Hendre Bolon: About the Cottage
Set in the ‘Waterfalls Country’ of the Brecon Beacons National Park, Hendre Bolon is a beautifully restored, traditional welsh cottage set amidst 24 acres of its own pasture, woodland and river frontage with the famous waterfalls on the doorstep (200m). With no near neighbours, beautiful surroundings and a cozy woodburner, the cottage is set in an inspiring natural environment and offers a rural retreat for those seeking peace or a base for superb walking, caving and cycling for the outdoor enthusiast. The cottage is available for between 3 and 14 night stays (minimum 4 nights in school holidays) all year-round. Discounts are available for stays of 7 nights or more
At a Glance:
- Sleeps up to 5 (four is better)
- Dogs welcome (but not upstairs or on the furniture!)
- Superfast Wifi
- Wood burner (logs provided)
- Board games
- Fully equipped modern kitchen
- Bed linen, towels & tea towels provided
- EV charger and on-site parking for several vehicles
- Picnic table
- Hammock in garden
- Fire pit on terrace & separate camp fire area
- Bike wash facilities
- 24 acres of pasture
- Oak-framed porch
- Check in any day for between 3 and 14 nights (4 nights minimum during school holidays)
- Self check-in from 4 p.m., check-out by 11 a.m.
Guest Access
Hendre Bolon is accessed by a very narrow farm track which is often busy with walkers. It is not for the feint-hearted! Please see our location & access page, photographs and read our t&cs carefully before booking.
- Self check-in using key code from 4 p.m.
- Check-out departure by 11 a.m.
Features & Facilities
Recently renovated to an exceptional standard. Hendre Bolon welcomes well behaved dogs and sleeps up to five in three bedrooms (four is much better, especially if you have a dog as well). Wifi, board games, smart TV and woodburner for cosy evenings in. Picnic table, dedicated firepit in the surrounding fields and woods, hammock in the grounds and bike wash facilities/undercover storage for outdoor equipment. Large oak framed porch for all your outdoor boots and coats. Parking for up to three cars outside cottage.
EV charging point accessible at extra cost.
Indoors
Cottage Facilities
- 3 bedrooms, sleeping up to 5 (but 4 is better, especially if you have a dog)
- Travel cot provided on request
- All bed linen, towels, tea towels etc provided
- Downstairs loo/sink.
- Upstairs bathroom with small bath and large shower.
- Cosy woodburner (logs provided)
- Dog bowl and dog towels provided
- Modern handmade oak kitchen with granite worksurfaces
- Dishwasher, induction hob, electric oven, microwave, Nespresso machine, slow cooker, washine machine, utility
Wifi, TV (*) and DAB/Bluetooth radio - Board games and library of outdoorsy books
- Recycling facilities on site (your waste will be taken away for you)
(*) TV via internet only so bring your iplayer, Netflix, Amazon etc login details.
Outdoors
For All the Family
- 24 acres of woods, pasture and river frontage to explore
- Dedicated firepits for campfire adventures
- Sunny terrace with a rural view, picnic table and wood-fired firepit/barbeque
- No near neighbours
- Famous waterfalls just a few minutes walk straight from your door!
For Cyclists
- Central to amazing road and mountain biking
- Bike wash facilities
- Secure bike storage
For Walkers
- Famous waterfalls just a few minutes walk.
- Superb local network of hiking trails.
- Undercover storage for walking gear and boots
During your stay, please respect the following house rules :
- No outside shoes in the house please. This is Wales so muddy shoes and wet coats are standard issue! There is plenty of hanging space for coats and storage for outdoor shoes in the porch.
- Dogs must be kept downstairs and off the furniture please.
- Never take the house key away with you. Too many keys have been lost on walks, so please put the key in the keysafe whenever you go out.
- Always obey the Countryside Code. That means:
- absolutely no littering whatsoever;
- closing all gates behind you;
- leaving no trace; and
- at all times keeping dogs on leads.
- There are strictly no fires or barbeques allowed anywhere other than the dedicated firepit.
Hendre Bolon is a welsh hill cottage. Its surroundings are beautiful but sometimes challenging and muddy after heavy rain. Whatever time of year you are visiting, it is a good idea to bring waterproofs and good walking boots, wellies and waterproof trousers for kids are invaluable. Bring insect repellent during the midge season.
The cottage is accessed via a very narrow unmade track which is popular with walkers. Please take extra care. No liability is accepted for any accidents or damage to your vehicle.
Local food shop information is given in the separate ‘Things to Do and See’ page, but popping out to the shops is not easy from Hendre Bolon. You will not be able to get supermarket food deliveries so bring all the food and drink you think you are likely to need to get you going. If you need more space than is available in the kitchen, a second fridge/freezer is located in the barn.
There are no outdoor shoes inside so bring indoor shoes/slippers if you wish.
If you have a dog, you will need to bring a dog bed but ‘dog towels’ for wiping dogs off after a muddy walk and dog bowls are kept in the porch.
All the beds have mattress and pillow protectors. If you have a small child, a travel cot is stored under double bed in the main bedroom.
The kitchen will have a basic supply of condiments, tea, sugar and instant coffee, salt, pepper and olive oil.
Hanging space is limited. There are hanging hooks on the backs of all the bedroom doors with coathangers.
There are a selection of games and playing cards in the lounge, but bring your own if you like as pieces do go missing.
You will need to sort your rubbish and recycling but the bins will be emptied and taken away for you.
Music and TV
The makita radio in the corner of the lounge plays DAB radio and you can Bluetooth your own music through it. To pair, press the ‘Band’ button until the Bluetooth option shows then pair with Makita.
The TV runs off wifi only, so no live TV, just iplayer, ITC hub, Netflix, Amazon Prime etc. You will need to bring your login details to sign in and out of your own accounts at the of your stay.
Telephone, wifi and emergency calls
Network signal is poor in the area and non-existent inside the cottage, so please enable wi-fi calling on your phones using the VOI protocol to make calls using the internet if you can, or use Whatsapp.
The cottage receives ‘superfast’ wifi (by rural Wales standards anyway) via a satellite dish as part of a community aerial in the village; it runs at about 30mbps – enough to stream TV and make video calls but don’t expect multiple teenagers to be able to game quickly on it. Being a rural service based on a ‘daisy-chain’ of transmitters, drop-outs do happen. Do not expect a city-centre level of speed or service!
There is a cabled telephone and a landline for use in emergencies only, located in the wall cupboard in the hall. This works even if there is an electric cut. The landline number is 01639 722228 and is only to be used in emergencies please.
Water Supply and Drainage – important!
The cottage is not on mains drainage. Do NOT flush any chemicals, tampons , wet wipes etc down the loo.
Hendre Bolon’s water supply comes from a borehole and is treated to drinking water standards. In the event of an electricity cut you will still have hot water (gravity fed from the tank in the loft), but no mains pressure as the cold water supply is pumped from the treatment room in the far barn. You can switch supplies to gravity fed springwater, which comes from a spring in the woods above the cottage, but please ring Helen and Phil if you need to do this.
Have a wonderful stay and don’t forget to sign the visitor’s book, leave your contact information if you would like to re-book and leave any suggestions for the way in which we can make your visit more enjoyable.