This Summer, I took a dog friendly staycation to Simonstone Hall Hotel. A beautiful Country House Hotel in Hawes the heart of the Yorkshire Dales. This breathtaking venue was once home to Lord and Lady Wharncliffe.
The whole hotel is dog friendly and located in a perfect spot for adventures in the Yorkshire Dales or a relaxing weekend watching the world go by.
So what did we get up to on our holiday? Check out our adventures below.
Say Cheese!
We arrived on a rainy Saturday afternoon into Hawes and went straight to the Wendsleydale Cheese Factory! Unfortunately, they aren’t Dog Furiendly but we let Lucy out for a quick wee and a walk before leaving her safely in the car. She has a dog mattress, two blankets and for this journey her dog bed from home so she was happy to stay there and not be out in the rain!
The cafe of the cheese gift shop does have a large garden area with table and chairs to sit outside and dogs are welcome there. You just have to pop in and order any food or drinks inside and they can deliver to your outside table.
This would be a brilliant place to stop for lunch with your pooch in the spring-summer months.
We left the cheese factory and travelled for 5 mins north of Hawes up to Simonstone.
Arriving at Simonstone Hall
We travelled surprisingly lite compared to our usual trips when we take Lucy. We packed the human essentials (wellies, a big coat and hats) and Lucy’s essentials (dog bed, two coats, a snood and her food & bowls).
We arrived at the hotel at 14.15 and were greeted by a member of staff who swiftly checked us in and explained that our room will be ready in 10/15 minutes and guided us to the bar for a glass of wine while we waited. Lucy was very appreciative of the ear scratches and head rubs as we checked in!
The guy behind the bar offered Lucy a bowl of water and a dog treat as soon as sat down. Then he took out wine order. We always bring a blanket anywhere we go when out and about with Lucy, she can be divaish and will only lie down on a blanket. The carpet in the bar was very clean and soft but Lucy still wanted her blanket – she obviously placed her bum and back legs on the blanket and stretched out on the carpet within a few minutes.
The wine was perfect for a rainy Saturday afternoon and Lucy loved her dog treat. She was even quite polite when given the treat. We were presented with a small plate containing four large treats – Lucy is table height so we had to hide them!
We were given our room key after 15 minutes and headed up to the room.
The room was absolutely massive and contained a four-poster bed, robes for us, a huge bathroom with a roll-top bath, plus under floor heating and a rain shower. We noticed a table near the window and Lucy quickly investigated as she could smell a familiar scent.
The table had an envelope with Lucy’s name on it, tasty Bakers treats, dogs are welcome leaflet and the all-important biodegradable poo bags! The room also had two bowls on a silicone mat to keep any mess off the carpet. Lucy likes to drink like she’s never seen water before and makes a right mess. The welcome leaflet contained information on the dog house rules – all things we expected.
- Always wear your lead.
- Reminder to pick up any poo & the location of the poo bag bin.
- No dogs allowed on the beds or furniture.
- Towels provided are for humans only.
- Clean paws to reduce muddy paw prints on carpets.
- Where we can and cannot investigate.
- No barking.
- Respect any silly humans who don’t like dogs.
Lucy also had a note from Crumpet the resident Golden Retriever. He said hello to Lucy, told her to enjoy her muddy adventures and to ask at reception if we needed anything. This little touch made us all feel really welcome and made us all smile.
Walking and Exploring
After unpacking and a quick freshen up, we set for a walk to explore the area around the hotel and Hawes. The weather had improved slightly and it was no longer raining. The hotel is located a short walk from Hardraw Force Waterfall – there’s a public walk way across the field in front of the hotel which takes you straight to the entrance of the waterfall.
The waterfalls are Dog Furiendly, £3.00 for each adult (dogs are free). We chose to walk along the road and we didn’t want to risk falling over in the mud!
The waterfalls a great opportunity for an Instagram worthy photo shoot of your dog. We don’t want to encourage everyone to break the rules but you can walk directly behind the waterfall if you really wanted.
Grabbing a Bite to Eat
After an hour or so exploring we headed to the Green Dragon Inn pub (basically next to the waterfall entrance) and headed in for a glass of wine and to warm up.
The pub is very Dog Furiendly and really cosy inside. It has a few fires dotted throughout the pub and plenty of tables. The pub is a 13th-century old pub so a word of warning for the tall humans – the ceilings can be low in parts! Lucy has access to a water bowl and as it was quite warm in there, we took off her coat.
And Relax
We headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. We wanted to take advantage of the roll bath and relaxed while Lucy slept on her bed in front of the four-poster bed. Lucy was a big fan of underfloor heating and kept trotting into the bathroom to warm up her paws.
We headed down for dinner and we’d already booked our table in the bar area as we knew Lucy was comfortable there – sat in the same place for our afternoon wine.
Lucy is quite a big dog and there was plenty of room for her, her blanket and the water bowl they provided. She obviously had to stand in the bowl as soon as they bought it over for her. So one paw gets an extra clean. Lucy was given a treat, more head scratches and lots of attention from all the staff.
A group of ladies arrived as sat down and basically queued up to give Lucy a quick cuddle! Lucy was loving life. The bar area was warm and comfortable for us all, Lucy didn’t need her coat inside.
We finished dinner, took Lucy for a 10-minute pre-bedtime toilet break and headed up to the room. This was Lucy’s first overnight stay at the hotel as we were a bit anxious that she wouldn’t settle but we didn’t need to worry as she slept all the way through until 7 am.
Easy Like a Sunday Morning
She does love her routine – no lie in for us! Once fed, we took her for her morning walk. As it was early on a Sunday morning, there was no traffic around and the weather had improved, luckily for us, it was a cold but bright morning.
On our return to the hotel, we walked through the car park (via the dog poo bin) and a member of staff was feeding the resident chickens and peacock! We stopped and watched them enjoying their breakfast and Lucy was very well behaved, especially as she’s never seen a peacock before.
We had our breakfast in the bar area, and yep, sat at the same table. All the staff were great with Lucy and obviously understood that we couldn’t take Lucy into the dining room so took our breakfast order from the bar area. We just needed to pop into the dining room individually for the fresh pastries, fruits, yoghurt, granola and juices. This set up was perfect for us as we were able to sit and be with Lucy and still have access to all the breakfast options.
Saying our Goodbyes
We packed our bags and headed to reception to check out. Lucy was again greeted with a cuddle and ear scratches as we settled up the bill and we set off for a little investigate of Hawes as the weather was bright and dry.
We parked at the nearby rope museum and dales countryside museum. The cafe and shop area of the museum is Dog Furiendly but the actual museum area isn’t. We headed into Hawes to stretch Lucy’s legs and to see which shops and stores were open. As we visited on a Sunday in January, unfortunately, there was wasn’t a huge amount of places open but as the spring and summer months, I’m sure this will change.
We walked through Hawes, past the cheese factory and to a mini waterfall. We spotted loads of dogs around but sadly no other greyhounds (they must of been enjoying a Sunday lie-in).
We really enjoyed our stay at Simonestone Hall Hotel and really want to return in the summer months to make the most of the beautiful surrounds and the view from the hotel (it was slightly blurred due to the rain and mist). The patio area of the hotel is the perfect spot for a post-walk glass of wine or beer, while enjoying the fire pit and the views.
Lucy was made to feel very welcome by all the staff and the welcome letter was a great touch that we really enjoyed.
This sounds and looks Amazing!!!!
Now that sounds like a very Dog Friendly Hotel! Treats and all waiting for Lucy! Looks like a fab trip, must add it to the long list of places to visit! 🙂