Retreat East

Lovingly converted barns & outbuildings, make for a private & secluded retreat. Extensive walking trails, bikes on hand & even a small spa space, make staying on the grounds easy but near enough to good golf & the Ipswich towns nightlife & restaurants, to make this an ideal base for a holiday, mini break or event. The restaurant, The Great Barn is outstanding. We went back for a second dinner after a phenomenal first. The vegetable consume was the best i’ve ever had. Nice piece of Hake for my main & duck for my partner, perfectly matching sides, with the potato hey (which we had as a starter) standing out. Everyone very friendly.

Stayed in the farmhouse as a group of six girls in October as a long weekend together and whilst we enjoyed our weekend together we were a little bit disappointed with the accommodation. The farmhouse is lovely and understand it’s a very old building but several aspects of the house are completely filthy and need a clean. I emailed customer care when I got home over a month ago and haven’t heard anything back. Horrible cobwebs everywhere (which I understand could happen in an old building but this just clearly hasn’t been cleaned properly in a long time), cigarette bits outside the patio door, filthy remote control, water marks over all walls in the bathrooms and mould in the freezer. Sofas are also quite marked which doesn’t really scream the luxury retreat this is meant to be. There is a window smashed in one of the bedrooms as well and a huge crack in the floor in one of the bedrooms/ ceiling of the kitchen so you can hear everything in one room from below. I would say six adults is probably the max you can fit comfortably without being too cramped. We paid £15 each for breakfast each night of our stay which is not worth it for the continental option!!! The plates aren’t even big enough to fit a slice of toast on and there are very limited options and doesn’t even include a ‘proper coffee’ from the menu. Asked the staff several time to replenish the yogurts and everything was so slow. Some of the group ordered hot food for an additional cost which took 45 minutes to come and it wasn’t busy. Also ordered smoothies which took 30 mins to come as the bar staff had ‘lost the ticket’. So after already paying £15 for breakfast + £4 + £5 smoothie + hot food I noticed on check out they added 13.5% service charge when we received less than average service. I’m not surprised I didn’t hear back via email as when anything was raised to staff it didn’t seem urgent or looking to provide good customer service unfortunately. I would also advise not to come just for a spa day especially in colder months. There is no where to sit and wait apart from the restaurant when a group is in the sauna and steam room area you have to be quiet due to being right next to the treatment rooms.

A two night stay in The Burrow with two friends. It was fabulous. The Burrow is really cute! Has a fully functional kitchen, a seating area and a gorgeous little breakfast snug. Two bedrooms with en-suite either side and a decking area with a table and chairs. Impeccably clean. Dinner in the restaurant was superb. Healthy, decent portions and great service. Continental breakfast the next day was deliciously fresh, with cereal, fruit, croissant, toast and cold meat. We weren't rushed at all and could have whiled away our day over breakfast alone. Had the mini retreat spa treatment which was divine. I cannot fault this place and want to return as soon as possible.