![]() Clare also went out of her way by taking my friend into the nearest town to visit the doctor who had to attend to her hurt feet. Just down the road is a pub where we met the friendliest people and had good evening meals. There is also a very nice lounge area where we were able to sit and visit with other guests. This is a necessity as there is no place to stop for food along this section of the trail. It was so nice to find that Clare offered laundry service! This was the only place I stayed that offered this service and it was quite necessary! The breakfasts were wonderful and so were the packed lunches she offered. The weather had been very rainy and the trail muddy. Clare, her family, and employees were very hospitable and friendly. The room was nice, clean, and the bed very comfortable. It was my favorite place I stayed anywhere along the Wall. I stayed three nights at Vallum Lodge while walking along Hadrian's Wall. ![]() An ideal way to cap off the day before retiring back to the lodge and bed for a really good, sound night's sleep. And at the end of the day, the excellent Twice Brewed Inn offering a great range of real ales and good food is only a couple of hundred yards away. A local bus service runs past the lodge - I'm not sure of the frequency - and can get you slightly further afield and into the local towns of Hexham and Haltwhistle. Housteads fort is a couple of miles walk to the east. The stunning Roman settlement of Vindolanda is also within a mile with footpaths leading across the fields to get there. There is a Northumberland National Park centre about 400 yards away and some of the very best sections of the wall are within an easy half-mile walk. The location of Vallum Lodge is excellent for anyone wishing to explore the Roman country and Hadrian's Wall. They were all attentive without being overbearing. The landlady, Clare, was also really friendly and full of useful advice, as was her husband and her staff. The eggs were free-range, I'm guessing from the lodges own hens that walked around outside. The breakfast itself was really tasty proper bacon - not a sign of white salty water - and lovely local sausage and black pudding. The breakfast room was again tastefully decorated with some stunning large photos of local scenes, available to buy if you wish. The bathroom was very tastefully tiled with slate on both wall and floor, but still retaining a warm feel. It also had a very good sized ensuite bathroom with full bath - just the thing after a long walk along "the Wall" - and shower. The twin room we stayed in was not particularly large, but was very well appointed and spotlessly clean. It has rightly received high ratings from both the tourist board and the AA. Vallum Lodge is a guest house, bordering on a small hotel. Their central location makes Vallum Lodge an ideal base for exploring Northumberland, the North Lakes and The North Pennines however we had to hike on after our day of finitely consider Vallum Lodge when planning your hike. We also enjoyed massages which Clare graciously arranged for us. ![]() We decided to rest the next day at Vallum and visited the main Roman Sites. ![]() It was only a half a mile from The Hadrian's Wall/Pennine Way Path so it was ideally situated for us after a tired day of hiking. All rooms had open country views tea and coffee-making facilities a flat screen TV with Freeview radio alarm complimentary WiFi affordable minibar with a selection of drinks and snacks a hairdryer en-suite bathroom or shower room with big fluffy towels and bathrobes plus a selection of toiletries. Clare, Michael and their family offered us a 4 star Bed and Breakfast accommodation with extremely friendly professional service. This lodge is set in a lovely open countryside looking towards Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site. ![]()
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