Great price winter walking in the Wye Valley

Any serious walker will tell you that the autumn and winter months are great for a bracing hike in the English countryside and what’s more there are always great deals to be had.

For example the Pilgrim Country House Hotel – owned by former England rugby international Steve Boyle – has put together a two-night winter walking package which costs from just £99 pp (two sharing).

The hotel – which is located in the village of Much Birch, between Hereford and Ross-on-Wye – is ideally located for circular walks direct from the front door and the reception provides free notes and maps; the famous Herefordshire Trail also passes right by the front of the hotel.

The 150-mile long trail links the five market towns of Ledbury, Ross-on-Wye, Kington, Leominster and Bromyard, along with some of the picturesque villages and hamlets for which Herefordshire is renowned.

The landscape varies from the Malvern Hills in the east to the Black Mountains in the west, through rich arable land, apple orchards, fields of hops, woodlands speckled with wild flowers and river valleys including the beautiful River Wye.

Other than the Herefordshire Trail, there are many alternative routes which can be enjoyed in the area, including the Wye Valley Walk and the Malverns, Brecon Beacons, Forest of Dean and the Cotswolds are all within a short drive.

The Pilgrim Hotel has a traditional ‘country-pub-like’ bar serving a choice of local real ales and a menu of great British ‘pub grub’ including fish and chips and faggots, mash and gravy!

For more formal dining, there is the Valley Restaurant, ideal for an intimate, romantic meal whilst enjoying views over the border of Wales towards the Black Mountains.

The special walking package – available any time from now until the end of January (except for Christmas and New Year) – includes two nights’ B&B plus welcome drink and bar meal on the first evening, picnic lunch & three course dinner on the second day and a snack and drink for the third day.

Well-behaved dogs are welcome in some rooms from £7.50 per night.

For more information, visit pilgrimhotel.co.uk.