harvest in the vineyard, stars overhead
Autumn under the biggest skies in the south
The vines turn gold and the sky puts on a show
Autumn in the South Downs is a double act. By day, harvest - the 4,000 vines outside the greenhouse restaurant heavy with fruit, the surrounding vineyards of Sussex busy picking, pressing and celebrating the best of English wine's most exciting season. By night, the stars - because the South Downs National Park is an International Dark Sky Reserve, one of only a handful in England, and autumn's long, clear nights are when the sky here is at its most extraordinary.
Wrap up, head out and look up. On a moonless night you can see the Milky Way from the hills above the house. Then come back in for a nightcap by the fire. Not many places can offer that.
Step outside
stargazing on the Downs
The South Downs earned its Dark Sky Reserve status for good reason - and autumn's longer nights are prime viewing. Bignor Hill, just up the road, is one of the classic dark sky spots. Take a blanket, give your eyes half an hour to adjust and watch the sky come alive. The team can point you to the best local viewing points.
From the Kitchen Garden: harvest season
The greenhouse restaurant might be at its most atmospheric in autumn - candlelit as the evenings draw in, vineyard views turning gold, and a 25 Mile Menu full of the Kitchen Garden's autumn best.
Long lunches turn into early dinners. Nobody minds.
Autumn here is best enjoyed in two parts.
Half the day out in it - boots on, cheeks pink, making the most of the golden light and the turning leaves.
Then spend the other half by making your way slowly indoors, where the fires are lit and nobody's in a rush to move you along.
Cosy corners and log fires
The fires get lit, the sofas get deeper and the bar gets very hard to leave. Come in from a walk, claim a corner, order something warming and watch the light fade over the garden. Autumn evenings here are what the word snug was invented for.
Unwind in the Potting Sheds
Hidden in the original Victorian lean-to glasshouse, our treatment rooms are made for this season - warm, quiet and a world away from the blustery hills outside. The perfect middle of a slow autumn day.
