Fforest

''How to describe Fforest? Labelling it a campsite would be like calling El Bulli a café.
Instead, picture a hip hybrid of Welsh farm and Japanese forest retreat, where you can get up close and personal with nature.''
Telegraph Weekend Travel 15/09/2019

fforest is a place to enjoy the simplicity, pleasures and beauty of outdoor living in an outstanding natural environment. 200 acres by the river Teifi gorge, next to the Teifi marshes nature reserve, minutes from the town of Cardigan and from the beautiful undiscovered beaches and coves of the West Wales coast.

We offer catered residential events with a minimum 2-night stay for groups of all sizes up to 150. We have accommodation to suit everyone, from geodesic domes and woodland shacs to a luxury Georgian Farmhouse, all making the most of the beautiful natural environment.

We are nothing like a conference centre but we do (almost) everything a conference centre can. And more. We do great food, great air, great coffee. We have big spaces where people can sit down to eat together, to engage with a presentation, be entertained, dance, sing, play. We have multiple intimate spaces indoor & out where small groups can think, work, plan, design & dream.
We don’t do carpet, air conditioning, or vending machines.

We have our very own little pub, The Bwthyn, the oldest building on the farm. On site you will also find the cedar barrel sauna tucked into the woods. This is the perfect après-sea treatment, after a session of coasteering or kayaking.

Event spaces:
The cedar barn offers 22m x 7.9m of flexible space for presentations, workshops, dining for up to 150 and partying. The cedar barn leads out onto a covered deck overlooking the fforest raised beds.

The lodge barn is a split-level space of 16.5m x 5.4m with a wood-burning stove and outdoor covered terrace offering additional seating. This space is ideal for presentations & workshops and can seat up to 90 at long tables for dining. The lodge barn adjoins our tiny Bwthyn pub and the open sided garden pavilion, and is a few steps away from the lodge, the giant hat tipi, the covered communal firepit and the quarry. The combination of these spaces offers endless possibilities for workshops, activities, break outs and entertainment.

For smaller groups of up to 20, the ground floor of Ty Fforest, the Georgian farmhouse, can be set up for meetings, presentations, workshops, brainstorming and intimate dinners.

To complement the event spaces, fforest is set in 200 acres of rural bliss, creating the perfect backdrop for photo shoots and product launches. Local roads are quiet, perfect for exploring the mountains, beaches and coastal paths.

Activities:
We work with event organisers to deliver the perfect blend of activities. Whether you are creating a team incentive, a retreat or just want to add in a little bit of downtime during an intensive schedule we can help you to develop the perfect itinerary. We have organised sessions in natural wine tasting, gin blending, foraging, bushcraft, fforest bathing, drumming, wreath making, ceramics, illustration, indigo dyeing, pizza making, beer cocktails and numerous other activities.
It would be a shame not to get out and explore the local area while you are here. We can suggest coastal walks and swimming spots, take you on a guided canoe trip along the idyllic Teifi gorge and co-ordinate coasteering, surfing, stand-up paddle boarding and lots of other activities that make the most of our location.

Accommodation:
Ty Fforest - A luxury restored farmhouse for up to 14 people.
Crog Lofts - Four cosy, open-plan crofter's cottages, with outdoor terraces, each sleeping up to 4 people.
Domes - Nine beautiful geodesic domes, made famous at fforest, with a king-size bed, wood-burning stove, an outdoor kitchen & dining space and deck. Four of our domes feature en-suite shower rooms, a spacious deck and a private outdoor Japanese-style bath-house with a shower, basin and cast concrete soaking tub.
Hill Shacs - Ideal for larger groups, 3 shacs each featuring 4 twin / double rooms and plenty of space to relax.
Garden shacs - 3 shacs overlooking the fforest garden, each with 3 twin / double rooms, interior lounging space and an outside deck.

We have been delivering events for over 12 years, and everyone is completely different. We have the space to offer complete flexibility and work with you to create an event to suit your brief.

Testimonials:
Here are some kind words from some of the amazing event organisers we have worked with.

D3 for Red Bull
Beth Ingham, Operations director, D3 Eventz
"We were thrilled to find Fforest this year! We spend hours searching for the perfect venue and luckily found Fforest when searching for a venue for a 'conference with a twist' for one of our key clients. Fforest was well worth the drive - it is set in an incredible location with fields, rivers and sea aplenty, the facilities for our group of 70 were perfect, the food was outstanding ("best food at a conference ever!!") and staff couldn't do enough from start to finish. Fforest is completely chilled and understood our sometimes crazy requests, which is exactly what we want from a venue - and all so often hard to find. We would highly recommend bringing a conference or group event to Fforest - we will be going back as soon as we can!"

Lululemon
Ashleigh Stirling, Community Connector, Lululemon
We can’t thank you enough for such a wonderful experience at fforest, it was completely magical and we are still hearing amazing feedback from all of our ambassadors and they’re keen to come back already! From hiking, lake swimming, the best ploughman’s lunch EVER, everything was great.
Instagram: #thecamplife2016

J. Walter Thompson
Kate Bruges, UK & Europe Director of Learning and Development
Fforest exceeded our expectations in every way for our leadership programme. The unique environment created an atmosphere that inspired creativity and real community. It also felt very nurturing and allowed our delegates to focus completely on the programme. Everything at Fforest has been curated with a fine eye for design with real attention to detail and this was also very important for us as a creative business.
The range of different accommodation worked well, the choice of meeting space was great and it was a joy to sit together and eat simple but delicious food. The effort required to travel there was rewarded immediately and we all in fell in love with Fforest.

Snap Photofest
Laura Babb, Founder of Snap Photography Festival
As a first time organiser of a big event we were really, really impressed with fforest's approach to hosting our photography festival. They walked us through every stage of the process, supported us, gave us pep-talks and generally provided input and guidance to ensure things ran smoothly. During the event itself it was clear that fforest's ethos is embraced by every single member of the team. The staff at Fforest (although staff seems like a very formal word – they all felt more like friends) all go way beyond the call of duty to make sure every single guest is happy and has an amazing experience. I firmly believe that the magic of Fforest made SNAP and that's why we didn't hesitate in deciding to come back the following year. Helen, Fforest's event coordinator, is a delight to work with and we couldn't have made SNAP happen without her. She's calm, friendly, reassuring, highly organised and every request is met with a cheerful determination to make it happen. James and Sian are equally lovely and it's so inspiring to see how passionate they are about Fforest and the experience they create for their visitors. Aside from the planning, every other detail is executed meticulously. Fforest's attention to detail is just wonderful, the food is AMAZING, and the ambiance is just magical.

https://snapphotofestival.squarespace.com/blog/snap-2017

E S Catapult
Stuart Cooper, UX Lead: Consumer Insight
…what can I say… I am in some dreamlike post-Fforest state. Lovely.

The gang all had a fun time...I was personally very very delighted by every moment;

The food was a cut-above and beautifully prepared/hosted, everyone ate well.

Laughter and beer by fire-pit was a rare treat for this lot.

Accommodation and room-shares went down well. I slept like a damn log and no children shouting at 6am.

Awesome bang-for-buck – cost less than hiring our goto bland conference rooms x3 days next to our Bham office.

I have been on a handful of retreats etc but never have I met a place where every inch of space has been so carefully and lovingly cultivated; a total treat on the senses. Posies of wildflowers everywhere / woodcraft and local art / enamel meets handmade ceramics. I really appreciated the fine touches. I’ve never lusted for something quite as much as one of your plush handmade blankets!