Northumberland Coastal Retreats FAQ
Q. Are any of your cottages better suited for young children?
A. All of our cottages are child/baby friendly but we would suggest you consider a holiday at Nook end or Driftwood or any of the properties at Tughall Steads (The Granary, Garden Cottage, Glebe Cottage and Moo House). These properties (apart from Glebe Cottage which simply has an outdoor patio space) all have lovely gardens with play equipment, wendy houses and outdoor games. The Hemmel at Tughall is one of our recent additions to the collection and this has a beautifully landscaped garden with views over the neighbouring fields and countryside. With patio, lawn and lots of space, it is a lovely space for children. Although there are no swings here, we can provide some outdoor items if requested. We have a games room at Nook End and Driftwood with table tennis table and table football. At Moo House, there is also an indoor games room with full size pool table and table football/air hockey - this is the Cow Shed and is an ideal retreat away from the main house, which older children will love.
The Mariner's is also very well equipped for young children. Here you'll find a good selection of equipment such as a travel cot, high chair, changing mat, night light, plastic table ware, videos, toys, books and games. Here there is a lovely sunny dining patio garden leading off the lounge and the main downstairs bedroom. Our new cottage, Smugglers' Hide, again is ideal for children and has a large collection of baby items and equipment.
We hope you'll find our new starfish rating helpful when choosing a cottage with your children in mind
Q. Thinking of food shopping, where is the nearest supermarket?
A. There's a Morrisons in Alnwick, about 15 mins drive south and a small co-op in Seahouses. The Green Shop in Berwick sells organic and fairtrade produce (01289 305566) and also the Alnmouth Grocer in Alnmouth is worth a visit (01665 830997). Seahouses has a deli, a family bakers, a greengrocers and a superb wet fish shop and smokery, Swallow Fish. Try the services of www.gandsorganics.co.uk or www.foodlocalfood.com for locally sourced, produced and organic fruit, vegetables, meat etc
Sainsburys has just opened a large store in Alnwick along with a Homebase and Argos and will start to deliver online shopping orders around June 2008
Asda does now deliver to our area - you can make an order on www.asda.com
You will need the postcode of the cottage and can place an order up to 3 weeks in advance. The delivery comes from Blyth in Northumberland. Book your slot for the night of arrival but please make sure you are there to receive your goods as the driver won't leave your groceries without a signature! Occasionally, you may experience a problem when placing an order, if so, please call Customer Services on 0845 300 7770
Q. Do any of your properties have a swimming pool?
A. No, but we have teamed up with the Ocean Club, an exclusive private leisure club just minutes from our cottages, giving guests access to a range of superb facilities - 20m pool, children's pool, jacuzzi, steam room and sauna. Some of our cottages have paddling pools for the gardens and of course there's always the sea!!
Q. Do you allow pets?
A. Since many of our guests are allergic to dog and cat hair, we are unfortunately unable to take pets in our properties. We may be able to give you the number of a local kennel or cattery! However, we do plan to start accepting small well behaved dogs at our Glebe Cottage at Tughall Steads from Sept 2008 onwards. We will charge £20 per pooch and will also take a small deposit of £50 which will be refunded upon departure provided your dog has behaved itself! We would ask that dogs are not allowed upstairs nor on sofas.
Q. We want to bring our own bikes and diving equipment. Is there somewhere to store these safely?
A. Some of the cottages have garages, sheds or large store rooms for locking away bikes, golf clubs, kites, windsurfs etc. (Nook End, Driftwood, Granary, Garden Cottage, Seafarer's, Moo House, Smugglers' Hide and Budle Bay Penthouse). At the Mariner's, you can leave your bikes locked up quite safely in the courtyard
Q. Is there somewhere we can get food when we first arrive possibly quite late in the day?
A. Seahouses Co-op supermarket is open until 10pm in the summer months. There are numerous pubs and restaurants within walking (depends on which cottage you choose) or short driving distance and there is always the fish and chip option in Seahouses or Beadnell. Try Pinnacles in Seahouses or On the Beach on Harbour Rd in Beadnell. However, even in the summer, these places may close around 9pm! As an alternative, pre order some locally made suppers and cakes from www.wilkinsfinedining.com. They will deliver the freshly prepared dishes to your cottage before your arrival and leave them in the fridge or the freezer. All you need to do is pop the oven on, heat up and serve!
If you would like us to recommend a restaurant for any time during your stay or if you are looking for a pub or restaurant on the way to your cottage - just ask us.
Q. Will I be able to use my mobile phone?
A. Reception is generally good at all of the cottages apart from the Fisherman's Retreat, Seafarer's,The Plaice and both our properties in Craster - the Harbour Master's House and the Craster Retreat. There are payphones in all properties or a regular phone with an honesty box.
Q. Is there a pub within walking distance?
A. There are lots of pubs within a few minutes drive but if you want to be able to walk round the corner to a village pub, we suggest you stay at the Mariner's in Beadnell or the Fisherman's Retreat, Seafarer Cottage or the Plaice in Seahouses. In Seahouses, we recommend the Olde Ship Hotel - a fantastic real ale pub with character bar with real fire and also a beer garden high above the rooftops overlooking the harbour. In Beadnell, both the Craster Arms and the Beadnell Towers Hotel serve a decent pint and bar meals/restaurant food. If you are staying at one of our Tughall Steads properties, then you are within a five minute drive from the well known Ship Inn at Newton by-the-Sea (or 15 mins if you go by bike). There is one pub in Craster - basic, but has great views. The Jolly Fisherman is a well know landmark pub here in Craster.
Q. Do all of your properties have real fires?
A. They all have wood burning stoves apart from the Budle Bay Penthouse, Glebe Cottage, Hemmel and The Plaice. The Harbour Master's House has an open fire for burning logs and coal. There is an effective contemporary electric pebble fire at the Penthouse with remote control and a feature remote control electric fire in Glebe Cottage. The Hemmel has an authentic gas log burner. Looks like a real log burner, but is much more efficient and quicker to light! At The Plaice, the focal point is the splendid sea view!
Q. We will be travelling some distance and will probably be arriving late at night. Is this a problem?
A. Not at all. We make it easy for you to arrive late at night by giving you the key safe code in advance so you can retrieve the key to the front door and not have to wait around for someone to let you in! On arrival you will find the property well lit, heating on if neccesary, plenty of hot water for a bedtime bath, beds all made up, fire set, tea cups at the ready and a bottle of wine chilling in the fridge. We will call you sometime the next morning (not too early as you will probably be enjoying a lie in) to check all is well and to answer any questions you may have. If you're travelling with young ones or babies and have requested a travel cot and high chair, these will be erected for your arrival and ready for your children whatever time you arrive.
Q. We'll be coming from overseas in the summer and would like to stay in one of your properties for 2-3 weeks, perhaps even 4. Do you offer a discount for bookings of this length?
A. Yes! We've had many guests from abroad and many who have stayed for several weeks! For bookings for two weeks in the same property, we offer a £50 discount to those guests who will not be requiring a mid holiday clean, change of towels etc. For bookings of longer than two weeks, again we can offer a £50 discount for every clean that is not needed and will be happy to work out a special price for your 3rd or 4th week. Best to make contact with us on an individual basis and we can work out a special price for you. We have taken bookings in the past for the whole summer - again we can work out a price for you.
Q. Do any of the Coastal Retreats have sea views?
A. Yes, four of our places have true sea views. At the Plaice, Harbour Master's House, the Craster Retreat and the Budle Bay Penthouse you couldn't get any nearer to the sea unless you were in it!! The Penthouse looks out over Budle Bay towards Holy Island and the Plaice has a superb harbour side location and looks out over the harbour at Seahouses towards the Farne Islands. From the split level decking at the Harbour Master's House, you have the most magnificent views of the harbour, coast and Dunstanborough Castle. The Craster Retreat is a few steps from the harbour wall and has enjoyable sea views from the garden and the rooms at the front of the cottage. At the Fisherman's Retreat and Seafarer's, the sea is very close and can be seen and heard as you park up and enter the cottage. Here, the sea is literally a minutes walk away.
From Driftwood and Nook End, there are sea views of Beadnell Bay (the sea is a mile away). From the front garden at the Garden Cottage, Tughall Steads, there are views of the sand dunes at Newton by -the -Sea.
Q. I need to be able to use my laptop, do any of your cottages have internet connections?
A. We have a free wireless broadband connection in all of our properties now (apart from The Plaice, Fisherman's Retreat and the Budle Bay Penthouse) as we appreciate that even on holiday, some of our guests (including ourselves), may need to be able to use their laptops and send e-mails or for playing computer games and the like.
Guests are welcome to use the telephone lines in the other cottages for internet access (but they are not broadband lines), but we ask that they leave some money in the honesty box in the cottage to cover these costs.
There is Wifi access at the Ocean Leisure Club in Seahouses. There is no entry charge to the cafe/bar and it is rather a nice place to read the papers, drink coffee and check e-mails. Just ask for the password at reception (there may be a small charge for this service)
Q. There are just the two of us, which of your properties would you recommend to us?
A. We take many bookings from couples, especially at the Fisherman's Retreat, Nook End, Driftwood, The Plaice, The Hemmel and the Budle Bay Penthouse. They have 3 bedrooms and are spacious cottages but don't feel too large for small groups or couples. We recently opened two smaller cottages at Tughall Steads which both complement our collection perfectly - Glebe cottage and the Hemmel are ideal cottages for 'romantic breaks' and we have already had several honeymoon couples at both of these cottages! The Smuggler's Hide is one of our new 2 bedroom cottages and is proving popular with couples. And.....new for May 2008, we bring the Studio at Tughall Steads into our collection...........our new one bedroom cottage designed especially and only for couples. This is the perfect romantic hideaway and even though it only has one bedroom, it is suprisingly spacious and packed with both equipment and character!
