Newlands Lodges, Northumberland - Detailed Review
/Damon’s family arranged a 3 night stay in the Newlands Lodges, Northumberland as a birthday present for Damon’s dad.
The lodges were picked for a few reasons. Firstly, they were brand new, only having opened towards the end of 2018. Secondly, the 4 bed/3 bath lodges suited the size of the group, consisting of 6 people.
And finally, they allowed dogs, fulfilling an essential criteria as we were taking 2 long haired dachshunds on their first vacation.
Location
The lodges are located in a secluded part of the Northumberland countryside just off of Boundary Lane. Car is the only realistic method of travel around here and the roads near the lodge are all single track.
The lodge does have private parking and the driveway can comfortably fit 4 cars.
If you’re looking for tranquility, you can certainly find it here. The lodges are nestled between the surrounding acres of farmland.
But, you’re also only a short drive away from a few of Northumberland’s picturesque villages. If you go a little further afield, you can also visit the cities of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne and Durham.
Blanchland (8.8 miles or 18 min drive)
Corbridge (11.7 miles or 19 min drive)
Hexham (15.4 miles or 25 min drive)
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne (16.1 miles or 32 min drive)
Durham (16.9 miles or 33 min drive)
Additionally, if you’re looking to top up on food/supplies there are a range of large supermarkets (Tesco, Morrisons, Aldi) just 14 mins (5.5 miles away) in Consett.
Check In
We arrived at the Cedar Lodge just before official check-in at 4pm where one of the owners was there to greet us, give us the keys and show us around.
He was very courteous, answering any questions we had, showing us how the hot tub worked and giving us a list of eateries/takeaways nearby.
Cedar Lodge
There were 2 lodges to pick from, Cedar and Maple, identical in structure but each had some unique design elements, like the stone around the living room fireplace.
The lodges are beautifully designed and finished, with a contemporary design. Well-built, well-designed and well-insulated.
Both have 4 bedrooms, 2 main bathrooms, 1 en-suite, a fully equipped kitchen/dining/living area, an 8 person hot tub and more.
The Cedar’s living area and 2 upstairs bedrooms face out onto the adjacent farmland. The main upstairs bedroom (with en-suite), the downstairs bedroom and bathroom face out on to the lane.
The Maple is effectively the same but switched around. The Maple’s living area and 2 upstairs bedrooms face out onto the lane. The main upstairs bedroom (with en-suite), the downstairs bedroom and bathroom face out on to the farmland.
We picked the Cedar for this stay and would likely do so again. The reason being that we liked the fact the living area/kitchen faced out on to the jacuzzi and farmland beyond that.
Living/Dining/Kitchen Area
We spent most of the time in the lodge in the main living area, which can suitably accommodate all 8 guests if required. Although you would need to pull some dining chairs over if you’re all wanting space around the coffee table at the same time.
The kitchen comes fully equipped with:
An induction hob, microwave and oven
Tall, upright fridge freezer
Dishwasher, plus tablets
Toaster, kettle and cafetière
Pots, pans, trays, colander
Drinking glasses, wine glasses, mugs
Plates, bowls and utensils
Salt/pepper grinders
Tin foil, kitchen roll and 2 tea towels
Food/supplies can be delivered to the lodge and I’d say this is the sensible approach so you don’t have to lug this down with you, especially if you’re short on space.
The only issue we had in the kitchen was fire alarm sensitivity. The fire alarm would go off pretty routinely after opening the oven door.
Amenities
A full hamper was waiting for us on our arrival with some food (sausages, eggs, bacon, bread, butter, jam and marmalade) and drink (milk, earl grey tea and coffee). There was also a bottle of wine included as well, a nice addition as we were celebrating a birthday.
Prior to our arrival we were to email one of the owners with any dietary requirements for the hamper, highlighting the owners’ great customer service and attention to detail.
In addition to the hamper, the living area also had a wall-mounted smart TV and a bluetooth Hi-Fi system. The smart TV, along with the 2 other bedroom TVs have a paid-for Netflix subscription which was another added bonus.
You could turn on the wall-mounted electric fireplace (heat on or off) to create a cosy atmosphere too.
Bedrooms
The property has 4 bedrooms, 3 upstairs and 1 downstairs, all of which have super king beds which can be split into 2 singles.
The 3 upstairs bedrooms are all similar in size but the main bedroom has an attached en-suite.
I appreciated the fact that all the bedrooms had their own unique design and feel. The main upstairs bedroom (top left image), for example, was decorated with cream/teal coloured linen/cushions.
The other upstairs bedrooms had black/grey (top right image) and grey/mustard (bottom left image) theming respectively. And the downstairs bedroom (bottom right image) had a dark blue/mustard design. All of the rooms had unique bedside tables and lamps, making the property feel more like a home than a hotel.
There was a good amount of storage space in all the bedrooms (cupboards, shelves etc.) and the downstairs bedroom had a walk-in wardrobe with a make up table, plus hanging rails.
For our arrival, fresh towels (one large towel, hand towel, face cloth) and disposable slippers were placed on each bed.
There were windows behind all of the beds in the upstairs bedrooms which you could open and they all had pull down blinds.
And since the lodge has a steep pitched/gable roof, the almost floor-to-ceiling windows on the gable end allowed plenty of natural light into the space.
However, there was an issue here, which could be remedied in future. There were pull-up blinds on all of the bottom panes but there were no blinds on the triangular-shaped upper panes. Since we stayed in the height of summer, when the sun rose around 4:30am, I would get woken up by the light and find it hard to fall back asleep.
If this could be an issue for you, I’d suggest taking the downstairs bedroom where the blinds cover all of the windows.
There were 2 other smart TVs in the property, aside from the one in the living room. You could find these in the main upstairs bedroom and the downstairs bedroom.
Bathrooms
The lodge has 3 bathrooms. One en-suite attached to the main upstairs bedroom, one off of the upstairs hallway and one next to the downstairs bedroom.
The en-suite comes with a freestanding bathtub and a rainfall shower, with views over the lane (top two images).
The main upstairs bathroom, off of the hall, has a walk-in rainfall shower and a separate, smaller bathtub (bottom two images). Damon and I used this bathroom and loved the walk-in shower design.
The downstairs bathroom comes with a rainfall shower (middle right image).
All 3 bathrooms were beautifully finished and each came with a set of delightful miniature toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, body wash, body lotion, a soap bar and shower cap).
A hairdryer and pair of straighteners could be found in the downstairs bedroom and there was a spare set in the cupboard under the stairs.
Outdoor
The 8 person hot tub was located out the rear of the lodge, with easy access from the living/kitchen area. This amenity is definitely one of the highlights of the property and the owner came around daily to tend to it.
Besides the hot tub, you can find a barbecue and a rattan dining set on the back patio.
If you’re feeling up to it, there are some woodland walks around the property. The walks aren’t made easy by the long grass but if you continue to head down the path, passed the lodges, you can head to the Yecklish burn and complete a circuit around the woods.
Facilities
WiFi
Considering the rural setting, I was very pleasantly surprised by the WiFi. I was getting download speeds averaging 14.4 Mbps and upload speeds averaging 6.13 Mbps.
Power Outlets
There were plenty of power outlets throughout the lodge. There were a few dotted around the living/kitchen area and in the hallways. There was one accessible plug point on either side of each bed, plus a couple of others in each bedroom.
There were no shaving plug points in the bathrooms.
Cleaning and Washing
The lodge was cleaned and tidied to a high standard prior to our arrival and the hot tub was tended to daily during our stay.
We found a good range of cleaning products under the sink (cloths, sprays, sponges etc.). But there was only one bin bag we could find which was already placed in the kitchen bin.
In the large cupboard under the stairs, we could find a hoover, iron & board, dust pan, brush, a few board games, some spare toilet roll and extra miniature toiletries.
The lodge also had a dishwasher, a washing machine and dryer. Some dishwasher and washing machine tablets were also supplied.
Dogs
A maximum of 3 dogs were allowed in the lodge, according to the website. Damon’s family have 2 miniature dachshunds and they appeared to thoroughly enjoy their mini break.
A dog bed and a nice bonus, some dog treats, were supplied. But we were afraid to use them for fear of chewing, so their own bed was brought on the trip instead.
Conclusion and Scoring
Our 3 night stay in the Cedar Lodge really surpassed our expectations. You can tell that the owners paid a lot of attention to detail when designing and fitting out the property.
The few problems that we encountered could be easily remedied for future guests. I know that it’s likely we’ll return in future, especially considering the great customer service. They offered us free extended check-out to midday and 10% off any return visit.
The property took all of the advantages of modern city living, contemporary design, equipment and amenities and blended it with the beauty and seclusion of the countryside. Be it a weekend or extended trip, we would highly recommend a stay in the Newlands Lodges.
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