North East England Swarland
The Stags Lodge
Independent pet-friendly review by Four Legged Guests · updated October 2026 · paw rating built from 4 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 Swarland / the North East England and want a pet-friendly anchor for day trips
- The wider guest experience is strong - guests rate this 9.3/10 overall on booking platforms
Worth knowing
- Paw rating is based on 4 reviews - limited sample, treat as directional
- Pet limits: No dogs banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 - research-verified; the fee isn't published, so confirm the charge when you book
How this review was built Evidence, sources, refresh cadence
- Evidence: 4 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 76 guest reviews overall across booking platforms, averaging 9.3/10 - the paw rating reflects only the pet-mentioning subset.
- Last refreshed: October 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
- On-site pet amenities: enclosed dog exercise area.
- Restricted breeds: No dogs banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
- Dogs must be kept on a short lead everywhere on the park, except in the dog exercise area.
- Dogs may not be left unattended in the accommodation or in a vehicle.
- Owners must clean up after their dogs and put the waste in the bins provided.
- A dog that causes a nuisance or bites anyone will be asked to leave the park.
Pet-friendly summary
The Stags Lodge is a self-catering lodge on the Percy Wood country retreat at Swarland, in the Northumberland countryside between Alnwick and the coast, and it is the kind of quiet, switch-off setting that suits a holiday with a dog. The lodge is openly dog friendly, and the practical detail that matters most is on site: a dog walk and an enclosed exercise field, so the first and last outings of the day happen without anyone reaching for the car keys.
Guests travelling with dogs consistently describe the lodge as spotless and comfortable, with thoughtful touches inside - store-cupboard basics left out for guests to use, the sort of thing you only miss when it is not there - and an owner whose communications are prompt and friendly. Solo travellers with a dog and families with young children both report the place working well, and several chose it precisely because the dog could come.
The setting is rural and genuinely peaceful. Walks run from the door, Alnwick and the Northumberland coast are a short drive, and the lodge makes a sensible base for exploring the North East. The trade-off is that there are no shops within walking distance, so plan a run to the nearest village for supplies - guests mention it as a quirk rather than a complaint.
No pet fee, weight limit or dog count is published for the lodge itself, so confirm those when you book. The park around it does publish its dog rules, and they are the ordinary sort for a site with other guests on it: a short lead everywhere except the exercise field, no dog left alone in the lodge or in a car, and waste bagged and binned.
With overall stays rated 9.3 out of 10 and dog-owning guests scoring theirs at or near full marks, it earns a 4.7/5 paw rating. Best suited to a couple, solo traveller or small family who want quiet, comfort and an on-site field for the dog, and who do not mind being a drive from the shops.
Highlights from pet-mentioning reviews
What reviewers travelling with dogs consistently noted about staying here.
- On-site dog walk and exercise field
- Enclosed field for off-lead running
- Quiet rural setting near Alnwick
- Spotless, comfortable lodge interior
- Friendly, responsive owner
- No shops within walking distance
About this hotel
The Stags Lodge is a self-catering lodge on the Percy Wood country retreat at Swarland in Northumberland, sleeping a couple or small family in a quiet rural spot between Alnwick and the coast. It has an on-site dog walk and an enclosed exercise field, and guests rate stays 9.3 out of 10 overall.
Hotel facts
Photos
Location
Percy Wood country retreat Swarland, Swarland, NE65 9JW
