Other UK Balmaha
Pheasant Lodge, Balmaha
Independent pet-friendly review by Four Legged Guests · updated August 2026 · paw rating built from 3 verified guest reviews mentioning pets
Bring your dog if
- You want a whole-property rental - no shared lobbies or corridors to navigate with your dog
- You're basing yourself in Balmaha / the Other UK and want a pet-friendly anchor for day trips
Worth knowing
- Paw rating is based on 3 reviews - limited sample, treat as directional
- Pet fee: £35 per pet (max 2 pets, No breeds specified in the Dangerous Dogs Act, no puppies, and every dog must be fully house trained) - check whether that is per night, per stay or per week when you book
How this review was built Evidence, sources, refresh cadence
- Evidence: 3 pet-mention guest reviews sourced from major booking platforms - guests who explicitly mentioned travelling with a dog. Each review is screened for pet-relevance, then judged for sentiment to compute the paw rating.
- Not a personal visit. We don't stay at every hotel we cover - we summarise patterns from real guest reviews, paraphrased and never quoted verbatim. Full standard on our editorial policy page.
- Wider context: The property has 143 guest reviews overall across booking platforms, averaging 8.3/10 - the paw rating reflects only the pet-mentioning subset.
- Last refreshed: August 2026. Policies and pricing drift; we re-check on a rolling basis. Confirm specifics with the property at the moment you book.
- How the paw rating works: Full detail on the methodology page, including the three verification gates and known limitations.
Pet policy at a glance
- Pet charge £35 if notified - £75 if not notified.
- The dog charge is payable on arrival at check in.
- Dogs must be booked in advance and listed on the booking form, giving the type and breed of each one.
- Up to two dogs per booking.
- Dogs must never be left on their own in a lodge.
- Dogs must be on a lead in the grounds and under an adult's control around the lodge and the car park.
- Dogs are not allowed on the beds, the furniture, the rugs or the throws provided, so bring your dog's own bed and bedding.
- Clean a wet or muddy dog before it comes into the lodge; there is an outside tap and extra towels on request.
- Dogs are the only pets accepted, so no cats, birds or reptiles.
- Owners must clear up after their dog and use the bins around the park, and are responsible for any damage or extra cleaning.
- Restricted breeds: no breeds specified in the Dangerous Dogs Act, no puppies, and every dog must be fully house trained.
Pet-friendly summary
Pheasant Lodge sits in the Balmaha Lodges group on Main Street in Balmaha, a few steps from the east shore of Loch Lomond, and the location is the reason to consider it. The national park visitor centre, the Oak Tree Inn and the path up Conic Hill are all within a short walk, the West Highland Way runs through the village, and there are trails directly behind the lodge, so a dog can be on good ground within a minute of the door.
Dogs are welcome for a fee, and the way that fee works is worth reading twice: the charge is £35 if the dog is declared at booking and £75 if it is not. Declaring the dog is the cheapest thing a guest can do here. The lodge is a three-bedroom property let to one party, with bunk beds for children, a good-sized living area and a hot tub outside.
The criticisms are consistent, and they come from guests who travelled with dogs. Cleanliness on arrival is the recurring theme - crumbs in the kitchen, marked sofas, crockery that needed rewashing and, in more than one account, droppings that guests put down to mice. Furnishings are described as tired and due for refurbishment, and smaller faults such as a dishwasher that would not run, empty soap dispensers and bathroom doors that did not lock have all been reported. The owner answers complaints and has waived charges where a stay went wrong, but the pattern comes up too often to treat as a one-off.
Two points matter specifically for dogs. The hot tub area is not screened off from the rest of the site, and broken glass left there by others has been flagged as a hazard to pets and children. And dog towels are not left out as standard, though the lodge will hand out extra ones on request and there is an outside tap for washing a muddy dog down before it goes in.
Pheasant Lodge earns a 3.7/5 paw rating. It suits walkers with a dog who will spend their days on Conic Hill and the loch shore and want a base they can reach the trails from, and who will accept a property that is not always as clean or as well kept as its setting deserves.
Highlights from pet-mentioning reviews
What reviewers travelling with dogs consistently noted about staying here.
- Trails and Conic Hill at the door
- Declared-dog fee £35, undeclared £75
- Cleanliness complaints from dog owners
- Hot tub area open to the site
- Outside tap and dog towels on request
- Loch Lomond shore a minute away
About this hotel
Pheasant Lodge is a four-star three-bedroom self-catering lodge at Balmaha Lodges on Main Street in Balmaha, on the east shore of Loch Lomond. The whole property is let to one party, with bunk beds for children, a living area and an outdoor hot tub. The national park visitor centre, the Oak Tree Inn and the foot of Conic Hill are all a short walk away.
Hotel facts
Photos
Location
Balmaha Lodges, Main Street, Balmaha, G63 0JQ