Garden Cottage

Dogfriendly Magazine Review

Read our comprehensive review of this listing printed in our bi-monthly magazine.

Name: Garden Cottage
Reviewer: Lou Furby

On a damp – but sometimes sunny – weekend in low season (for dogs) we packed up for a mini break in Richmond in Yorkshire. We were staying at the delightful and charming Garden Cottage.

The cottage is almost secondary to the beautiful gardens it is set within, which are prime for hours of doggy exploration – as well as human enjoyment.  And, with three good sized bedrooms, a cosy lounge, well equipped kitchen and two large bathrooms, Garden Cottage is the perfect base for a family or a couple to stay, along with their four-legged companion.

For us, we were thrilled with the large, enclosed garden, so we didn’t have to don our raincoat and torch to keep an eye on her when she headed off for a toilet break and a mooch! The cottage also has a handy boot room, which is perfect for removing any muddy clothing (human or dog) before entering the cottage.

The garden also has fantastic views of Richmond Castle along with the extended garden beyond the gate: ‘Mr Yorke’s Walled Gardens’. Our miniature Schnauzer Laika delighted in the smells in these gardens which feature ponds, glorious trees, and plenty of resting spots. She even met a friend, as the neighbour’s cockapoo made a brief appearance to check on his new, temporary neighbour.

Richmond itself is a quaint, welcoming little town in Yorkshire offering plenty of dog walks. From a wander by the river Swale – just a short walk from the cottage – or you might choose to head up to Richmond Castle for a stroll and take in some of the breath taking views across the town. The town is a bustling community with a wealth of shops and cafes, many of which welcome dogs, and a short seven-minute trip down the road takes you to an out-of-town retail park with a supermarket and other shops.

Whether you are planning on staying local to Richmond, or you want to venture further out to the coast or lakes, it’s around one hour by car in either direction, so a great central spot to explore the northeast without spending too long cooped up in the car. Living in land-locked Nottingham, and taking advantage of the dry weather, we opted for a trip to the coast on Saturday, making our way to the popular dog friendly seaside town of Saltburn-by-the-Sea.

If there’s one thing we know for certain, it’s that Laika loves the beach. Rain or shine, so long as there’s a ball and some sand (like most dogs) she’ll happily spend hours and hours traversing the wet sand, splashing through rockpools, running through shingle or climbing the rocks.  With Saltburn offering miles of beach for dogs to bound across, we braced ourselves against the wind, popped a weatherproof coat on her to keep warm, and with the scent of fish and chips wafting our way, we began playing and exploring.

The beach stretches for some distance and there are parts where dogs should be on leads or where there are restrictions at some points during the year, but out of season there was plenty of space to run around without coming across many other walkers. The car park is conveniently close too, so after an hour or more of playtime, and with Laika losing a little energy, those fish and chips just smelt too good to ignore.

So, we headed back to the car to dry off before strolling the five-minute walk to the promenade to join the queue at Seaview Fish and Chips. This is an eat-in restaurant as well as a takeaway, but sadly no dogs are allowed inside – good job then that there were plenty of benches along the promenade to settle on, the steamy salty tray of Britain’s best dish to keep us warm and fill all our tummies. Once refuelled, we decided to go and explore some more of the headland and beach, walking along the coastline for a while before the rain clouds rolled in and we called it a day.

The next day, we decided on Sunday lunch and where better than the Britain’s highest pub, the Tan Hill Inn. A 45-minute drive through winding roads, quintessential villages and the stunning Yorkshire Dales took us to the 17th-century pub, famed for its Guinness World Record and legendary lock-ins due to extreme weather changes. We saw rain, snow and sunshine all within the first 20 minutes of arriving at the pub which gets very busy with passing trade as well as those pre-booking their slot. It’s a very dog friendly pub, with a drinking station in the entrance lobby. So, if your dog is a little reactive around other pups, this might not be the pub for you as it’s very busy and, given its age, also quite tightly packed with tables. We were shown to our corner table and settled in to watch the changing weather outside before our delicious Sunday lunch appeared. We weren’t prepared for the ‘tallest Yorkshire pudding in Britain’ as the plates appeared, but it tasted very good.

The Tan Hill Inn is a unique pub and the fact that it is so popular with dog owners is testament to its warm, inviting welcome and quirky interior. We loved the atmosphere and the friendly chatter with other visitors, and the views are simply breath taking. I think you might pay a bit of a premium for the food, but you are paying for the experience – and the views are magnificent.  We found their online booking made it easy to reserve a table and I would certainly advise on booking ahead given how popular it is.

The pub sits atop the Yorkshire Dales and, as you’d expect from its world record, it is incredibly isolated, but that’s also the appeal. With Yorkshire Dales as far as the eye can see, you can venture as far as you dare across the dales in any direction. We opted for a well-trodden route opposite the front of the pub for a brief walk. Bracing ourselves against the wind, we headed off to admire the landscape, capture a few photos and walk off that Yorkshire pudding. If you do opt to go for a walk, I would certainly advise wearing suitable all-weather clothing, the climate really does alter quickly.

As Barnard Castle was only a 20-minute drive away, we decided on a quick stop off at another castle, before returning home. Sadly, we were too late to enter the castle, which closes at 4pm, with last entries at 3.30pm. There is a charge to enter too, from £7.50 per person, so the castle’s website does recommend pre-booking.

Check-out from the Garden Cottage is 10am so we hurriedly packed our things up early on Monday morning to give us time to explore the walled gardens one final time before heading off into the sunshine and back to Nottingham.

Garden Cottage, review by Lou Furby and appears in DogFriendly magazine issue 79.  For more information on the DogFriendly magazine visit https://www.dogfriendly.co.uk/magazine