Stanhope Castle

Stanhope Castle, Knights Corner, (Apartment 4) (Sykes Cottages holiday rental) Visited over the period 20- 26 August 2022. The apartment accommodates 6 persons. Hot Tub and large gardens adjacent. The gardens are on two levels. Stanhope is situated in an area of outstanding rural beauty, with moors and hills surrounding the town and plenty of local attractions within 30 miles, including Beamish Museum. The property is accessed from the car park by traversing approximately 15- 20 stone steps. (There is no handrail available; however, for most of the steps it is possible to hold the top of the stone retaining wall.) There are a further 5-6 steps up and into the property, again no handrail available and this may prove a challenge for young children and/or those with mobility issues. Dedicated parking is available for up to two cars, however we found there is no guarantee these spaces will remain unoccupied, as other residents/visitors to the Castle may use. (We had to use the car park in the town square when this arose. It would be more helpful if the owner provided signage for the two car parking spaces, just to remind other residents and visitors these spaces are for Apartment 4.) The property was clean and spacious, all on one level. There are three bedrooms, one with an ensuite, plus a large bathroom. The kitchen and lounge area are open plan and spacious, easily accommodating 6 persons. Bedroom with Ensuite: There was a tear in one of the bedding sheets that required replacing or repairing. Plug sockets in the bedroom need to be more conveniently located near the dressing table. The blind in the bedroom did not function properly. It was not possible to open and close the shutters, therefore much more natural light entered the room early in the morning, disturbing sleep. (Because the window is high (and recessed) the natural light emanates from the base of the curtaining, thus devaluing, in part, the function of the curtains.) The blind needs repairing or replacing. Shower mat should be provided, as the shower base is quite slippy. Also required, in the shower, is a ledge where shower gel, and other essentials can be placed whilst having a shower. (None available at the date of visiting.) General: TV is limited to one in the main lounge area. Thus, if there are, for example, young children who are used to a bedroom door being left open at night, this really means no TV in the lounge, also limiting conversation for adults remaining in the lounge area. (All three bedrooms lead directly off the lounge area.) Suggest, 'wall mounted' TVs are provided in both double bedrooms, allowing residents to watch in comfort, should they wish to do so, without disturbing children. Wi-Fi is provided, the signal strength adequate. Overall, we would recommend; however, the areas for development, outlined above, would further enhance guest stay.
Aug 31st, 2022

It is a private property now.
Apr 16th, 2023

Wonderful country castle to relax and enjoy the North pennies walking or Country persuit's . Lots of dramatic Landscapes to photograph or paint.
Jan 21st, 2023

Location brilliant. Facilities amazing. The one thing that let it down was the cleanliness when we arrived. Had to sweep and mop the floor immediately as it was making our socks dirty and clean the washing machine as was emitting a horrible smell. Did email the owner to make them aware but received no reply. Edit: upon receiving a very rude reply, I have downgraded my review. Please do not lie, as you (unlike me) do not know when these photos were taken. If you check the time stamps on the original photos I sent you you will see that these were taken at 16:49 on 23rd July. We checked in at 15:30 the same day and can assure you we didnt make that much mess in an hour.
Aug 26th, 2022

Well, for a start, I have been forced into leaving a review I am not happy with rating wise, as I have to click 1 star when this company is not even worthy of it, but unfortunately there isnt a zero so I guess this will have to do. I was originally looking for a weekend stay for me, my 2 children and my mum. I fancied somewhere a bit different as a treat for us all. The place was lovely and I enjoyed my weekend stay. I returned home on Sunday evening and I received a phone call from the owner of the Knights Corner property. The gent was asking if my stay had finished and I am now checked out as Sykes had apparently advised him that I may only be staying for the weekend. I advised I would be returning as I had paid for 7 nights. He did ask some intrusive and inappropriate questions regarding my return. Eg; what are you doing with your kids if you are returning without them? Whos coming back and when? Anyway that call ended with me stating that I would advise him if I did check out earlier than my 7 nights stay I would let him know. Then an email came through from Ruth the other owner who was quite frank and rude in telling me that Sykes had misinformed me and that I am not allowed to return without the original guests that checked in with me as this was classed as sub-letting. I advised that nobody was paying me to stay there, so it wasnt sub-letting. I was simply treating my family. The Sunday evening emails ended sourly and I didnt dare return as it is quite a drive away to be shown the door when I got there as I wouldnt be with the original family members I stayed with. I then contacted Sykes who took full responsibility and after listening back to the original phone call admitted they had misinformed me and shouldve checked with the property owner before my stay. Beware of Knights Corner in Durham. They will send you rude emails on a Sunday evening and ask intrusive questions. They also have a sign up at the property that I wasnt too comfortable with as it stated when hot tub not in use, lid must be replaced. If this is not actioned the hot tub will be turned off. Which is fine in itself but there is a camera mounted on the property looking over the door and garden area, so I assume they look at the camera to check this as they arent local to the property to pop in. I must admit knowing they can see me, my children and mum using the hot tub definitely did give us the relaxing quality family time we desired. I would never recommend this accommodation to anyone and would strongly advise staying clear.
Oct 23rd, 2022