We are excited to have partnered up with our friends at Bosinver Cottages in Cornwall to offer you the chance to win a £500 holiday, and a £100 gift voucher for Dotty Dungarees of course!

We catch up with Jemma, their Marketing Manager to discover all the behind-the-scenes action and what makes a Bosinver holiday so special.

Thanks so much for agreeing to catch up with us! Firstly we have to ask, what’s the best thing about a Bosinver holiday?

Wow, there are so many things that make Bosinver the best holiday for not just the little ones, but for parents as well. The main thing is the whole farm, which is 30 acres of farmland and wildflower meadows which are free for all guests to explore, as well as all our animals. Our friendly team will help plan your days out.

Our animals are let out at animal feeding time (9.30am) every morning and then roam freely around the farm until bedtime. This is a safe space for children to explore and get close up with our friendly goats, sheep, ponies, ducks and chickens. There’s so much to do here that it takes the pressure off the parents to plan going out every day - they can stay on site and have so much fun in our outdoor play areas, soft play, woodland trails, Wild Kids Forest School or helping Farmer Dave.

Are there opportunities to help out at the farm itself?

Farmer Dave starts every Bosinver morning feeding and letting all the animals out. Everyone is welcome to join in feeding them all. The birds are let out and are free to come up to you to take the food out of your hands. After they’ve had their food, our cheeky goats are let out (Billy, Mary, Womble and Toffee) for breakfast who are all hand-fed by our guests. 

We all walk with the goats down to the field where the sheep are. Everyone feeds the sheep and then heads to our chicken arks to feed the chicks and younger chickens. After that, Farmer Dave needs help bottle-feeding the lambs with warm milk and then checking the chicken house for eggs. The children are all allowed to take an egg back to their cottage for breakfast.

How would you spend a perfect day at Bosinver?

A perfect day at Bosinver would be to wake up and head down to the farm gate and meet Farmer Dave for animal feeding. Once animal feeding is finished, collect an egg for breakfast and then get ready for a pony ride with Paul and Helen. After pony riding, head out to one of our outdoor play areas for some fun exploring our woodland trails, looking for the Gruffalo and the fairy tree followed by a picnic lunch would be epic. You could even try your hand at catching a fish in our lake, we have all the gear for you to use.

Later in the afternoon head to Wild Kids Forest School with Tatum for some fun in the mud kitchens, den building, outdoor games, wood chopping, and most importantly, toasting marshmallows! 

After Wild Kids, head back home to grab swimsuits and head over for a private slot in the indoor heated pool for family fun all to yourself.  After swimming, it’s time for supper and then a snuggle on the sofa for a family movie with hot chocolate and popcorn. You can guarantee that the kids will sleep well tonight!

You have so many animals! Who is your favourite and why? 

Our animals are what makes Bosinver so magical! I personally have a few favourites, first it’s Danger Duck (DD) he is a Mallard and has been with us for years. The reason why we call him DD is because he loves to chase anyone wearing flip-flops or open-toe sandals! It’s so funny to see him chasing dads around the farm! He is super friendly and would never peck but they don’t know that…

Secondly, it’s one of our rescue hens (Henrietta) she came to us a few months ago along with a few others and she is the friendliest girl. She loves to come into my office and have a nose around, she likes to come into reception as well and see what’s happening. You can see her on our socials, sitting on top of my desk.

Thirdly, it’s our oldest pony Rupert. Because of his age, he has a special diet, so I give him his breakfast every morning. He loves food and as soon as he sees me from the gate, he trots over for a cuddle and then has his breakfast.  We recently posted a video of Farmer Dave putting a new coat on Rupert on Facebook which went viral! It was heartwarming to see that everyone loves him as much as we do.

We noticed that you have a swimming pool, do you have lessons children can attend?

We have a brilliant swimming teacher, Dawn. Dawn has been a teacher for years and previously a synchronised swimmer! Dawn offers lessons for all ages and abilities, from babies first swim to adults wanting to perfect their stroke technique. Dawn has also taught Paul’s children (Farmer Dave and Nanny Pat's grandchildren) to swim brilliantly.

Which is your favourite cottage?

This is hard to answer because we have 20 beautifully unique cottages! My favourite cottage from the outside would be Coliza cottage. Coliza was built by our Bosinver boys back in 2003 and oozes character with its thatched roof, oak beams and wobbly walls! 

Apple cottage has my favourite décor. It was inspired by Nanny Pat’s mum’s G plan which has centre stage in the living room and set the retro style. I love the Scandi style décor, the Smeg fridge freezer, the cool zingy kitchen tiles and patios on both floors meaning you can open the doors and soak up the views of the old orchard brimming with wildflowers from either your bed or the dining table.

We see you can bring your dog! Are there any restrictions?

Half of our cottages are dog-friendly. We know that some people have allergies so we like to be able to offer cottages that do and don’t accept pets.

We do ask that you keep your dog on a lead when on the farm. All our animals are free to roam wherever they want so we don’t want to scare them. We do ask not to leave your dog alone in the cottage and we can recommend excellent dog walkers and sitters.

We love dogs as we have two here with us every day, Stan and Figgy who feature on our socials quite often.

We like meeting your team on your Instagram account, who’s the team member who is most eager to be in social media posts? And who avoids as much as possible!

We have a clear divide on who does and doesn’t like being in front of the camera! Nanny Pat (aka Action Nan) is very much used to being in front of the camera. Nanny Pat has her own Instagram account @action_nan where she has attracted nationwide press for her environmental advocacy work and has been on the national news, various newspapers and BBC The One Show.  

Farmer Dave is also great when I need to get content, he always has a big smile on his face and that’s why the children love him. Our housekeeping team are also great for letting me create funny content with them. 

Paul and PJ are the most camera-shy! You will hardly ever see them on our socials but I am trying hard to get them used to it. 

Who’s the funniest team member? No pressure!

What is brilliant about Bosinver is that we all have fun together! I’d say Farmer Dave and PJ are quite funny, PJ loves a good joke, and Farmer Dave is very good at being silly, especially with the children! He might be 78 but he still climbs over the gate with the children in the mornings for animal feeding and does a great “cock a doodle dooooo…”

What’s your favourite time of day at Bosinver? We’re betting sunrise and sunset is pretty special on the farm.

On a summer's day, I love it mid-morning. The sun is out, the animals are fed and pottering around the gardens. You can hear all the children outside playing, lots of laughter. I love to take a walk down to the lake where our heart-shaped sensory garden is and you’ll see lots of beautiful butterflies, insects and honey bees from the hives on the farm.

We noticed you can hire a private chef or order SOS homemade meals! Are there any good pubs or restaurants you would recommend close by?

Yes! There is a fantastic pub, The Polgooth Inn, in the local village which is a ten-minute walk down our leafy lane into Polgooth. The walk is buggy-friendly and we have torches, wellies, buggies or baby carriers if you need them.

If you wanted a child-free dinner OUT, we can also organise you a babysitter.

Charlestown is a foodie destination right by the sea,10 minutes drive from here and has many good restaurants.

What are your favourite attractions within Cornwall? Any places you would recommend during your stay at Bosinver?

Cornwall is full of places to visit! We love the beaches, there are so many to choose from that are great for swimming, rock pooling, natural sea pools and water sports. I also love the Camel Trail which is a cycling trail running along the Camel estuary into Padstow. There’s a sunflower trail near us which is like a maze, the kids love running around and hiding!

I would recommend a day out in St Ives, it is an hour’s drive from here and you can break it up by taking a train for all or just the last part of the journey from St Erth. The track runs alongside several beautiful beaches and is quite magical. St Ives is stunning in the summer, and you can go on a boat trip around the bay to soak up the beautiful views and spot seals and dolphins.

Lastly, we have to ask, what outfits would you recommend bringing with you on your Bosinver holiday? We’re assuming wellies are a must!

We provide a lot of outdoor wet weather gear from wellies and ponchos to puddle suits. If you have warm clothing (a good pair of warm cord dungarees!) hats, gloves, coats and walking footwear, that’s all you need.

We have washing machines and tumble dryers, a boot shed and an outside drying room if you get wet! Don’t forget your swimsuits, you’ll need them for the pool and the beach!

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Our competition is now live so head to our Instagram @dottydungarees for your chance to win! Hurry, it ends on Friday 14th March 2025.

To find out more about Bosinver Cottages, take a look at their website. Or follow the team’s antics on Instagram @bosinver.