Catch the Breeze Retreats is a personal portfolio of holiday properties owned and managed by the Sykes Family in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Northumberland Coast and Snowdonia National Park

If you’re looking to get thoroughly lost in thought, then escape to Tan Llan. Lying on the edge of the small village of Llanelltyd, Tan Llan dissolves into the gently sloping hillside. This handsome, grey-stoned country house shelters within fifteen acres of landscaped grounds. A riot of daffodils in spring, fourteen varieties sing as proudly as the Welsh Male Voice Choir, statesmanlike trees whisper accompanied by the last giggles of a winterbourne stream and the River Mawddach as it laughs by.

Tan Llan is just two miles from the idyllic little market town of Dolgellau, with its air of unhurried importance. The town boasts the highest concentration of heritage-listed buildings in Wales, with more than two hundred. It was once a regional centre for Wales’ prosperous wool industry in the 18th and early 19th centuries and many of its finest buildings were built at that time. However, local mills failed to keep pace with mass mechanisation and decline set in, preserving the town centre much as it was then. That’s not to say that it doesn’t have its fair share of delightful cafes, bars and independent shops. Even closer to home, a renowned restaurant, just over half a mile away from the house, offers local fare and beautiful views. An excellent location for walkers, mountain bikers and outdoor enthusiasts, the extensive sandy beaches of North Wales are a delight, with the popular seaside town of Barmouth easily reached. The bulky, menacing crags of Cader Idris loom large. It is said that the hounds of the underworld fly around its peaks. And that anyone who spends the night on the summit will awaken either mad or a poet. Choose not to stay at the Coach House and, alas, you...