Doyou begin and end every day with a screen in your hand? Are you constantly tiedto a charger?
Electronicshabits have a tendency to spiral without us realising what’s happening. Youfind you’re spending the daily commute scrolling through your phone and your 9-5in front of a computer, before you head home for an evening of TV and tablets. Itbecomes difficult to distinguish work from play, drudgery from fun. It becomesharder and harder to switch off.
Butmaybe it’s time you to find that switch. If you do, you’ll be in good company. Smartpeople know that while our ability to be constantly connected opens up theworld, it can be overwhelming and exhausting. Sometimes, we need to go off-gridto force ourselves to unplug.
Whatdoes off grid mean?
Above: Longlands, award-winning off-grid glamping in Devon.
Off-gridtraditionally means just that: being somewhere unconnected to the electricitygrid and other mainstream sources of power. Instead, power comes from both oldand new technologies. You might enjoy a solar shower in the morning and keepwarm by a woodburner at night.
Above: Round the Woods eco-friendly yurts in Norfolk.
Butoff-grid isn’t just about where you get your power from. It’s a way of life. It’sabout making a positive choice to take time away from that constant connectionto everything and everyone.
Somechoose to make a permanent life off grid, buying a piece of isolated land andbuilding a dream home away from it all. They might develop a smallholding, and becomeat least partly self-sufficient. This is a dream many of us have had on apacked commuter train at 7am on a Monday morning.
Butfor most, a life permanently off the grid isn’t realistic or even desirable.The Monday commute might not be fun, but it’s rarely bad enough to want to giveup our home, career and social life for. Instead, a few days away on anoff-grid escape is enough to re-energise and cut through the electronic fog.
Above: Idyllic off-grid accommodation at The Dandelion Hideaway in Leicestershire
Offgrid retreats
Ifthe idea of an off-grid retreat appeals to you, it’s worth thinking about whatoff grid means to you. You can be off the grid, but with alternative sources ofpower, still have all the electricity you could want to charge your laptop andphone, and a full signal so you’re just as connected (and just as frazzled) asyou would have been at home.
Thinkof off-grid in lifestyle terms. What do you want to get out of your off-gridexperience? If you want to switch off, you might want:
- No or very minimal electricity, so there’s no opportunity for you to charge your devices and therefore no temptation to use them.
- No phone or internet signal, so even if you have charged devices, you’re forced to stay disconnected.
- A natural environment, away from the city bustle.
- The chance to learn about alternative, perhaps more traditional, ways of doing things, such as campfire cooking.
Above: Campfire cooking at The Original Hut Company in East Sussex
Wherecan I get off grid?
There are so many unique and natural off-grid options to choose from. Howabout a cosy yurt, a luxury eco-house, or a log cabin hidden in the woods? Or perhaps a bothy, shepherd’s hut or beach shack is more your style.
Onceyou know what you want from your off-grid experience, take a look at our off-grid holiday accommodation, unplug and enjoy your perfect escape.
Above: Shank Wood Log Cabin in Cumbria
