If you're looking for somewhere to party into the early hours Middle Stone Farm won't be the right place for you.
Why? Because we're a quiet place surrounded by a farming community in beautiful unspoilt countryside and sound of noisy voices travels through the canvas tent walls to our neighbours and other families staying here. Quiet music inside your tent is fine during the day if no one else staying here can hear it, but not after 6pm when families might be settling young children to sleep. After 10pm we expect to hear quiet murmuring voices from guests enjoying the camp fires and hot tubs but not anything louder than this. If guests report noise from other glampers we will come out and ask you to be quiet and this is really embarrassing for all of us. So please consider this before you book to stay here. In exceptional circumstances we reserve the right to ask you to leave if there is repeated noise after having received a couple of warnings. As you will have breached the terms of your contract there would be no refund.
Smoking and Vaping
No smoking or vaping in or around any of our accommodation please.
Occupancy
Your booking form will specify how many people are booked into the accommodation. If you wish to change the makeup of your group please let us know well before you arrive. Please do not exceed our maximum occupancy, if you do we reserve the right to cancel your booking without a refund. We do not allow extra guests beyond what you have entered on your booking form or for extra people to turn up during your stay. We do not allow blow up beds, pitched tents or caravans etc.
· The Deckhouse Cabin sleeps 2 adults and 2 children under the age of 13.
· The Stable Cottage sleeps 2 adults and 2 children under the age of 13.
· Kestrel, Hawk, Buzzard, Fox and Badger Lodges all sleep 6 guests (maximum 4 adults).
· Stag sleeps 8 guests (maximum 4 adults). (During Covid we are restricting the number of guests in Stag to 6.)
We do not allow our accommodation to be used for business purposes (such as making a film) without prior approval.
If you have booked a safari tent we reserve the right to change the tent you are staying in if one is more appropriate, or for a weather related reason. We will let you know before you arrive if we have moved you.
Day Visitors
If you are meeting up with friends or family please do so off the farm remembering the Rule of 6. During Covid we need to know exactly who is on the farm and whose car is whose. So we politely ask you not to have day visitors at the moment, nor for any visitors to sleep over.
Hot Tubs
Each accommodation has its own private wood fired hot tub, these are optional extras and can be hired on the reservation form. Safety instructions for the use of the hot tubs must be adhered to. Children under the age of 5 are not allowed to use the hot tubs due to the risk of overheating. Details about how they work and further safety instructions are in each accommodation and on our website. We offer a hot tub pre heat service in the winter months from November to March, details are on the website.
Safety and Responsibility on The Farm
Due to the proximity of electric cables, livestock and thatched buildings we do not allow kite flying, drones, Chinese lanterns or fireworks on our farm please.
You will be staying on a farm with animals, potentially dangerous farm equipment and several ponds amongst other hazards and it is your responsibility to watch your children at all times. Guests have use of the two glamping fields, please do not enter any other fields.
Please be aware that some of the guest equipment, including the barbecues, hot tubs and wood burning stoves can be dangerous if misused. We will send you a video with fire instructions before you arrive, there are safety instructions in the accommodation and we're always available during your stay if you need our help. Please do not allow children to swing on the wooden tent poles, the tent ropes or the rope fences, they could snap and cause a nasty injury. Use of the facilities at Middle Stone Farm such as the playground is the responsibility of the guest and is done so at their own risk. Children must be supervised at all times.
The safari lodges are set in open fields which can be uneven with areas of long grass and rabbit holes, please make sure you wear suitable footwear - eg welly boots and please make sure you arrive in day light. The hedges and fences may have barbed or electric wire around them, please do not climb on them. The animals on the farm are not tame pets, do not feed them or stroke them unless you are with us or on our farm tour. If you do touch an animal, you must wash your hands with soap and water afterwards. Pregnant women should not touch any of the animals. Please do not wander through any closed gates on the farm. And please do not feed our dogs at any time otherwise they will become a nuisance.
All our accommodation has smoke and carbon monoxide detectors as well as fire extinguishers and fire blankets. Fire guards and heat proof gloves are provided. Each accommodation also has a barbecue which must be kept in the allocated safe area away from the property and must not be moved by guests.
Your Belongings
Whilst you're staying in a safe and peaceful area, please never leave valuables unattended including in your accommodation. We accept no liability for theft, loss or damage to your belongings that may arise from your stay. Please insurance that your home or holiday insurance covers any belongings you bring with you on holiday.
If you have left something here, we suggest you ask a courier to pick your items up so they are traced, or we can take smaller parcels to the post office to send back to you. In either instance we charge a minimum of £10 to do this to cover our time, packing and journey down to Taunton post office.
Damages Deposit
We require a damages deposit of £150 per accommodation and this is taken when you make your booking and refunded 48hrs after you check out. We do not charge for minor breakages, and we hold this in case of serious damage, significant mess, an unpaid shop bill or missing items. In the case of a major problem we reserve the right to charge your card in addition to drawing your damages deposit to cover us for any significant losses exceeding £150.
Cancellation
If you wish to cancel your stay please get in touch as soon as possible to either reschedule your stay or if you no longer wish to have a holiday on the farm, then if we have advance notice we can usually re sell the date so we can then refund you. If someone else books the date we will refund you less £40 to cover advertising and administration costs. Please note if the new booking was discounted this will be reflected in the amount we can refund. If we do not attract a new booking and the accommodation is empty then we unfortunately will be unable to refund your money. It is sensible to buy travel insurance even for holidays in the UK.
What's Included
We provide warm bedlinen (non-feather) and blankets in the cooler months. In the bathroom are towels, bathmats, loo paper, hand soap, non-slip mats and toddler potties. In the kitchen we provide washing up things, tea towels, kitchen paper, some tea, coffee and sugar for the start of your holiday, salt and pepper and kitchen paper. There are lots of books inside all our accommodation and a few board games. We are no longer lending lots of board games or baskets of children's toys unfortunately due to Covid as it is very hard to clean games like monopoly, teddies, toy cars and lego bricks thoroughly be sure they are germ free for the next guests. We also recommend you bring your own hot water bottles if you're glamping when it's cold.
We provide matches, some firelighters and a generous supply of dry seasoned logs and kindling, If you choose to burn the wood on your campfire that's up to you but we would recommend using charcoal from our shop (£5 a sack) or bringing some with you. If you are staying in a safari lodge for a short stay you will have 3 large sacks of logs, if you are staying a week we provide 5 sacks. If you have hired a hot tub there will be an additional 3 sacks of logs for a short stay and up to 5 sacks for a week to heat your water. If you wish to buy more wood after you have used this supply we charge £10 per sack. A large net of kindling is £5. You will find photos of our log bags on our website so you can see what is included in the rent.
