We recently told our personal Farmstay story at the GAN conference in Scotland and along the way we experienced Scottish farms big and small telling theirs. It was abrilliant experience.
After spending years welcoming guests to our own farm and now working with hundreds of farms across the Farmstay community, I've learned something simple:
Celebrate Mom with Fresh Air, Good Food, and Farm Hospitality
This June, we’re packing our bags and heading to Aberdeen, Scotland for something pretty special.
Across the country, farms are welcoming guests in growing numbers, from short visits to longer stays, offering a close look at everyday farm life. It’s an invitation to see where food comes from and to experience farm life. Those who have chosen to do this have done so thoughtfully. There is no performance or theme, but instead a form of welcoming, a chance to share the land and introduce the families who care for it. From the outside, visiting a working farm can feel a little unexpected. The farmer has laden the breakfast table with jams they made and eggs fresh from the chicken coop. You step outside your door to pick fresh fruit from the orchard, or maybe you’re invited to try your hand at milking a dairy cow or holding a bottle of warm milk for a calf. The lights are on for your late arrival, and a friendly note on the table welcomes you to the farm. This is a visit to a family’s home in the countryside. At Farmstay, we work with farms and ranches across the country that welcome guests in many different ways. Some are just beginning their hospitality journey. Others have been opening their gates for decades, shaping hospitality through lived experience rather than any single formula. This is a small glimpse of the many farms that do this kind of hosting especially well (the first three farms on our list were early U.S. pioneers in farm hospitality, welcoming guests as far back as the 1950s).
Share gifts from some of the farms on FarmStay this holiday season. Everything from textiles to maple syrup. Support your farmers.
As a farmer in the Pacific Northwest, I don’t often take two weeks off in June—especially not to travel
When we think of farming, we often picture tidy rows of vegetables or herds of animals grazing in open pastures. But tucked across the countryside are farms that trade tomatoes for tulips and cornrows for cosmos—where blooms take center stage and every corner bursts with color.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
