Cottages in Belford, Northumberland

Belford is a village in North Northumberland, half way between Alnwick and Berwick upon Tweed.

Belford Hall is the main property in the area and is a Grade 1 listed building, although it has now been converted into residential apartments. The village is ideally situated to either reach the Northumberland Coast or to head west towards Wooler and the Cheviot hills.

Northumbria byways are able to offer beautiful holiday cottages either in or close to Belford.

Ludlow cottage in the centre of Belford.

Cuthbert cottage

and the Hayloft above the coffee shop!

So if you would like to make Belford a base for exploring Northumberland then please give us a call.

Cottage in Amble, Northumberland

Amble has been referred to as "The Friendliest Port". The town has Roman origins but was developed as a coal port at the mouth of the River Coquet in the 18th century. The harbour is now shared by traditional fishing boats and a modern Marina, full of colourful yachts and other sailing craft. There are several flourishing boating clubs including yachting, sailing and canoeing. During the summer boats sail regularly from the harbour to the RSPB bird sanctuary at Coquet Island.

Here at Northumbria byways we are able to offer the following holiday cottages either in or close to Amble

Lobster Pot at Low Hauxley

Chantilly, also near Low Hauxley

Southmede in nearby Warkworth

and Watermill cottage at North Charlton

So if you would like to explore the Northumberland coast why not give us a call and book one of these beautiful cottages.

Availability at The Bathing House, Howick

The location of The Bathing House is absolutely stunning. We often get telephone calls from people who have walked along the coastal path towards Dunstanburgh Castle, which passes only metres from The Bathing House. They have thought how wonderful it would be to stay in the house. Because of the popularity of the property the week they want is often already booked. So because we have first hand knowledge of all our cottages we decided it would be a good idea to let people into the secrets of other similarly exciting houses, equally unusual and some with fantastic sea views.

Why not take a look at our selection and make your own decision.

The Old School,

Code 350 Howick - sleeps 2 Although this cottage does not have the view like The Bathing House it is part of the Howick Estate. The walk from the cottage to the coastal footpath takes about 10 minutes. Just like the Bathing House guests are given a free pass to visit the Howick Hall Gardens and Arboretum. Then take tea in the Earl Grey Tea Room.

St Abbs Haven,

Code 418 Coldingham Bay sleeps 5 + 1

If it's a seaview you want this house is not too bad! It is part of a development, once a hotel. Most of the rooms look out to sea. There is a little path and steps down to a great sandy beach, popular with surfers.

Beach View,

Code 353 Boulmer sleeps 4

This bungalow is not far from Craster in the village of Boulmer. Lovely sea view from sitting room and double bedroom. It is literally seconds from the front door onto the beach.

Chantilly,

Code 359 Low Hauxley sleeps 2

It is possible to get a glimpse of the sea from the landing window but the main attraction of this cottage is the short distance to a huge expanse of golden sand.

Or if it is peace and tranquility you are seeking have a look at our cottages in the College Valley.
The College valley is a private estate with limited vehicular access for the public. It is right in the centre of the Cheviot hills with plenty of birdlife, fox and deer. There are also wild goats on the fells. We have lots of blog postings plus lovely photographs on this blog.
Just click here !

Dunsdale House

Code 355 sleeps 8
Dunsdale house is a little further into the College Valley than the Mill ( see below). However it offers generous accommodation for a large family or maybe several families together. Dunsdale is often used as a venue for family get togethers. It is hard to find accommodation of this standard, which will take so many guests. Having the beautiful countryside all around just makes it better value!

Hethpool Mill

Code 396 sleeps 4 + 2
There are records of a building on this site dating back to the 13th century. The situation is idyllic, there is no noise and absolutely minimal light pollution at night. The stars are guaranteed to be brighter!The garden is fenced and the large pebbled surrounds along with the bushes make it quite a good house if you have your dog with you.You can see a picture of the Mill taken from the neighbouring hill of Great Hetha...here.

Coldburn Cottage
Code 317 sleeps 4.

Coldburn is higher up the College Valley than the Hethpool Mill property. It is a cosy house set amongst stunning scenary. Popular with couples or small families it offers tranquility at a good price.

If you would like to discuss other options please call us on 016977 46777. We are here to help!

Craster harbour

The inscription on the memorial at the harbour at Craster reads

Hodie Felix Craster ( happy day Craster?)

Craster Memorial Harbour

Constructed in memory of John Charles Pulleine Craster

46th Punjabis

Who fell in action during the Tibetan expedition

June 1904

He took a deep interest in the provision of a harbour

at Craster and his brothers and sister chose this way

of perpetuating his memory

AD 1906

Additional historic notes are here:

The 46th Punjabis were later redesignated as the 10th (Training batallion) within the 16th Punjab Regiment. After partition it was merged within the Pakistani army as the Punjab Regiment. This entry shows that they were still a separate unit throughout the 1st world war.

For a general overview of the Tibetan invasion see Wikipedia


Just north of Craster are the magnificent ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle.

Craster to Howick and back along the coast

Our walk started at the car park just outside Craster.This is the site of an old dolerite quarry. From here it took us across fields with evidence of ancient field systems ( look for the terraces under the grass).

A little further on you pass Hips Heugh ridge on your left and then shortly we entered Howick Hall Gardens via a one way gate. After a brief stop beside a small lake we exited the gardens , again through a one way gate, onto the beach.

We then followed the coastal path northwards past the Bathing House, round the cliffs and into Craster.

All in all it took us about 3 hours, but we were a long time at Howick Hall and we dawdled along the cliff tops.

These are pictures we took

This ridge is called Hips Heugh...it lies just before the entrance to Howick Hall.A heugh is the name given to places where the Whin Sill makes a ridge.

After we had walked through Howick Hall gardens we came out at the coast on a small rather stony beach. Here we turned left ( or north) and started to climb up the cliff path
















This is the view back to the small coastal bay where we came out after the gardens















These are one of the small bays along the coastal path heading north towards Craster.















The Bathing house ....
















Craster harbour















With its memorial plaque

Otter tracks on the Farne Islands!

Great excitement today when we heard that otter tracks have been spotted on Brownsman Island ( one of the Farne Islands). The Island is over 3 miles from the coast and the otter left over 60 yards of tracks.

When asked about what the future held for the otter, the head warden David Steel, had this to say:

"There'll certainly be plenty of food, plenty of crustaceans and fish to feed upon, but unfortunately, unless another animal swims out here, it might have a lonely existence. "

Of course there is also the possibility that the otter will eat bird eggs :-(

This otter picture is courtesy of the BBC report.

The Bathing house - Craster - and the 2nd Earl Grey

One of the joys of working with our clients across Northumberland is looking through the history and background on many of the houses. The Bathing house near Craster has a history going back into the 19th century when it was built by the 2nd Earl Grey.With this in mind we were very interested when the opportunity arose to purchase a signature of the Earl from this period.
It's from the front of an envelope sent from Alnwick to Queensferry back in August 1816.You can see the picture below.

We hope to find out a little more about the Earl and what it was like to live in Northumberland back in the 19th century. So will keep you posted!

Northumberland Coastal Walks

We've just received a small neatly bound book by David Haffey from the Northumberland Walks website. It's got details on 10 nice walks between Berwick and Amble. Also its not just directions but David also tries to talk a little about the countryside, what you see and some of it's history.
This looks good and we will post more as start to explore.

So if you want to know about coastal holidays then why not give us a call, we can help advise on the best options

Beadnell Beach

Beadnell Beach
Originally uploaded by Northumbria Byways

This is our 1st post using the flickr link through to blogger. Basically we go into Flickr...select a photo and then click the little blog it icon immediately above the picture. That then allows us to write this text and thats it. Oh isnt this so much easier!!!

Anyway its a picture of Beadnell beach.

Berwick upon Tweed - Castle walls and harbour

Berwick is only 30 minutes or so from Wooler, the roads quiet and easy. The Castle Walls were impressive and the harbour attractive. At its confluence with the sea the river Tweed is wide and slow. However Berwick centre seemed to us to be a little bit busier than expected and we were glad to get back to the quiet Cheviot Hills.

If you are looking to stay in Berwick upon Tweed then we can recommend the River Dene house.

Holy Island and the causeway

First day staying in the College Valley we decided, as the weather didnt look so good to head out to Holy Island. Unfortuantely when we arrived at 9.30 am the causeway was closed with the tide. The timetables said that we could not cross until 11.30 am so with time to kill we started to explore along the shoreline at Beal Point and try to work along to Goswick Sands.What we hadnt expected to see, as the attached photo shows is that there are world war II bunkers here. A small reminder that the past is never very far away.

We have quite a few cottages close by to Holy Island such as
Bede Cottage
Cuthbert Cottage
and
The Hayloft

Self catering near Craster, Northumberland Coast

One of the pleasures of helping our customers find holiday accommodation in Northumberland is the range of properties which we come across. Many have a history going back hundred's of years and can even be associated with famous people.
For instance we offer accommodation at the Bathing House which is superbly situated by the sea side near Craster. When we first saw this holiday cottage our first thoughts were what a tremendous position, right alongside the sea and with views as well.
However it wasn't until a little later that we heard the full story and learnt that it was built by the 2nd Earl Grey. Yes...the Lord who brought us Earl Grey tea!
So when you are next in Newcastle and walking up Grey Street towards Grey's monument then you can remember where he took his children to swim.
Oh...for those who are curious he also gave his name to Earl Grey tea and Grey College at Durham University.