Is your poor battered nervous system crying out for some peace and quiet?

If so, we may have found your next escape.

Tucked away across 270 acres on the Cork-Kerry border, Esk Mountain has reopened for the summer with a gorgeous new stay aimed at nature lovers and foodies.

The new Nook & Nest studio is designed for people who like their weekends heavy on birdsong and light on notifications.

Handmade furniture crafted from timber harvested on-site and invasive rhododendron gives the space a genuinely rooted feel, while a private outdoor kitchenette will make breakfasts magical. Spend evenings on the rooftop terrace overlooking Glengarriff Woods Nature Reserve and Bantry Bay.

After dark, you can kick back beside the firepit barbecue (wood supplied – you really won’t need to lift a finger).

Oh, and there’s a tree-suspended nest swing with room for two, guaranteed to make it dangerously easy to forget what day it is.

Outside your door, there are foraging trails, guided walks and fireside cookery workshops, while breakfast comes in the form of a hamper packed with local artisan produce and wild ingredients foraged on the estate.

Best of all, every booking directly funds habitat restoration across the land, so your weekend away is doing a little good while you’re busy doing very little.

They’ve also announced a new series of Taste The Wild guest chef pop-ups throughout the summer, giving visitors another excellent excuse to make the journey west.

“Esk Mountain’s stunning bespoke woodland kitchen, set in a secluded forest clearing and constructed using timber harvested on site, will provide the focal point for a series of special interactive fireside feasts that are truly of the place and the season.” they told us.

“The ‘Taste The Wild’ workshop series featuring Epi Rogan x Pádraig Nagle, Tiger Balm Club and The Salt Project will see diners connect with the magic of the natural world through immersive memory-making experiences that are packed full of the flavours of Esk Mountain.

“Each of the nomadic guest chefs will apply their own unique ethos in showcasing all that the site has to offer, including foraged wild plants and venison blended with ingredients from local growers and producers.”

Three-night stays for two at Nook & Nest start from €180 per night, with bookings now open. It might just be the digital detox you’ve been meaning to organise for years.

Fancy staying a little longer? Run by a collaborative team led by Kloë Wood Lyndorff and Will Donaldson alongside ecologists, makers and outdoor adventure guides, the team are open to people interested in the project’s mission to get involved, either in hiring the site as a venue, sponsorship, student placements or rolling up their sleeves and getting stuck in as a volunteer.

Photos: Kate Bean Photography