November 2025
The autumn equinox has come and gone and we are fully into the swing of mid autumn with one eye on the upcoming festive season.
We are lucky in that we have had generally excellent feedback from our guests but we are always happy to listen to suggestions regarding the cottage and how we can make it even better. One such subject that cropped up more than once was the cafe curtains in the lounge windows and if there was a set of curtains or blinds in addition to those for that little bit of extra privacy.
As we had originally intended to just have the cafe curtains, we had a rethink and consulted Diana Kelly Interiors, whose lovely shop is a stone’s thrown from us and right in the centre of Alfriston village. The result is as you see in the image below and a special mention to Ann Clark Curtains who did a fantastic job in the making and fitting of these roman blinds.
We hope our guests like them as much as we do.
Other news in the last month was that we launched a new promotion with badgers tea house to showcase their fabulous products in the form of a hamper. So, all new direct bookings taken on this website from now until the end of the year - for any booking dates - will be eligible to receive one of these fantastic hampers as long as the code badgers25 is registered at checkout. We look forward to seeing you soon.
As we write this short journal, November is moving on seemingly quicker than ever and the festive season will soon be upon us.
Our Christmas and New Year dates have already been taken up but we do really see Alfriston and the South Downs as an all year round destination and the different seasons evoke an array of different moods, ambience, light and feel upon the landscape. So to visit here in November or December - there are still dates available in the next couple of months - and the colder months in general, is of course to experience something altogether different than in the warmer months.
For us personally, our favourite seasons are autumn and winter, which gives one the chance to taken in more blustery and colder weather that sometimes means mist, snow, ice or frost upon the landscape, which can result in the South Downs looking its most ethereal and beautiful. It is a great excuse to pull on some warm woollen socks, light the wood burning stove after a long walk and to bask in and feel the heat from it - or perhaps from the Aga cast iron oven that is fired up and warming some supper.
The many great pubs in the area are, we think, at their best at this time of year…it is so nice sometimes to be able to stroll from Flint Cottage into Alfriston village and have the pick of great places to enjoy a cosy drink, or meal, all within a two minute walk away. For the more adventurous you can even walk one or two miles, if you have a flashlight, across the fields to the Sussex Ox or even The Cricketers Inn.
