The Tree House Restaurant Click to View Virtual Tour

The Gift Shop Click to View Virtual Tour

The Alnwick Garden
Adjacent to the castle, the present Duchess of Northumberland, Jane, has initiated the establishment of The Alnwick Garden, a formal garden set around a cascading fountain. It has a reported development cost for the whole of £42 million pounds (press release of 7 August 2003). The garden belongs to a charitable trust which is separate from the Northumberland Estates, but the Duke of Northumberland donated the 42-acre (17 ha) site and £9 million.
The first phase of development, opened in October 2001, involved the creation of the fountain and initial planting of the gardens. In 2004 a large 6,000 sq ft (560 m2) ‘tree house’ complex, including a cafe, was opened. It is deemed one of the largest tree houses in the world.

By that year it was the third most visited paid entry garden in the UK (after Kew Gardens and Wisley), with over half a million visitors. In February 2005, a poison garden, growing plants such as cannabis and opium poppy, was added. May 2006 saw the opening of a pavilion and visitor centre designed by Sir Michael Hopkins and Buro Happold which can hold up to 1,000 people. The pavilion and visitor’s centre feature a barrel-vaulted gridshell roof with foil cushions.

Alnwick Castle has two further parks. Immediately to the north of the castle is a relatively small park straddling the River Aln which was landscaped by Lancelot Brown (“Capability Brown”) and Thomas Call in the 18th century; it is known locally as The Pastures. Nearby is the much larger Hulne Park, which contains the remains of Hulne Priory.

Bewicke’s Restaurant, Close House Click to View Virtual Tour

Close House Click to View Virtual Tour

Bewicke’s Restaurant

At Close House Hotel it is our mission to make your dining experience one you will never forget.

Your experience starts with the friendly atmosphere that greets you on your arrival at Close House and onwards to Bewickes Restaurant and our private dining rooms. Bewickes Restaurant is the winner of the Best Fine Dining Restaurant within the North East Restaurant Awards 2009 in Association with the Gourmet Society.

Our dishes are made with quality ingredients from specialist suppliers across the UK and Europe. We are also proud to say that we equally embrace local suppliers who specialise in organic, free range, home produced products. Our Head Chef has a dedicated kitchen brigade behind him, and with the support of the Restaurant Manager and his team, they will meet your every need.

History of Close House

Close House was built in 1779 for the private use of the Bewicke family; however, its history dates back to the early thirteenth century.
During the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries there is evidence of a monastic house at the site, which was owned at the time by the Read Family. The property remained in the hands of the Read Family for several generations until George Read eventually sold the site to Robert Bewicke in 1626.

Robert Bewicke was a Merchant Venturer and was made Sheriff of Newcastle in 1615 and Mayor in 1628 and 1637, then began the long association of the Bewicke Family with Close House. In 1779 it was decided that a new building was required and the present Close House Mansion was built. The old monastic house was pulled down to make way for the new building. The large bay window of the ballroom marks the site of where it stood all those years ago.

The Bewicke family remained at Close House for many generations. However, wealth was dwindling and by the early part of the twentieth century the property was mortgaged. The finances of the Bewicke family never regained their original strength; so inevitably, much of the surrounding property was sold off between 1945 and 1953. This included Stevenson’s Cottage, High Close House and Heddon Quay. Finally the mansion and estate were sold at auction in 1953 and bought for the sum of £13,190 by James Rutherford and Sons.

In 1960 they approached Kings College, Newcastle upon Tyne, with the possibility of their purchasing Close House; the asking price was now £20,000! A sale price was agreed of £19,500 and the sale proceeded. Kings College at this point was part of Durham University but became the independent University of Newcastle upon Tyne in 1963. In 1994, Close House Mansion was refurbished at a cost of just under £1,000,000.

In August 2004, Newcastle University sold Close House Mansion and golf course, together with the estate, to local business man Graham Wylie, who has developed the now renamed Close House Hotel into the most sought after venue in the North East of England, offering a wider range of facilities then ever before. The newly named property opened for business in March 2005.

The Dukes Grill, Slaley Hall Click to View Virtual Tour

The Terrace, Slaley Hall Click to View Virtual Tour

Eating & Drinking
Hadrian’s Brasserie is the latest addition to dining at Slaley Hall or indulge in the mouthwatering local menu at Claret Jug- the best 19th hole around.

The food is classic British with a local, contemporary twist. The wine list is extensive. The drama and excitement are pure Slaley Hall. Enjoy mouthwatering dishes, must-try legends and great stories to take home with you.
Our food philosophy is simple: Legendary local ingredients, prepared to perfection. Samples a range of dishes in Duke’s Grill, Hadrian’s Brasserie or the Claret Jug.

Duke’s Grill
Duke’s Grill: Chefs with a passion for the extraordinary. Dishes prepared at your table and a trolley stacked high with local cheeses.
Duke’s Grill in the classic Edwardian drawing room, captures the essence of Northumberland’s harvest, from land, river and sea. Lovingly prepared by our chefs, the exquisite meals and wide selection of wines will linger long in the memory.

Hadrian’s Brasserie
Haidrians, with stunning views and a menu to match. Perfect for an evening of exciting food and perfectly selected wine. An exquisitely designed restaurant, serving the freshest Northumberland produce. Don’t miss our locally inpspired must-try dishes and seasonal specials – truly wonderful.

Slaley Hall is the perfect environment for private dining. Your guests will love the drama and excitement of the evening. With local legendary dishes, elegant decor and stories to linger long in the memory.

Chesters Roman Fort Click to View Virtual Tour

The Bathhouse Click to View Virtual Tour

Cilurnum or Cilurvum was a fort on Hadrian’’s Wall mentioned in the Notitia Dignitatum. It is now identified with the fort found at Chesters (also known as Walwick Chesters to distinguish it from other sites named Chesters in the vicinity) near the village of Walwick, Northumberland, England. It was built in 123 AD, just after the wall’’s completion.Cilurnum is considered to be he best preserved Roman cavalry fort along Hadrian’’s Wall.

There is a museum on the site, housing finds from the fort and elsewhere along the wall.ConstructionThe site guarded a bridge carrying the military road behind the wall across the River North Tyne at this point, whose abutments survive. It was a cavalry fort at its foundation, for retaliatory raids into barbarian areas north of the wall, then given over to infantry later. Hadrian himself encouraged the “Cult of Disciplina” amongst legions stationed at the wall, and an early inscription on an altar dedicated to Disciplina, found in 1978, indicates the earliest known military presence was a wing of cavalry, ala Augusta ob virtutem appellata (“named Augusta because of its valour”). Inscriptions have also been found showing the First Cohort of Dalmatians and the First Cohort of Vangiones from Upper Rhineland in Germany were also stationed here.

Excavation
In the early 1800s Nathaniel Clayton, owner of Chesters House and Estate, moved hundreds of tons of earth to cover over the last remains of the fort as part of his parkland landscaping, thereby creating a smooth uninterrupted grassland slope down to the River Tyne; he collected, before they disappeared, a number of Roman artefacts which he preserved in the family. However his son John Clayton, a noted antiquarian, removed all his father’’s work, exposing the fort, excavating, and establishing a small museum for his finds. John Clayton also made excavations at Housesteads Fort, Carrawburgh Mithraic Temple, and Carvoran, amongst others.

Museum
The museum was commissioned in 1895 and opened in 1903. It is a grade II* listed building and was designed by Richard Norman Shaw. It displays part of John Clayton’’s collection of Roman finds.

Read More on Wikipedia

Go to Chesters Fort, English Heritage official website

White Room Restaurant, Seaham Hall Click to View Virtual Tour

The Café, Seaham Hall Click to View Virtual Tour

Michelin Star Dining at Seaham Hall
The White Room, is the finest Michelin star restaurant in County Durham, and you’ll want to tell your friends about it, whether you’re here as a private guest, visiting on business or simply because it’s your local restaurant. There are three kitchens in the hotel, all serving food made with the finest ingredients.
The Good Food Guide gave the restaurant at Seaham Hall a score of 6 and Harden’s Restaurant Guide gave us a Remy award as one of the top twenty restaurants outside London, and we were awarded 3 rosettes by the AA.

Please note: As from 31st August 2009, The White Room is closed for lunch between a Monday and Saturday.

Seaham Hall Hotel
A small luxury hotel twenty minutes from Newcastle Seaham Hall is the leading luxury hotel and spa destination resort in Northern England. AA Hotel of the Year 2004 this is a place to indulge yourself where service is founded on instinctive hospitality where the food is pure delight and where quality and attention to detail keep us awake at night not you.Linked to the hotel by a magical underground walkway The Serenity Spa is oriental in design and inspired by Feng Shui. Voted Best Spa for Style by The Sunday Times and Best UK Spa Destination by Conde Nast Traveller The Serenity Spa offers over eighty different treatments. Together they provide the indulgence of a luxury boutique hotel and a unique oriental spa resort just twenty minutes from Newcastle fifteen minutes from Durham and three hours from London.

Red Mall, Metrocentre Click to View Virtual Tour

Town Square, Metrocentre Click to View Virtual Tour

Metrocentre in Gateshead has been voted for the second time the No1 shopping and Leisure Centre in the UK, and is still the largest in Europe. With over 330 stores and over 50 restaurants Metrocentre offers everything you need to enjoy a day of shopping, dining and leisure.

Stocked full of key designer and cost conscious brands, the Centre boasts several department stores including Debenhams, Marks & Spencer and House of Fraser, as well as themed shopping areas that house a variety of specialist smaller independent shops.

This year has seen the exciting launch of the stylish ‘Metrocentre Qube’, the brand new leisure and dining area in the newly redeveloped yellow mall. Metrocentre Qube already hosts five great new restaurants with a sixth due to open shortly, a brand new ODEON cinema complete with IMAX theatre and a Namco Fun Scape family entertainment centre.

Go to The Metrocentre official website