The Hideaway at Baxby Manor

There’s many a way to toast a marshmallow. Some give it a brief hazing over the flames, warming it to a pleasant softness but never daring risk its skin. Others plunge it headlong into the furnace, blackening the outer shell like an overcooked roast potato but bubbling the inners to a sweet and sticky goo.

We all have different tastes and, provided you adhere to the general ethos of loving the great outdoors, The Hideaway at Baxby Manor (to give the campsite it’s full name) is the kind of site that caters for every appetite. True the no music policy means party animals aren’t welcome and the narrow entrance lane keeps the big-boy motorhomes away but for everyone else this is a real camping playground. Families lazing by the campfire, cyclists retracing Le Grand Depart, walkers enjoying the space of the countryside and history buffs nipping out to the old centre of York – it’s got the full range of flavours.

Set in the grounds of 14th-century Baxby Manor on the edge of quaint Husthwaite village, this is a hideaway worthy of its name. Approached down a single lane track with trees on either side, the six-acre meadow is home to just 40 grassy pitches, each with a firepit and all spread evenly around. In the centre of the site, opposite a young but flourishing orchard, is the main facilities and reception building and there's a purpose-built on-site Pizza shack (The Pizza Shack@Baxby Manor) which is open every day during school holidays too.

On the south east edge of the campsite Ings Beck quietly flows, though the flank of trees on the river bank mean it acts more as a natural fence than a focal feature of camping here. If you do fancy pitching on it’s edge its best to book early, since that side of the campsite is where The Hideaway’s glamping accommodation is found.

Those travelling light will love the luxury Hoggit Houses – something akin to a hobbit’s Yorkshire holiday home – with proper beds and log burners inside. There’s also a handful of hexagonal eco-pods and a magnificent treehouse in a copse of ash, oak and sycamore, with a wood-fired hot tub on its terrace and views north to the White Horse of Kilburn, etched into the moors five miles away.

Just like the camping facilities, all of the glamping accommodation meets the highest environmental standards. Since the year it opened The Hideaway at Baxby Manor has consistently received awards for its eco credentials and it’s easy to see why. By the time you leave, though, the greenest thing is your own unquenchable envy, jealous of all the other campers who aren’t yet heading home.