Priory Mill Farm

At Priory Mill owners Noel and Susie Gaskell have taken the raw ingredients of a slice of idyllic Brecon valley, a beautiful farmhouse and a shallow burbling river, then added their own touches to create a site Cath Kidston could package up and sell in her stores. Since purchasing the mill they have slowly and deliberately returned it to its former glory, and now invite us lucky campers to experience it with them. The mill itself is a Grade II* listed corn mill with roots stretching back beyond the sixteenth century, which goes some way to explaining the sense of history that hangs over the place.

Priory Mill is well positioned just outside of Brecon with an easy to access road hidden above the site, but once down in the meadow below you'd never know it (a light sleeper or two has noticed the odd bit of traffic noise, though most don't). Nestled in a narrow valley, the river Honddu runs the length of the site and is shallow enough in places to go for a paddle. It's a Site of Special Scientific Interest bursting with wildlife, so look out for (deep breath) salmon, otter, British crayfish, wild trout and bull-head fish, herons, dippers and kingfishers. Noel is a talented carpenter, and alongside the beautiful furniture in the cottage he has built the toilet block, designed to look like a railway carriage trundling through the valley. The site is full of neat shabby chic touches, such as an original mangle or ribbon-festooned bicycle come site information point, that give the sense every detail has been thought through.

Chickens wander amongst the tents and their eggs are available from the farmhouse for breakfast. The facilities are clean and characterful, though there aren't many of them, so at a busy weekend expect a short queue, and campervan pitches at the far end sit a fair walk from the block (a soggy trot in the rain). Showers are 50p. Firewood is available with fire containers to keep it safe. Nearby Brecon, a ten minute walk away, is full of decent pubs and Hay-on-Wye a short distance further. Gloriously, after 10.30pm the lights go off and there is a no-noise policy, so it will just be the faint burbling of the Honddu that sends you to sleep.