Yew Cottage was originally three cottages, brought together under one sweeping thatched roof. Built in the Hampshire manner — brick and flint, small paned windows, low beams — it still wears its age beautifully, with three internal staircases and a great many stories pressed into its walls.
Rosie and Martin Lowry have lived here for forty-five years. Their four children grew up in these rooms, and the house remains, very much, a family home. Guests are welcomed as part of that — never as strangers passing through.
The garden stretches to about a third of an acre: old-fashioned herbaceous borders, roses in season, and a yew or two giving the cottage its name.
A separate Annexe gives the choicest privacy; two further rooms sit within the main house. All are available throughout the year, with a home-cooked breakfast to follow.
Set apart from the main house, with its own entrance. Arrange the beds as you please — a generous double for two, or twins for companions travelling together.
Within the main house, low beams and a deep old window. The sort of room you don't mind waking slowly in, particularly with the smell of breakfast drifting up.
A quieter sort of room, perfect for the lone walker, the travelling angler, or anyone in need of a stop along the Test Way.
Longparish sits along the River Test — that most famous of chalk streams, clear as glass and renowned the world over for its trout. Yew Cottage stands in the heart of the village, with a pub within easy walking distance and footpaths in every direction.
It's a place that draws walkers and fishermen back, year after year. The nearest towns — Andover, Winchester, Newbury and Basingstoke — are all easily reached for a day out, but most guests find reasons not to leave.
"One of the prettiest villages in the Test Valley."
"Trout rising at dusk; swallows under the eaves."
Longparish Road, Longparish,
Andover, Hampshire SP11 6QE
Served around the dining table, with the garden beyond the window.
Eggs from a neighbour's hens. Bacon and sausages from the Hampshire butcher in the next village. Rosie's marmalade, made in January each year in the cottage kitchen. Bread baked the morning of, or toasted thick and golden.
Vegetarian and other requirements are always cheerfully catered for — please just mention when you book.
All prices include Rosie's home-cooked breakfast.
Please ring Rosie or Martin on +44 1264 720325 to check availability & book.
"We've come back every spring for nine years. The breakfast alone is worth the journey, but it's Rosie and Martin who keep us coming home."
"Fished the Test at dawn, walked back through Longparish at dusk. The Annexe was the perfect quiet base — and a peerless night's sleep."
"The cottage is exactly what you hope a Hampshire B&B will be: thatch, beams, roses round the door, and the kindest hosts in England."