Field Guide to The Reeds at South Lodge in Sussex
My travel diary to a lakeside lodge in Sussex. The perfect winter getaway for water babies.
When you want to really switch off, sometimes the hassle of a long journey feels like the least relaxing thing in the world. Last week a getaway that felt a million miles away but didn’t take a lot of mental energy to plan, was just what I needed. It’s hard to activate Holiday Mode when you’re on a rail replacement bus on leg two of a complicated journey. South Lodge, however, is so easy to get to that we avoided the hassle of any unwanted travel admin. Despite it only being 55min from Victoria, it really did feel faraway. It’s a beautiful natural escape in the Sussex countryside, surrounded by wildflower meadows and a vineyard. Bliss!
For the past few months I’ve been balancing working full time with writing while I finish my first novel. I love my morning writing sessions and very much treasure that special secret time alone before it feels like the world wakes up, but in the run up to my deadline I’ve struggled to feel inspired (or even wake up, for that matter) in the cold, dark winter mornings. As the deadline for submitting to my agent arrived something wonderful came into sight: a few days off! So I jumped at the chance and booked a night’s holiday so I could recharge before starting my edit over Christmas.
When I think of a perfect break, the main criteria is always: water. This is a perfect stay for water babies as there’s so much swimming to do, even in winter. I moved between the waterlilly pond, wild swimming lake, indoor pool and outdoor bathtub, only putting clothes on for the sauna, reading breaks and a very delicious dinner.
I cannot stress to you how frazzled I looked when I arrived. I’d been losing sleep over my new book (is it awful? will anyone publish it? what if my dream of being a writer is over forever?) and had a twitch above my right eye. I took a selfie for a ‘before’ spa shot, then instantly deleted it. I had a Grapevine facial and back rub at the spa and came out looking like a dewier glowier version of my former self.
I always dread that spa moment where you’ve enjoyed your treatment then they escort you to the spa shop and describe all the products to you while you awkwardly nod and look like you might consider buying them. This was the first time where I did actually buy something! The Pelegrims skincare collection is made using grapes from the South Lodge vineyard and have a lovely botanical scent (I love anything that smells like tomato vines). I had such a lovely facial that I wanted to bottle up that moment of calm and take it home, so the closest I could get to that was buying a bottle of their facial cleanser. I also loved this facial serum and kept going back to use more from the free sampler teehee.
We stayed in a lakeside lodge which is perfect for when you want some time alone. Nestled away in our cabin the woods, we were disturbed by no one and surrounded only by little luxury amenities: crisp white towels, gorgeous bath products, fluffy robes, sink-in-as-you-sleep bedding and the only faux fire I’ve ever seen that looks amazing and somehow not at all naff. It even crackled!
The interiors at The Reeds really are something. Lots of lush plants and wood panelling with warm, natural colours. I snapped a lot of pics of the kitchen because I love the wood-flecked terrazzo so much. It’s a split-level space with a mezzanine which reminded me of my old flat... but just a million times more luxe.
I always find that staying in a hotel is such a treat that I don’t really want to go to a restaurant to have breakfast, it’s just too exciting to be in the room. Every moment that I’m not wrapped up in a robe feels a waste. Robe time was well and truly maximised at South Lodge as we had a breakfast hamper delivered.
In the morning I joined a wild swimming experience at the lake which was a wonderful mix of first-time dippers and seasoned swimmers. I always like chatting to people about the reasons behind why they swim, and the solace they’ve found in not only cold water but the community they’ve made around it. We enjoyed steaming hot chocolate while we warmed up and The Reeds have Dry Robes in the cupboards (how cool is that) so I just zipped up and walked back to the lodge when I was ready.
I returned to London feeling re-energised and ready to finish editing my novel over Christmas. Wish me luck…
P.S this stay was a PR invite, thank you to South Lodge for having me. This is the first of ‘Field Guide to’ my new travel diary series.