Out & About
There are plenty of other places to visit within easy reach of the cottage - here is a selection.
Beamish
DH9 0RG 22 miles / 39 minutes
Beamish is an open air museum telling the story of life in the north-east England including a 1900s town, a new 1950s town, pit village and colliery; a station; a 1940s farm and tramway; plus a bakery, sweet shop, fish and chip shop, pub and tea room.
There is an admission charge and we can offer 15% discount code for our guests booking online. Special events also take place.
Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall stretches for 73 miles along the old frontier between England and Scotland. Much of the Wall and some of the forts still remain and provide an evocative place to visit. Here is a selection of places to visit:
Housesteads Roman Fort, Haydon Bridge NE47 6NN 42 miles / 65 minutes There is a visitor centre, barrack blocks and hospital and the fort on the Wall offers good views.
Vindolanda Chesterholm Museum, Bardon Mill NE47 7JN 42 miles / 65 minutes The site provides eight successive forts and extensive remains of the civil settlement with excavations taking place throughout the year. There is a café and an admission fee
Roman Army Museum (Carvoran), Greenhead CA8 7JB 50 miles / 75 minutes Next to a section of Hadrian’s Wall, this museum concentrates on the life of a Roman soldier. There is a café and the admission fee includes Roman Vindolanda Fort and Museum.
Walltown Craggs CA8 7JD 50 miles / 75 minutes Park at the Roman Army Museum – walk along an impressive section of the Wall.
Steel Rigg and Crag Lough 40 miles / 1 hour The Steel Rigg area offers some of the best viewpoints on Hadrian’s Wall. The lake of Crag Lough was formed by glaciers in the last Ice Age and is one of the four Roman Wall Loughs.
The Auckland Project
DL14 7PG 16 miles / 30 minutes
Auckland Castle and deer park has a thousand years of connection to the Prince Bishops of Durham. It was a private residence until 2012. There are formal gardens, a deer park and a walled garden.
Other elements of the Project are The Auckland Tower, The Mining Gallery, the Faith Museum and the Spanish Gallery.
Guests at Belle View Cottage can have a code to get 20% discount.
Locomotion
Shildon DL4 2RE 20 miles / 38 minutes
This is the birthplace of the railway, WORLD WIDE!
Entry to the Museum is free, although donations are most welcome. There is a cafe and shop and many well known locomotives on site.
The Museum is currently preparing for the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Darlington & Stockton Railway, so exciting new developments will be taking place over the year.
Hamsterley Forest
9 miles / 37 minutes
Hamsterley Forest’s extensive network of trails and paths provides the perfect opportunity to explore the heart of the forest on foot or by bicycle. There is a cafe for your snacks. Car park charges.
Low Barns Nature Reserve
Witton-le-Wear DL14 0AG 13 miles / 24 minutes
One of the region’s most important wildlife sites and run by Durham Wildlife Trust, this wetland reserve bordered by the River Wear also contains mixed woodlands and species rich grasslands.
Low Barns Nature Reserve is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest and has become important for wildlife due to the wide range of habitats including wet woodland, grassland, open water and river side, which are home to many different types of birds, mammals, plants and insects.
Nenthead
CA9 3NR 20 miles / 40 minutes
Nenthead in the county of Cumbria is one of England's highest villages, at around 1,437 feet and was one of the earliest purpose-built industrial villages in Britain, with a free lending library and compulsory schooling for children. Nenthead was also the first village in the UK to have electric street lighting from excess power generated by the mines.
The former lead and zinc Carrs Mine at Nenthead opens to visitors on special days.
In the village, Lowson Robinson, an ex coal miner, has constructed miniature famous and local landmarks in stone for visitors to view in his garden. He doesn’t charge, but asks either that you buy something from the local shop or if you want to donate, he will accept donations for the Air Ambulance.
Allendale
25 miles / 45 minutes
Allendale is a pleasant drive away through Rookhope and past old mining heritage sites including a horizontal chimney flue visible from the road and Groverake mine. The village has a coffee shop, pubs and art gallery. Free parking in the square.
Neil Cole’s Museum of Classic Sci-Fi NE47 9BJ Situated in the ground floor cellar of a Georgian house, this is a very quirky museum for Dr Who and Sci-Fi fans including original artwork and comic book nostalgia. Over 200 props, costumes and artwork from classic SF film and television. Admission charge.
Alston
25 miles / 42 minutes
Alston claims to be the highest market settlement in England, being about 1000 feet above sea level. It is also remote, about 20 miles from the nearest town. Alston has a steep cobbled main street with a distinctive market cross, and many stone buildings dating from the 17th Century. Next to the entrance to the Church, is a building dated 1681 and the Angel pub is dated 1611.
Alston is the starting point for the South Tynedale Railway, England’s highest narrow gauge railway.