Catgill Farm: Meet the Yorkshire couple whose campsite opened for the Grand Depart has been named the best in the north

“That was always going to be our thing, high quality,” says Oliver. “All our money went into the toilet block in the field. My view was that when you’re away you want the warmth of a quality shower and to look after yourself in comfort, especially when you can’t always rely on the weather.

“Our reception area was in the farmhouse. Me and my granddad Ken, who had been a dairy farmer for 50 years, would be there checking people in. He loved that and it gave him a new lease of life as he loved talking to our visitors. He had a lot of character and a bit of a way with the ladies.

“When we started it was just the three of us – granddad, me and Cat. I was still working full-time as an architect in my own business and Cat had her full-time job as a chartered accountant in Leeds, but now we have a team of 25, we are both full-time here and have a second venue at Howgill near Appletreewick.

“The year of the Tour de France coming through was an opportune time to start as it gave us focus, and very quickly we became busier and busier. We have expanded our facilities every year. We are ideally placed, with great attractions like Hesketh Farm Park on our doorstep and Billy Bob’s Ice Cream Parlour on the same country lane.

Cat says they had the confidence that it should work, but that the reason it has grown is because of location, the quality they offer, particularly now, and their commitment to progress, although nothing was and nothing is taken for granted.

“I don’t think either of us knew how popular this would become at the start. We knew all along that it was a brilliant idea, that the area is always hugely in demand for holidays, but you never know for sure until you open and get going.

Oliver points to the addition of the timber pods as moving them into the bigger league of glamping, which has led to many fantastic reviews and has seen he and Cat experience exceptional demand.

“We started with three timber pods in 2019 and instantly the demand was huge. At that time, pre-pandemic, there wasn’t anything in the vicinity like them, especially as they all had a hot tub. We added three the following year. In 2020 the pandemic hit, but we knew by then that demand was so great and so we added another four the year after that.

“The pandemic was obviously a rough time, but the hospitality industry in the UK benefited from it because people weren’t going away. Our demand skyrocketed.

“I’m always thinking about what we can keep adding to make sure we have plenty to offer for those who want to come here.

Geo domes are the latest addition for 2024.

“We added them last week,” says Oliver. “The demand for them has gone mental. We put one in to test-drive as such with customers who have been before, to get their feedback. It has been phenomenal, guests love them. They are great for sitting inside, especially in winter months when can’t rely on weather as much, and still feeling as though you are sat out in the open, and they are brilliant for stargazing in an evening.

Oliver and Cat are not standing still in their quest to keep building their business.

“Visitors are looking for experiences,” says Oliver. “That something different to the norm, and with bespoke timber pods, hot tubs, Geo domes, bell tents kitted out like plush hotel bedrooms, plus our own small herd of alpacas and a neighbour’s sheep, we’re offering something for those who want high-end accommodation as well as camping with great facilities including Cat’s Kitchen and the in-house farm shop in our all-new reception building.

“People love seeing the baby lambs in spring,” says Cat. “And we now have seven fluffy alpacas. We bred from them last year and currently have three baby alpacas (crias) that our guests all gave names to. Alpaca trekking will be something new to add.

Cat’s Kitchen and her farm shop within the reception have become further additions to the Catgill offering.

“I’ve always had passion for cooking and at the end of the 2022 season I thought about what we could do really well that doesn’t require a professional chef. I looked at how to make really good pizzas, we put in a fancy pants pizza oven that attracts a lot of attention and it is has been amazingly popular.

“When we moved our reception into the brand new timber framed building across our yard, which was where the old milking parlour once was, it quadrupled in size what we’d had before and gave us the opportunity to provide guests with what I like to think of as a local farm shop providing a lot of camping essentials but also a lot of Yorkshire produce, including such as Yorkshire Heart Vineyard’s wines, Yorkshire Soap and Yorkshire Crisps, plus produce from local bakers and butchers.

Cat and Oliver are particularly conscious of the part their team plays, and increasingly so as they have grown.

“We receive so much good feedback about how friendly all of our team are,” says Cat. “They are all local too, from between Skipton and Ilkley areas, and we now have four managers within the two sites at Catgill and Howgill.

Oliver says they already have plans in place for further additions at both sites.

“We plan on introducing a woodfired sauna located next to a stream that runs through farm, and a natural plunge pool. It’s all about experiences. Another feature will be tree houses in woodland. All our pods are in woodland with amazing views. This will add diversity. At Howgill we are planning to install three tree-pods on metal stilts with treetop platforms and a rope bridge going across to them.

Oliver was born at Catgill in 1986 in a farm worker’s cottage that his parents lived in. He didn’t want to miss out on the countryside life. He and Cat are now ten years into their countryside business and it’s going strong.