Area Daily: Boutique Farmsteads in the US

There are times in every city dweller’s life when all those skyscrapers looming overhead and subterranean metro stations start to get too much. No disrespect to these great urban centers, but surely the whole point of thronging streets and choked-up roads is to provide a counterpoint to all that empty space lying between Washington and Maine.

And what better way to reconnect with all that nature and the pioneer spirit of the nation’s founding fathers than to stay on a farm? We’re not talking the sort of place where you’ll find a drooling dog on the porch and moonshine being distilled in the barn. From the forest-clad hills of New England to the mist-wreathed mountains of Tennessee, a whole new breed of American boutique farm stays has sprung up, catering to the upscale traveler. These are our favorite fashionable farmsteads…

Blackberry Farm, Smoky Mountains, Tennessee: Gorgeous views, a patchwork of picket-fenced fields, and a model home-on-the-farm feel– all the ingredients are there for a textbook rustic retreat, but Blackberry Farm ratchets the luxury up a notch with smart contemporary decor, bend-over-backwards staff and its own Lexus fleet – it’s back to nature with added bliss.

Wheatleigh, the Berkshires, Massachusetts: A late-19th century mansion perched on a green knoll in Massachusetts’ beautiful Berkshire Hills, Wheatleigh blends the ornate grandeur of a 16th-century Florentine palazzo with every modern comfort you’d expect, including fine French dining, lush landscaped grounds, antique furnishings (check out the Tiffany stained glass) and a gallery-load of contemporary art.

Winvian, Litchfield Hills, Connecticut: If it’s peace, quiet and rustic style you’re after, then this beautiful, 113-acre boutique resort in Connecticut ticks all boxes. The 18 cottages that surround an antique-filled, colonial-style farmhouse all have their own individual design scheme – from fairytale woodland to whimsical helicopter interior.