Coes Faen Lodge & Spa has just been awarded one of only ten César awards for 2021 – the ‘Oscars’ of the Hotel world. Coes Faen Lodge won Green Hotel of the Year, and has sustainability and future proofing in its very DNA. Extended in the 1970s, Coes Faen Lodge was a private family home until 2008, and is now a multi-award winning Bed & Breakfast with Spa features, and a Restaurant which is open to both resident and non-resident guests. A meticulous renovation – 2 years of design and 3 of building work – resulted in a mesmerising combination of old and new, with original 19th century architecture re-envisaged using space, glass, light and technology.

Renewable engery is serviced by a biomass boiler, solar water heating, and low voltage LED lighting; the Lodge has very high spec insulation including underfloor; rain water is captured for toilet flushing.

The stunning reception hall, with glass staircase and roof, water feature, and artistically curved stone and glass wall (housing the downstairs cloakroom) leads into the light and airy dining room, with views to the iconic 'Clock House' and over the Mawddach Estuary. Adjacent to the dining room is the sitting room, with dual-sided wood-burning stove, and the well-equipped commercial kitchen. The kitchen can be accessed via the back door to the main parking area, and also has a 'one way' door into the reception hall. Accessed from the hall is the ground floor bedroom suite with beautifully detailed wet room, and a private terrace with hot tub. Upstairs are five further double bedrooms with wonderful views, and each with a distinctive individual feature: one with wooden bath, one with a steam room, one with jacuzzi bath, one with a private terrace and hot tub, and the last with views over the estuary and an over-sized television screen.

The two apartments are behind the stable block, and mirror each other. Each consists of a double bedroom, shower room, utility area, and kitchen/dining/family room with large skylights, though one is to be completed.

Abermaw, or Barmouth, is a sea-port and market-town on the North West coast of Wales. The town itself is beautifully situated on the northern side of the river. The view from the beach is magnificent: the hills on the opposite shores of Caernarfonshire are seen in the distance to the west. Snowdonia National Park is just 500m away, with all the outdoor activity that it has to offer. There are many North Wales attractions within easy reach: Dyfi Nature Reserve, Zipworld, BounceBelow, the Italianate village of Portmeirion, and numerous castles.

The stable block houses three stables, a sizeable garage, store room and linen room, the biomass boiler and a workshop. Outside the stable block and the Lodge is a large parking area. Behind the lodge is a stone tunnel leading to the gardens and woodland. The gated walled garden has a useful potting shed, fruit trees, vegetable beds and a large lawn. The remainder of the land follows the design put in place in Victorian times: paths wend their way through mature woodland with various small lawns and other grassed areas set aside as viewing points to take in the majestic estuary vistas. A beautiful pond, filled with established water plants, sits at the base of the woods on a grassed terrace overlooking The Clock House, the Victorian railway bridge over the estuary and the sea beyond.