News & Offers
Palace Farm: “Truly 5 star”
Doesn’t this sound like the perfect base to explore the picturesque North Kent Downs?
Sometimes, its all in the details and Palace Farm Hostel in North Kent seem to have that covered.
Yes, it is on an a working farm in the North Kent Downs AONB. So far, so bucolic. But look more closely. The garden and patio is beautifully kept. The interior is a very high standard – cleanliness is a recurring theme in their reviews. The en-suite rooms cater for disabilities. Bedding and breakfast are included. The owners are keen that their activities on the farm and the hostel are done in the most sustainable way possible, that’s why they’ve won a Green Tourism Gold award for the hostel.
No wonder one of their reviewers wrote:, “With Liz and Graham as your hosts, the nicest people you could wish to meet, you can’t go wrong. Truly five star accommodation.”
Doesn’t that sound like a perfect base to explore the picturesque downs on foot or by cycling? The group in the picture seem to think so.
Palace Farm gets Gold for Green Tourisum
Air source heating, solar panels and a green frame of mind have earned Palace Farm the GTBS Gold Award
Palace Farm is a working farm growing plums, Christmas trees, wheat, pumpkins and other vegetables for local sale. The farm has free range chickens and eggs with bright orange yolks are fished out from under hedges and made available to guests in season. In the past weed killers were used between trees and under hedgerows. The orchards has closely mown grass separating the fruit trees. Following advise form a Conservation Consultant, Palace Farm now leaves weeds under hedges unsprayed which has encouraged natural insect predators, so there is seldom a need to use sprays for pest control. The rabbits enjoy the extra undergrowth too.
Palace Farm uses under-floor heating and an air source heat pump to provide warmth in the Granary hostel accommodation. The Granary was converted in 2011 and is so well insulated that there the wood burning stove installed for back up warmth is hardly ever used. The Courtyard rooms at Palace Farm have low energy lighting and huge amounts of insulation, heating is provided by a “clean burn” log burner fueled by waste wood from the farm. Hot water is provided using solar panels for heating.
Turtle Doves at Palace Farm Hostel
Did you know that we are one of the few places in the British Isles where you can still see and hear Turtle Doves.
Find out more about the wildlife on Palace Farm here.