Blackberry Farm
Smoky Mountains, United States
Overview
The farm’s a dream-come-true for outdoorsy young uns. Over-10s are welcome at any point; under-10s during ‘family time’ – 15 June to Labor Day, the Thanksgiving Holiday, Christmas (15–29 December), Easter, and Memorial Day.
Best for
Outdoor-loving over-10s.
Recommended rooms
Singing Brook Cottage Suites are separated by adjoining doors and are big enough to fit two roll-away beds.
Crèche
At various points of the year, during ‘family time’ (15 June to Labor Day, the Thanksgiving Holiday, Christmas, Easter, and Memorial Day) ‘Camp Blackberry’ sessions ($250 a night) keep three- to 12-year-olds occupied with supervised events. There‘s also a ‘dinner and a movie’ programme that allows parents to enjoy a romantic meal together without worrying about mood-ruining kids.
Activities
Blackberry Farm has all kinds of outdoorsy events on offer to distract adventurous young ones, including hiking, biking, horse riding and fishing. Youngsters are also welcome to watch the sheep being milked during lambing season.
Swimming pool
The pool isn’t suited to very young children, as there’s no shallow end and it’s not supervised.
Meals
Children aren’t allowed to dine in the formal Barn, but Teensy’s is the dining room especially for children, which serves a kid-friendly menu. Private family meals can be arranged too.
Babysitting
Can be provided with advance notice – $25 an hour.
No need to pack
Kids can expect to pick up a number of farmyard skills during their stay, including knot-tying, egg-gathering, crop-planting and wool-dying.
