Our small 18th century barn is the converted village forge and is perfect for any time of year – a cosy winter break by the wood burner or summer outdoors in the private cottage garden. We’re in a central village location, in a forgotten quiet part of Suffolk known as The Saints. Surrounded by beautiful walking and cycling countryside, yet only 15 miles from Suffolk’s best beaches and Southwold. The barn shows it’s heritage with beams and vaulted ceilings, yet has a modern open plan layout.

Perfect for a couples retreat, the cottage is in the heart of the small village of Saint James. The main living space is open plan. The handmade kitchen has everything you’ll need – oven, induction hob, microwave, fridge with freezer compartment, dishwasher, butlers sink, lots of cookware, crockery etc – an antique dining table that seats four, and a very comfy sofa to cosy up by the wood burning stove.

There is also a small study and we have superfast broadband – very rare in Suffolk! So The Old Forge is the perfect place to work, as well as relax.

The small bedroom has a double bed and small wardrobe and we provide the best white linen and towels for your stay. There is a sofa bed in the study, so the cottage works as a place for friends to stay as well as couples. We make a small charge of £14 to cover laundry costs for the extra set of bed linen if you require the sofa bed.

The bathroom has a bath and electric shower.

Outside there is a supply of logs for the wood burner that you’re free to use. Deck chairs, outdoor bistro table and chairs and a barbecue all mean you can enjoy the secluded cottage garden. If you have green fingers please feel free to help us keep the weeds at bay!

We love dogs so if you have one small well behaved dog that you’d like to bring along, please do. There are lots of fabulous walks right from the cottage.

It’s also perfect cycling country – bikes are very welcome as well.

There is safe off street parking at the front of the barn. A car is essential as sadly there is no public transport in this part of Suffolk.

Or if you’re feeling fit you could bring your bikes and cycle from Halesworth station which connects to the London intercity line at Ipswich.

We make a small additional charge of £30 if you bring a dog with you – this covers the extra cleaning required after your stay. Please be sure to add a doggie guest when you make your booking.

If more than two people are staying then we make a charge of £20 per night for each additional guest. Please be sure to tell us at the time of booking how many people will be staying.

If you need to use the sofa bed then we make a charge of £35 to cover the laundry costs for the extra bed linen and towels. This will be added as an additional cost after you have booked.

IMPORTANT: On behalf of our host at Pass the Keys, we require guest verification facilitated by Truvi (Previously called Superhog). Upon confirming your booking, Truvi will contact the lead booker via a secure link, providing detailed instructions for the verification process.

The online verification requires a government-issued photo ID and a credit or debit card. During this process, you may choose between a refundable GBP 500 deposit (plus GBP 10 transaction fee currency equivalent) or purchase a non-refundable damage waiver of GBP 40 (currency equivalent) to cover potential damages during your stay.

Once the verification process is successfully completed, check-in information will be provided. If you opted in for a deposit, this will be refunded via credit/debit card after your stay, subject to an inspection of the property.