(available all year)
Matfen Village, Northumberland (20 minutes west of Newcastle-upon-Tyne).
Matfen Hall, built in 1830 by Sir Edward Blackett, is a magnificent country house hotel set in the heart of some of Northumberland's most beautiful countryside. It had a £5 million expansion in 2004, making this imposing ancestral home one of the finest hotel's in the country. Each of the 53 bedrooms has individual character, combining modern facilities with traditional splendour. Finished to exacting standards, every Matfen Hall bedroom is en-suite and benefits from satellite TV, radio, direct dial telephone, trouser press and tea and coffee making facilities. The 2 AA Rosette Library and Print Room Restaurant, exquisitely furnished with book lined walls, is much more than a hotel restaurant. For those who are serious about their food, it is a genuine fine dining experience in uniquely intimate surroundings. Additionally, there is a brand new, state of the art spa and leisure club offering the most sophisticated and futuristic health and fitness equipment of any independent health club in the United Kingdom.
A regular venue for professional and county amateur events, Matfen Hall's eighteen hole golf course is rated as one of the finest in the North East.
Matfen (Matfen Hall Golf Club)
Sympathetically laid out on classic parkland, the course offers an enjoyable challenge for golfers of all abilities. The picturesque River Pont features at several holes and the dry stone 'ha ha' which bisects the estate presents a unique obstacle. The 4th, 9th, 12th and 14th are particularly strong par fours. The dog-legged 16th is the pick of the par fives, but Matfen's signature hole is surely the long par three 17th with its narrow green sited teasingly just over the river.
18 Holes, Par 72, Yardage 6569. Parkland.Show Card
The excellent nine hole par three course is ideal for the less experienced player. Other golfing facilities on site include a driving range, short game practice area and practice putting green.