Dog-friendly, East Sussex
Dog-friendly cottages in East Sussex
- Sleeps 4
- From £220 a night
- Usual 2-night minimum
- One well-behaved dog included
4.8/5 from 85 verified guest reviews
The short version
A farm, not a car park with a cottage on it
Most dog-friendly cottages in East Sussex promise walks from the door and mean a lay-by. What we can say plainly is that Martins Farm is fifteen acres above Frant, established 1830, and that guests are welcome on all of it. The Oast — a converted single-kiln oast house sleeping four, with two bedrooms, an AGA kitchen and a boot room by the door — stands in the old yard, and the orchard and meadow begin outside it.
One well-behaved dog is included with every stay — a second may be considered by prior agreement — and a dog welcome of bed, bowls and towels can be added to a booking. The Oast has a private, fully enclosed garden; the wider fifteen-acre estate is enclosed too, but dogs should remain on a lead outside the garden because deer and other wildlife can be present. The George at Frant is ten minutes up the lane and the pub we send guests to first — check their current hours and dog policy with them rather than with us. The boot room takes whatever the meadow leaves behind.
Winston, the estate’s golden retriever, has been here since 2021 and regards greeting arrivals as part of his duties. Your dog will meet him, most likely before you have unloaded the car.
What you are actually booking
The house, and how it handles a dog
A dog included, and a house that expects one
One well-behaved dog is included with every stay at The Oast, and a second may be considered by prior agreement if you ask before booking. The boot room takes wet coats and muddy paws, and holds a washing machine, a tumble dryer, an electric drying rack and a towel rail for everything that comes back from the meadow wetter than it left.
An enclosed garden, and fifteen enclosed acres
The Oast has its own private, fully enclosed garden. The wider estate is fifteen enclosed acres of orchard, meadow and old trees, and guests are welcome on all of it. Deer and other wildlife can be present, so dogs should remain on a lead outside the Oast garden.
Room for four, in two bedrooms
The Oast sleeps four across two bedrooms — a converted single-kiln oast house with an AGA kitchen and a small butler's fridge, with the American-style fridge in the boot room. There is no cot and no high chair, which is worth knowing before you book.
Booked direct, so you can ask
Bookings are made with us rather than through a listing site, which is the only way to ask for the estate extras: a dog welcome of bed, bowls and towels, a breakfast hamper, or Sussex sparkling wine chilled for your arrival.
We do not publish a dog fee on this page. What a stay costs for your dates, and anything you add to it, is confirmed on the booking page before you commit.
The Oast in full, room by roomPractical notes before you arriveLive dates and rates
Where this is, in plain terms
Frant, Tunbridge Wells and the Weald
Dog-friendly stays in East Sussex
Martins Farm sits above Frant, in the High Weald National Landscape, on the East Sussex side of the county line. The Oast is the one property on the estate available to stay in today.
A dog-friendly cottage near Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a short drive north. The Pantiles, Thackeray's and Sankey's are all in the town; the estate is far enough out for the lane to be quiet and near enough for dinner to be a decision rather than an expedition.
A dog-friendly stay in Frant
Frant village is roughly ten minutes on foot up the lane — the green, the church and The George, the pub we send guests to first. It is a country lane with no pavement for part of the way, so walk it in daylight and take a torch after dinner.
Dog-friendly in the High Weald
The High Weald is ridge-and-valley country: sunken lanes, ancient woodland and a lot of stiles. The 145km High Weald Landscape Trail runs through it, and the county's own rights-of-way map is the honest answer to where you may walk.
Walking notes and the maps we useBigger days out at Bewl Water and BedgeburyHow a weekend here tends to go
Before you set off
Walking beyond our boundary
We do not publish routes across land we do not own, and we have not invented any. Beyond the estate, follow the signed public rights of way — the surrounding farmland and the neighbouring parkland are private. The Oast garden is fully enclosed and the wider estate is enclosed too, but dogs should remain on a lead outside the garden. Keep them on a lead near livestock and on the lane, and close gates behind you.
Deer and other wildlife can be present in the fields, particularly at first and last light. This is why the wider estate should not be treated as an off-lead dog enclosure.
Two maps worth five minutes
- East Sussex rights of way map (opens in a new tab)The county council’s record of public footpaths, bridleways and byways, with current closures.
- High Weald Landscape Trail (opens in a new tab)A 145km waymarked route through the National Landscape this farm sits in.
Bringing a dog?
Ask Winston
Dogs, mud, walks and the lane to the pub — the estate's golden retriever has answers to the questions guests actually ask.
Asked most often
Dog questions, answered plainly
If your question is not here, ask before you book — we would rather answer for your dates than print a promise.
- Are there dog-friendly cottages in East Sussex that take dogs at no extra charge?
- One well-behaved dog is included with every stay at The Oast, our converted oast house at Frant, and a second may be considered by prior agreement rather than assumed. We do not publish a dog fee on this page; what a stay costs for your dates, and anything added to it, is confirmed on the booking page before you commit.
- Is there somewhere enclosed for a dog at The Oast?
- Yes. The Oast has a private, fully enclosed garden. The wider fifteen-acre estate is enclosed too, but deer and other wildlife can be present in the fields, so dogs should remain on a lead outside the Oast garden.
- What is provided for dogs?
- A dog welcome of bed, bowls and towels can be added to a booking. The boot room holds a washing machine, a tumble dryer, an electric drying rack and a towel rail, which is what most guests actually use after a wet walk.
- Is there a dog-friendly pub near Frant?
- The George at Frant is roughly ten minutes on foot up the lane and the pub we send guests to first. Check their current hours and dog policy with them directly rather than taking our word for it. The lane has no pavement for part of the way, so walk it in daylight and keep the dog on a lead.
- How far is it from Tunbridge Wells?
- Frant is three to four miles south of Royal Tunbridge Wells on the A267, about a quarter of an hour by car. The nearest station is Frant (FRT) at Bells Yew Green, a little over a mile away.
Bring the dog
Book The Oast direct
One well-behaved dog included, a second by prior agreement, a private fully enclosed garden, fifteen enclosed acres and a boot room. From £220 a night, two nights minimum, booked with us rather than a listing site.