myself and my family have recently returned from manor farm and are already booking again for october. Having 2 sons aged 6 and 3 this holiday was perfect for them they were able 2 feed the lambs and pigs get up in the morning put their wellies straight on and go looking for chickens eggs for breakfast, play in the hay bales they loved the freedom ! The tents were fantastic you got the feelingg of camping with the log fire etc but it was very plush inside the beds were extremly comfy and there was no need to take any duvets sleeping bags etc as the pillows and duvets they provide were lovely.
will and anna made us feel very welcome and at home really no need to leave the farm.

Spent a weekend at the farm and it was one of the best weekend we've had. The farm is lovely, about 6 tents in total but you have a feeling you're on your own. Anna and Will who run the farm are very helpful, showing the ins and outs of how it all works. Tents are great - very large, and warm and beds are really cosy - no need for lots of layers! you have your own BBQ and fire pit for marshmallows outside the tent. Eggs can be collected fresh for the morning and the honesty shop has all you need for an enjoyable stay. Book it!

We have just returned from a Mon-Fri stay at Feather Down Farm at Manor Farm and agree with everything the previous reviewer said. Our two daughters, 6 and 3 loved being on a working farm and had daily opportunities to feed the lambs and hunt for eggs laid by the free range chickens.

Our fear of being woken at 4am every morning by the sunrise or with a cockerel sounding off were completely unfounded - with the window flaps down the entire tent and all the sleeping areas can be made very dark and we all slept well at night and late into the mornings despite the bird song, wind or rain as we stayed cosy and tucked up in bed. The comfy beds (proper mattresses, & ironed 100% cotton sheets and duvet covers) are such a pleasure compared to 'real' camping, as is having a flush toilet and cold running water in the tent itself. We had two nights and one day of bad weather but we didn't really notice as we stayed warm and dry inside, and went on outings during the day and didn't need to worry about leaving out belongings in our tent.

We hardly noticed the lack of electricity and nor was it a chore to collect wood & kindling from the woodstore, clean and light the stove in the mornings and evenings to prepare breakfast and dinner, we found ourselves relaxing into a slower way of life just as the Feather Down Farm website promises. As we were there during May half-term week there were also lots of other children in the same age range and our girls made new friends shortly after we arrived and had playmates in the morning and evenings leaving us in peace while we prepared our meals or washed up.

We also found the location wonderful, there are many activities to do nearby. It is about 45mins from Manor Farm to the New Forest where we visited the National Car Museum at Beaulieu and the Owl and Otter Sanctuary, and its a shorter journey to Portsmouth or Hayling Island or the beaches along the south coast.

We discovered that many of the other guests there were repeat customers and we look forward to repeating the experience ourselves, if not at this farm then definitely at another. We probably wouldn't go any earlier than the end of May however (It would be too chilly at night) but Spring is the best time to see all the baby animals. I'm not sure if there are rules about how close each Farm locates each tent to one another but at Manor Farm they were at least 50metres apart, with three tents in a row at the end of the paddock facing out over a most wonderful view which you can request when booking.

Real camping snobs will say a Feather Down Farm is overpriced and not 'proper' camping but we thought it was much more convenient and being on a farm adds an extra dimension to it too.

My husband and I stayed at Feather Down Farm at Manor Farm in Hampshire with our little boy who was 8 weeks old. We booked through www.featherdownfarms.co.uk which gives you a lot of information about what to expect.

Feather Down Farms are situated all around the UK and the holiday was a great compromise between full-on camping, which we weren't quite ready for with such a young baby, and a self catering cottage. Manor Farm is in Hampshire in beautiful countryside and Will and Anna who run the Farm are friendly (without being intrusive) and helpful hosts. We stayed from Monday to Friday - you can stay a whole week or just for a long weekend.

The accommodation consists of permanent tents - i.e. they have a proper floor and walls, real beds, a flushing loo and cold running water, but canvas walls, no electricity, no hot water and a wood burning stove to cook on. There is a shower block where you can have a hot shower. If you like trying new things and aren't too reliant on mod-cons you'll have a great time. Our tent had a room with a double bed, a room with bunk beds and a small 'cupboard' type room that children would love. The beds were comfortable with proper bed linen and when it got dark there were oil lights and candles to provide light. which gave a lovely atmosphere. We hired a BBQ for the week and used that most nights. One night Anna and Will cooked very good pizza in the bread oven which was fun.

There is an honesty shop where you could buy meat from the farm, eggs (although you can also collect eggs directly from the chickens), ice cream, beer etc. Anna has her own range of ready meals using produce from the farm and these are great to heat up on the wood burning stove. They also sell very nice cornflake cakes and banoffi pie!

We had a couple of days out, one down to the beach at West Wittering - a lovely sandy beach which I'd really recommend.

We had a really enjoyable holiday, it was perfectly manageable with a small baby (who slept for the longest time so far when we were there!) and allowed us to really relax and switch off. As someone whose husband has an addiction to his Blackberry and laptop it was great to get away from it all and spend some quality time as a family. A lot of the families staying had children who were a bit older (3 years upwards) and they seemed to really enjoy having the freedom to run around the fields where the tents are situated, collecting eggs and seeing the sheep and pigs. It was like going back in time and we will definitely go back to Manor Farm and try other Feather Down Farms.