Cottages in Leicestershire: Why Stay at The Loft

When you search for cottages in Leicestershire, you quickly find two kinds of result. There are big listings sites with hundreds of properties and very little local detail, and there are individual cottages that tell you almost nothing about what you will actually do once you arrive. This guide tries to do both jobs properly: explain what genuinely matters when you choose a Leicestershire cottage, and show you why The Loft has become a favourite for couples and small families wanting a calm, lake-view countryside retreat with a riverside park on the doorstep.

The Loft sits at Clipston, right on the Leicestershire and Northamptonshire border, 10 minutes from Market Harborough in the East Midlands. It is a 135 square metre Victorian red-brick stable conversion on the private 14 Acres estate, and its signature is a large dining balcony that looks straight out over a private lake. The rest of this guide covers the county, the days out and how to book, so you can decide whether it is the right fit for your trip.

What to look for in a Leicestershire cottage

Leicestershire is one of the most underrated counties in the Midlands for a self-catering break. It is small enough that you can reach the Charnwood hills, the canals around Foxton, Rutland Water and the city of Leicester within half an hour or so, yet it stays genuinely rural in the lanes between. A good cottage should make the most of that. Before you book anywhere, it is worth being honest about what you actually need.

• A real view, not just a postcode. Plenty of cottages are described as countryside but back onto a road or a neighbour. Ask what you will see from the main living space.
• Space that suits your group. A pair wants somewhere snug and characterful; a family of six needs proper beds, room to spread out and a kitchen that works for cooking together.
• A kitchen you would happily cook in. Self-catering only earns its name if the kitchen is well equipped. A dishwasher, a decent oven and good coffee make a difference over a few days.
• Honest distances to the things you want to do. A cottage can be in Leicestershire and still be 45 minutes from anything. Check the drive times to the places on your list.
• Parking and practicalities. Free, easy parking matters more than it sounds, especially with children, luggage and a boot full of walking boots.

Many listings lead with hot tubs and fishing lakes. Those are nice extras, but they are not the same as a comfortable, well-located home for a few days. The Loft takes the opposite approach: it leans on the things that actually shape a stay, which is the view, the light, the calm and the easy reach of the county.

Why The Loft stands out among Leicestershire cottages

The Loft is the upstairs of a beautifully converted Victorian stable building, so it has the things you rarely get in a modern new-build let: high vaulted ceilings, exposed brick and timber, and tall panoramic windows that pull in the light and the view. It is a luxury feel at a sensible price, which is exactly the sweet spot a lot of people are after when they look at a romantic couples’ retreat near Market Harborough and worry about the cost.

The hero of the whole place is the dining balcony. It runs along the back of the property and looks out over the private lake on the 14 Acres estate, so breakfast, an evening glass of wine or a lazy afternoon with a book all happen with water and open countryside in front of you. There is no passing traffic and no neighbouring rooftops, just the estate and its wildlife. For couples it is quietly romantic; for families it is somewhere the children can be outside while you keep an eye from the table.

Inside, it is set up to make self-catering genuinely easy. The kitchen is well equipped for a family, with a Nespresso machine for the mornings, and there is air conditioning, underfloor heating, a Smart TV with Netflix, Disney+ and an Xbox, plus 100MB fibre and a work zone if you need to keep half an eye on email. The estate is eco-minded too, running on solar and air-source heating with filtered well water, so it is a comfortable stay that treads lightly. There is a gas BBQ and a picnic bench outside for warmer evenings, and free parking on site. To be clear, there is no swimming pool and no hot tub here. The draw is the lake view, the space and the peace rather than added facilities.

The Loft at a glance: rooms, sleeping and price

It helps to see the practical detail in one place. The Loft is designed to flex between a couple’s bolthole and a small family base, which is part of why it works for so many different stays. Here is how it breaks down.

Feature	The Loft, Clipston
Sleeps	6 guests, plus 2 infants
Bedrooms	2 (each with a super-king that splits to two singles), plus a sofa bed
Bathrooms	2
Signature feature	Dining balcony over a private lake
Style	Victorian red-brick stable conversion, 135 square metres
From	GBP 129 per night
Location	Clipston, 10 minutes from Market Harborough
Parking	Free, on site
Family extras	Cots, high chairs, stair gate, toys, wellies

Because the super-king beds split into singles, the same cottage suits two couples, a family with older children, or grandparents with grandchildren without anyone compromising on sleep. At GBP 129 a night for a luxury, lake-view space, it sits well below what comparable cottages in the county tend to charge, especially the ones loaded with extras you may not use. If you want to read more about the property itself, our page on the luxury cottage at Clipston goes into more detail.

Market Harborough on the doorstep

The nearest town, and one of the reasons The Loft’s location works so well, is Market Harborough, around 10 minutes away. It is a handsome market town with an Anglo-Saxon history, an unmissable old grammar school building on stilts in the centre, and a good run of independent shops, cafes and restaurants alongside the familiar high-street names. It is the kind of place you can happily lose a morning, pick up supplies for the cottage, and still be back at the lake for lunch.

There is more green space than you might expect for a town this size. Welland Park is a lovely, easy stroll with gardens, a play area and the River Welland running through it, which makes it a good first stop if you arrive with restless children. There is plenty more besides: our guide to things to do in Market Harborough rounds up the independent shops, cafes and walks worth a morning. The town also has a fast rail link to London, so if you are mixing a countryside break with a day in the capital, it is genuinely doable from here.

Days out across Leicestershire from The Loft

This is where the county earns its keep. From Clipston you are within easy striking distance of some of the best days out in the East Midlands, and the variety is the appeal. One day you can be canal-side, the next deep in a deer park, the day after on the water at Rutland. If you prefer to stay closer to home, there are some lovely walking and cycling routes near The Loft too. Here is how the headline attractions stack up by drive time.

Day out	Roughly from The Loft	Good for
Foxton Locks	15 minutes	Canal walks, boat trips, pubs and cafes
Market Harborough	10 minutes	Shops, food, Welland Park, the railway
Rutland Water	30 to 35 minutes	Cycling, watersports, birdwatching
Bradgate Park	40 to 45 minutes	Wild deer, Old John tower, big open walks
Leicester city	30 to 35 minutes	King Richard III, museums, shopping

A few of these are worth singling out:

• Foxton Locks is the closest big draw and a brilliant easy day. It is home to the longest staircase flight of locks in Britain, free to walk around (you pay only for parking), with passenger boat trips most weekends from April to October, two pubs and two cafes by the water.
• Bradgate Park is a huge, free-to-enter medieval deer park where hundreds of deer roam freely. Climb to Old John tower for the views, and look out for the ruins of Bradgate House, childhood home of Lady Jane Grey.
• Rutland Water is one of the largest man-made lakes in Europe, ringed by a cycle and walking track with watersports, a nature reserve and plenty of picnic spots. It pairs naturally with the village of Oakham.
• Leicester brings the city contrast: the King Richard III Visitor Centre and cathedral, the National Space Centre for families, and good shopping and food when the weather turns.

The real advantage of basing yourself at The Loft is that you can do all of this and still come home to quiet. You are not staying in a town centre or beside a main road. You return to the lake, the balcony and the open estate, which is a very different end to a busy day out than a room above a high street.

Couples, families and a working week away

The Loft suits more than one kind of guest, which is partly why it stays booked. For couples, it is a calm, slightly indulgent escape: the balcony, the view, an evening BBQ and no one else around. For families, the splitting beds, the sofa bed, the cots and high chairs, and the toys and wellies by the door mean you can arrive light and let the children settle in fast. The 100MB fibre and the dedicated work zone also make it a workable spot if one of you needs a couple of remote days mid-stay rather than burning annual leave.

The honest trade-off is that this is a peaceful, rural property rather than an activity centre. If your idea of a holiday cottage is a hot tub and an on-site games barn, it is not that. If you want lake views, space, good design and a county full of days out a short drive away, it is very much that.

Why stay at The Loft

The Loft is a luxury lake-view stable conversion on the private 14 Acres estate at Clipston, just 10 minutes from Market Harborough and within easy reach of Foxton Locks, Rutland Water, Bradgate Park and Leicester. It sleeps 6 plus 2 infants across two flexible bedrooms and a sofa bed, with a dining balcony over a private lake, vaulted ceilings, panoramic windows and an eco-minded estate, all from GBP 129 a night. If you are weighing up a luxury countryside cottage for your Leicestershire break, this is a calm, well-located base that does the simple things properly.

Booking direct through us is straightforward and tends to be the best-value way to stay, whether you have found us by searching for a luxury cottage near Market Harborough or simply a quiet countryside break. You can check live availability and reserve your dates on our booking page in a couple of minutes.

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