Anyone raised on Famous Five novels knows that nothing beats a farm stay for a holiday: all that fresh produce and fresh air giving you a boost. Pick the right place and you'll have an adventure to remember, writes SANDRA O'CONNELL
Kiltale Farm
Mary and Michael Lydon’s working farm in Meath combines the right amount of fun for kids with the right amount of comfort for grown-ups. No sleeping on extra-comfy clumps of heather here but rather in farm buildings nicely renovated as cosy accommodation.
The real appeal, however, is out in the yard where youngsters follow Mr Lydon like newly hatched chicks as he goes about his morning and evening chores, like milking cows by hand, feeding ducks and petting donkeys.
There are ponies to ride, a playground to enjoy and a trampoline to bounce on and, if mum and dad fancy heading off to see the cultural sights nearby, kids can stay and join in the summer camps the Lydons run for locals, with toys aplenty in the old cow barn playhouse.
Cost:three nights self-catering accommodation for four costs €360, including free passes to Rathbeggan Lakes, an outdoor fishing/play centre nearby.
Web:meathselfcatering.com
Killiane Castle
Choose Wexford for your farm stay and you boost your chances of having the good weather to get out and enjoy it.
The Mernagh family’s home is accessed via a leafy country road that sets the mood perfectly for the peace and quiet on offer within.
The 17th century house – which stands beside the original 15th century castle – is surrounded by acre after acre of prime Wexford farmland. There’s a whispering beech grove to ramble through, fields to explore and cows to stare back at.
As if that weren’t entertainment enough, there’s also a pitch and putt course, a driving range, tennis and croquet. Then nod off over the crossword in the garden.
Though a world apart, it’s only three miles from Wexford town, and not much further from the county’s glorious beaches.
Guests can stay in the main house on a BB basis, or in its converted stable self-catering apartments.
Cost:B&B €100 a night for a double. One-bedroom apartments cost €300 and two-bedroom apartments cost €500 a week in high season.
Web:killianecastle.com
Abhainn Ri Farm
In Wicklow, Abhaínn Rí Farm offers a pastoral idyll of fluffy sheep and sparkling lakes.
Situated at the point where Kings River (Abhaínn Rí) flows into Blessington lakes, the Byrne family’s 100-acre farm really couldn’t be more picturesque.
Guests of their purpose-built holiday cottages can while away the hours on farm walks or give in to the kids and stay in the play barn where there are swings, a slide and a vintage tractor to clamber over.
There are animals aplenty, too, including goats, calves, pigs, hens and ducks. Guests are welcome to help at feeding time or go on a real egg hunt in the hen house. There are ponies and donkeys and even pigs to be brushed, plus a proper working sheepdog to marvel at.
As you’d expect, there’s plenty of fresh farm food too, with fresh eggs and soda bread in your welcome pack and, if you fancy it, a home-cooked meal delivered to your door at night. So maybe don’t get to know the lambs too well.
Cost:seven nights in Ash Cottage at Abhaínn Rí Farm, which sleeps six, costs €880 in July.
Web:abhainn-ri.com
Inish Beg
Inish Beg is a working sheep farm, with the additional cute factor of a stable full of miniature ponies. Set on a private island just off Skibbereen in west Cork, if you’re looking for a farm atmosphere but with distinctly un-farmyard accommodation, check this one out.
Depending on the season, you can get your paws on all sorts of fresh goodies, from runny honey to soft fruits and veg, home-made cakes and pies plus copious salad and picnic food. For a week at least, let its walled garden be your supermarket.
It isn’t all about the food, however, what Inish Beg is best known for is water sports, so it’s definitely more wetsuits than wellies.
There’s also a heated indoor swimming pool, not a regular feature of Irish farms.
Outdoors, it’s great for wandering and its more purposeful cousin, walking, as well as bird watching and fishing. It’s also a great base for exploring the delights of west Cork.
Cost:a week's self-catering stay in summer costs €880.
Web:inishbeg.com
Temple House
Named for the Knights Templar, this house at Ballymote, Co Sligo has a connection that goes back even further, through the Perceval family who arrived in 1665, to King Arthur’s Round Table. If you’re looking for farmhouse accommodation with a history, this is it.
The 1,000-acre estate is home to 1,500 sheep, with miles of walks through what is an EU Special Conservation Area covering lakeshores (there’s a 200-acre lake with four boats for fishing and visiting the crannogs), rare wet woodlands and an ancient, naturally sown Scots pine forest.
The house is a classical Georgian mansion which overlooks the 13th century lakeside castle of the Knights Templar, a Christian militia. As well as luxury country house accommodation, it has a self-catering cottage that sleeps eight. It’s farming, but on a grand scale.
Cost:Temple House's holiday cottage costs €800 a week in June and July. A three-night stay in the house on a B&B basis, plus two dinners, costs €285 per person.
Web:templehouse.ie
Beechwood Lodge
When Trish and William Smith returned to Ireland from a stint working overseas they bought a farm with the intention of setting up a self-catering business.
Unfortunately, they knew nothing about raising livestock or crops, so instead they did the sensible thing and planted trees.
The self-catering bungalows dotted around their 35-acre small holding just outside Trim in Co Meath are therefore beautifully secluded as a result.
The couple also maintain the tradition of the good old-fashioned farmhouse welcome, with baskets of fresh baked brown breads and scones, as well as jars of home-made preserves, awaiting visitors.
The couple have their own historic henge, or ring fort, on the property which, combined with the forestry, makes for a great place for kids to run really wild. They’re encouraged in this by Trish Smith who takes them on guided berry trails or down to the greenhouses to pull fresh tomatoes for tea.
There’s plenty to see in the Boyne Valley and visitors can book a gourmet picnic basket of farmhouse cheeses, salamis, olives and sandwiches, to take with them.
Each holiday home here has its own terrace and there is a tennis court, basketball hoops and a barbecue for guests’ use outside.
Cost:a four-night stay in June, in a bungalow sleeping seven, costs €495.
Web:beechwoodlodge.ie
Ardsollus Farm
Loreto Hannon’s family has lived and farmed at Ardsollus in Clare for more than 200 years.
The award-winning agri-tourism business offers both BB and self-catering apartment accommodation on what is a working farm overlooking Dromoland Estate.
That makes it a great base for anyone touring the west, with Bunratty and Knappogue castles, the Cliffs of Moher and the Burren all within easy reach. And of course, Dromoland Castle is just through the hedge.
The front of the house has a nice seating area for sundowners, if you’re lucky, or head round to the courtyard near the apartments where you can keep company with Jake, the farm dog. There are suckling cows to make moo eyes at and horses to pat.
Cost:€40 per person B&B, with 33 per cent discount for under 12s. Family room available.
Web:ardsollusfarm.com
Kilmaneen Farmhouse
What’s a farm without a dog? With Kilmaneen, the great thing is that Fido gets to come too.
Kevin and Bernadette O’Donnell’s award-winning four-star BB farmhouse in Tipperary lets you book your dog in to one of its kennels for the duration of your stay. Book its self-catering cottage and he can stay indoors with you.
The farm has been in the family for six generations and sits in a Special Area of Conservation, aka a quiet, unspoilt, rural setting. What’s more, they use environmentally friendly farming practices, so it’s likely to stay that way.
As well as wandering the land and gardens, there’s private fishing on the farm’s stretch of the rivers Suir and Tar plus hill-walking in the Knockmealdown, Comeragh and Galtee Mountains. The Rock of Cashel, fresh from its brush with the world’s press, is nearby too.
Having worked up an appetite on those, it’s nice to know you can request a home-cooked meal on your return – with home grown fruit and veg and Aberdeen Angus beef from the field next door.
Cost:B&B prices start at €35 per person. Seven nights self-catering in the three-bedroom farmhouse, which sleeps six, costs €549 in high season.
Web:kilmaneen.com