The Newt in Somerset

The Newt occupies the Hadspen estate between Bruton and Castle Cary, where Hadspen House, built in the 17th century and remodelled in Georgian times, sustained the Hobhouse family for over two centuries. The owners of Babylonstoren in South Africa opened it as a hotel and garden estate in 2019. Guests stay in the house, in the converted Stable Yard and at the Farmyard, a former dairy farm half a mile across the cyder orchards.

Private events run across both sides of the estate. The Garden Café, glazed and set above the kitchen gardens and orchards, is the largest room, seating 100 for dinner and taking 140 standing. The Winter Garden is a Victorian glasshouse of ferns, orchids and palms that seats 40 by candlelight, and the Victorian Terrace beside it overlooks the Cascades for fire-cooked dinners in summer. In the woodland above the orchards, a fire pit and picnic area takes a feasting table or a larger picnic party.

In the house, The Botanical Rooms pair the panelled Oak Room with the vaulted Glass Room for fine dining, and Farmyard Kitchen serves sharing menus cooked over coals in an old threshing barn. Menus draw on the estate's own beef, lamb, venison and garden produce. The estate does not host weddings but does take rehearsal dinners, welcome drinks and farewell brunches, and a celebration can be paired with exclusive use of the hotel.