Vallis Oak Villa

Vallis Oak Villa is the kind of house where twelve people spread out and still find surprises. The bookcase in the living room sets the tone. Pull the right book, and it swings open to a cellar underneath the house, complete with a well feature built into the floor. Children find it within the first hour and claim it as their own. Adults find it slightly later and wish they had got there first. It is one of those details that turns a big family holiday into one that actually gets talked about afterwards.

The ground floor opens up into a single large living space that runs from the front door through to the garden. A shaker-style kitchen sits at the centre, with triple electric ovens, a full-size hob, a fridge-freezer, a dishwasher, and enough worktop space that two or three people can cook at the same time without getting in each other's way. A rustic dining table seats the group for proper sit-down meals, and a breakfast bar handles the quicker mornings. The sitting area faces a wood-burning stove, and if someone connects their phone to the Sonos speakers, the whole room fills without anyone having to shout over it.

Six bedrooms are split across two floors. Two doubles sit on the ground floor, handy for anyone who prefers not to do stairs. Upstairs, a super-king-size master comes with an en-suite walk-in shower and double basins, and three more doubles fill out the rest. The family bathroom on the first floor has a freestanding bath for a proper soak and a separate walk-in shower, with a ground-floor WC for daytime convenience. Beds here are genuinely comfortable. The mattresses are the kind you actually notice, and twelve people sleeping well under one roof is rarer than it should be.

The rear garden is where Vallis Oak Villa pulls ahead of most large-group properties. It is big, properly big, with a wide lawn that slopes down from a raised patio. Mature trees line the boundaries on all sides, so it feels private even though you are five minutes from the centre of Frome. A trampoline, a swing, and a small play area keep younger children busy, while the lawn itself is large enough for football without anyone worrying about windows. The fire pit earns its keep on most evenings, and once the light drops over the Somerset hills, the hot tub on the patio is the last stop of the night, screened by the trees and quiet enough that you can hear the garden settle.

Frome is a genuine market town with independent shops, cafes, and a Cheese and Grain events space that pulls in decent live music. The Royal Oak is barely a two-minute walk from the front door, and for a bigger grocery run, there is a shop half a mile away. Victoria Park, Rodden Meadow, and the River Frome all make for good morning walks without needing the car.

Bath is the obvious big day out, about 25 minutes east. The Roman Baths, Thermae Bath Spa, the Jane Austen Centre, and the Bath Skyline walk all sit within easy reach, and the city itself is worth wandering just for the architecture. Closer to home, the Cranborne Chase and Mendip Hills Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty are both on the doorstep for walking, cycling, and the kind of quiet that makes you forget you ever checked your email.

Off-road parking runs along the private driveway with space for six cars, which matters when twelve people arrive with twelve carloads of stuff. Two well-behaved dogs are welcome, the garden is fully enclosed, and linen, towels, and a starter pack for the wood-burning stove are all included. Marcus, the owner, is responsive and straightforward without hovering.