Secular Retreat | Devon, UK

If they filmed James Bond in Devon, it would have to be here.

Secular Retreat is one of eight ‘Living Architecture’ properties, buildings designed by iconic architects which can be rented for short-term stays by members of the public. This property, designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, took ten years from conception to completion. Every moment of those ten years of consideration, construction and minute attention to detail pay off.

Zumthor is described by Living Architecture as ‘one of the greatest architects in the world’. Admittedly, we have no architectural expertise or training, nor have we seen any of Zumthor’s other work in person, but based on Secular Retreat alone we are inclined to agree.

From the outside, the building is striking but not especially formidable, with the muted stone allowing it to settle in the landscape despite its unconventional design and large glass windows reflecting the surrounding greenery, fields and sheep across the valley.

Once inside, however, the building is spectacular, spacious and imposing. From indoors the ceiling looks impossibly high, and the high, smooth stone walls and open space around the modern fireplace is reminiscent of what every Bond villain wishes their lair could be (Alejandro suggests Parasite but as I haven’t seen it, I can’t be sure). Despite this, it is also wonderfully cosy, with beautiful pastoral views during the day and facilitates a warm family atmosphere around the fire and record player at night.

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One of our favourite features, as can be seen in the photos above, were the desks set up overlooking the valley. It was an absolutely beautiful place to work.

We came to Secular Retreat with friends and family for a 4-day weekend in late September 2020. It was that weird period where we had sort of unlocked for the summer, life was almost normal, but there was a prevailing feeling that things couldn’t last. I would struggle to imagine a better place to come if you are burnt out by the city. We spent the weekend on long, rainy walks through fields, woodland and along the coast, playing board games, cooking hot meals and reading from the house’s specially curated selection of books (plenty of Daphne du Maurier to get into the Devonshire spirit).

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The house has five double bedrooms (sleeping 10 total), each of which features enormous windows overlooking the surrounding hills. The kitchen is fully equipped, and while we brought our own ingredients and wine, we did find a nice surprise of local milk, eggs and cheese by the coffee machine.

One thing that should be noted is that the wifi and cellular data is terrible. The enforced digital detox was great for us but it is something that you should be aware of if you’ll need to work remotely. The building does have wifi but none of us could get it to work, and there was only one spot, right by the front door, where our phones would connect to 3G (don’t even think about 4G).

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We have been lucky enough to stay at three Living Architecture locations and this has been our favourite so far. We would recommend booking this place for groups of friends, families, countryphiles, art & architecture lovers, readers & writers, walkers, anyone looking to clear their heads. We would not recommend someone who really needs an internet connection.

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HOW TO BOOK

Living Architecture was established by Alain de Botton to provide greater access to beautiful buildings. Some of the world’s greatest architects have designed houses across the British countryside, which are available for the public to rent for short-term holiday lets. You can book here.

WHAT ALEJANDRO LIKED

• Artchitects attention to deail
• Stunning Devon valley views
• Sunsets
• Hallsands to Start Point lighthouse walk

WHAT SEBASTIAN LIKED

• Outstanding architecture
• Spacious
• Playing board games
• Panoramic views of Devonshire countryside
• Wine at sunset

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