Old School House, Beautiful Victorian building in the heart of the Pennines

Top rated by guests
The old school house in spring
Common area overview
Common area
Kitchen
Bunks
review stars
9.8Outstanding
(14 Ratings)
The School House offers a charming, cozy stay with amazing views, great location for star gazing, and super hosts. Highly recommended for walks, exploring nearby towns, and a relaxing time away.
From real guest reviews summarized by AI
Don't miss out! Price and availability may change
9.8 / 10.0
Outstanding(14 Ratings)

Cottage in England

12 guests · 4 bedrooms · 2 baths

Reasons to book

Guests love it hereGuests give this property a top rating
Great for petsBring all your friends and family, even the furry ones
High-end valueWell priced for this area

About this cottage rental

The space:

* Minimum stays vary so please contact owner to confirm minimum stay for your preferred dates.

* Ask about discounts for less than 8 people - or more than 3 nights!

Overlooking England’s highest village, the Old School House offers panoramic views over the stunning rural landscape of the North Pennines. It is an ideal place for a relaxing yet invigorating escape from the daily routine.

The west wing of the Victorian schoolhouse, originally used as a classroom and library, has recently been refurbished to provide spacious, self-contained, accommodation for visitors. It is a beautiful space which includes an open-plan living area with high ceilings, a wood-burning stove, big comfortable sofas and a long dining table with a fitted oak kitchen.

Since summer 2012 we have had a number of delighted visitors including groups of friends and families, artists, writers and poetry groups, musicians, film makers, photographers, and cyclists on the coast to coast route.

An on-site observatory (North Pennines Observatory) is now open for guests to explore one of the country's best dark sky areas for stargazing. Additional charges and pre-booking for this are required. Please contact us for more details.

The property has been listed in the September 2016 edition of The Guardian’s top places to stay in the UK over Christmas and New Year.

“I’m not looking forward to going back to the real world, this has been an amazing place to stay.”
- Ditte Elly, Newcastle

“It would be hard to find a place more rural and remote, yet on the inside it has the feel of a New York studio loft.”
- Elaine Williams, The Guardian.


Location:

The village of Allenheads has a friendly pub, a café serving delicious home-made food, a small shop, Heritage Centre and Nature Trail.

For anyone wanting to tour the North of England and Scottish Borders the Old School House in Allenheads is the perfect location, and only about one hour’s drive from the A1 or M1.
At 1350 feet it is England's highest village and situated within a designated area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB).

It is also located in an area with some of the best Dark Sky Discover Sites in the UK and we the North Pennines Observatory at ACA is located on our premises. Star gazing equipment and telescopes are available for use before or after the completion date to give you direct access to these nationally acclaimed skies. Additional charges may apply for tuition and access to the large telescopes. Pre-booking is required.

Allenheads is just over an hour's drive from the nearest cities of Newcastle upon Tyne, Durham, Sunderland, Middlesborough and Carlisle, but it feels a world apart within the rolling North Pennine hills.


Facilities at the Old School House include:

Large open-plan area:
- Fitted kitchen with solid oak doors. Integrated dishwasher (please bring dishwasher tablets and washing up liquid), fridge-freezer, built-in oven and ceramic hob. Cutlery, crockery and glassware (including wine glasses and champagne flutes) for 12 people. Pots, pans and utensils etc.,
- Sturdy, solid oak dining table extending to fit up to 12 dining chairs,
- 3 leather sofas.

Bedrooms:
- 2 twin or double bedrooms
- 2 bunk rooms with 4 beds in each
- all bedding is provided

* Please let us know in advance which bedroom layout you require in the twin or double rooms

Bathrooms:
- 2 bathrooms with 1 toilet cubicle, 1 shower cubicle and 2 sinks in each.
- please bring towels, toiletries and toilet paper.

Heating:
- Central heating throughout.
- Additional portable oil filled radiators in bedrooms if required.
- Coal & log burning stove in main open-plan room for extra comfort.
- Electric instantly heated showers.

Other facilities:
- Lock up room for bikes.
- Clothes washing machine, tumble dryer and clothes airer.

Other rooms and equipment for leisure or professional use:
- East wing: large classroom (8 x 8 metres) for meetings, conferences, workshops, performances or exhibitions with; big screen projection, surround sound speakers, window blackouts, slide projector, overhead projector, laptop & DVD player.
- Full size table tennis table.
- North Pennines Observatory @ ACA **from spring 2017** (extra charges will apply)
- I.T and admin services such as copying, scanning, printing.
(May incur extra cost)

In the village, in the former village Post Office and Shop, a versatile venue of approximately 7 x 4 metres can also be made available for meetings, workshops, presentations and exhibitions.

Pets:
Well behaved dogs are welcome at a surcharge of £10. Please dispose of any waste properly and remove fallen fur.

Please let us know your eta and the number of cars you will arrive in for parking.

Check in is from 4pm and check out is before 11am.

Amenities at Old School House, Beautiful Victorian building in the heart of the Pennines

Pets allowed
Family friendly

Map of England


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Ratings and reviews

9.8 / 10.0
Outstanding(14 Ratings)
review starsSummary of reviews
The School House offers a charming, cozy stay with amazing views, great location for star gazing, and super hosts. Highly recommended for walks, exploring nearby towns, and a relaxing time away.
From real guest reviews summarized by AI
10.0 / 10.0
My family and I (there were 10 of us in total plus 2 dogs) stayed in the School House for some R&R following Christmas and what a perfect place this was for that! The School House is a charming, and cozy, building with amazing views and the hosts, Helen and Alan, were amazing with their communication and recommendations. The location was great - super for walking and taking in nature or if you don't mind short drives it's very well placed for other towns and places to explore (Allendale, Hexham, High Force Waterfall and English Heritage (Hadrian's Wall)). And, if the skies are clear, it's a great spot to star gaze! We all had a super time and would recommend a stay at the School House!
10.0 / 10.0
We had lovely stay with family (7 in total) and our dog. Inside living room/kitchen generous space, bedrooms small but comfortable beds, good electric showers and plenty of wood to keep us warm. Outside space is fenced allowing our dog to run around freely (and have fun with new best friend the dog of the owners). The view from the property is amazing. Star gazing a rare treat (thank you Alan). Allenheads is lovely little village which you get to over winding country roads. It has a small but interesting lead-mining museum. Beautiful walks straight from doorstep over land with livestock: dogs on a lead.
10.0 / 10.0
Great location
Great location
Visited with a group of mountain bikers and the location was ideal a remote very picturesque The owner was excellent and very helpful.
10.0 / 10.0
Couldn’t of asked for more.
Couldn’t of asked for more.
U set the circumstances me and my family stayed for a short break to celebrate a birthday and to get away from the chaos. The owners ensured all safety measures where in place before hand to ensure our health and wellbeing and could not of been anymore hospitable. Our comfort and safety were paramount and I would highly recommend them and we will definitely go back. The property was clean, all amenities that we needed on hand and was cosy and comfortable especially with the wood burner going. The ground made for some fantastic views and all in all it was a relaxing, enjoyable time away.
10.0 / 10.0
Lovely
Lovely
Enjoyed the stay, fantastic service with no issues👍
8.0 / 10.0
Old school house
Old school house
We stayed in the property with another family with young children and had a good stay. It has a good size open plan living dining space for everyone to mingle. The childrens bedrooms are situated on the other side of the adults bedrooms so the children need to be confident at night. There is a great view from the garden but unfortunately not much space on the garden furniture (little picnic table for 4 max). We really enjoyed the woodburner.
10.0 / 10.0
The Old School House, Allenheads
The Old School House, Allenheads
A great place for a family get-together: warm, plenty of room and amazing location. Owner was friendly and helpful, and property was well-equipped 🙂.
10.0 / 10.0
Great Host / House
Great Host / House
Great house in ideal setting for a group of 12 to meet up for the weekend. Would highly recommend

FAQs

Is parking included with this cottage?

Parking is not specified as an available amenity at Old School House, Beautiful Victorian building in the heart of the Pennines. For more information, we encourage you to contact the property about where to park.

Is there a pool at this cottage?

We didn’t find pool listed as an amenity for this cottage. It may be worth double checking if a pool is important for your stay.

Is Old School House, Beautiful Victorian building in the heart of the Pennines pet friendly?

Yes! This cottage is pet-friendly. For more information, we recommend contacting the booking provider about animal policies.

What amenities are available at Old School House, Beautiful Victorian building in the heart of the Pennines?

We found 2 amenities for this rental. This includes pets allowed, and family friendly.


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