Ilderton Dod Barn is within Northumberland National Park which became England’s first International Dark Sky Park in 2013 and we renovated the buildings with protection of this in mind.

With the clocks due to go back in a couple of weeks, it allows even more time in the evening to see what our skies have to offer. We provide outdoor seating, torches and all outdoor lights can be turned off. There are also binoculars / telescope in each property. At 580 square miles, Northumberland International Dark Sky Park is the largest area of protected night sky in Europe. A Sky Quality Meter reading was taken at the farm on 6th December 2018 measuring 21.024 makes this spot one of the darkest in the Park.

But if astronomy isn’t your thing, there’s plenty of walking, running, cycling, riding, archaeology, wildlife spotting, exploring castles and beaches etc. to be done from the doorstep too. Or you could just relax in front of the log burner with a book!

At Ilderton Dod Barns, it’s still possible to accommodate up to 14 people between our 2 neighbouring barn conversions if a large group is your main objective. However, we’ve recently split the large upstairs room in The Barn to provide a king-sized room with sofa bed as the main accommodation, but with a bunk and 2 singles behind a cleverly hidden adjoining room, plus space for up to two Z-beds or a cot.

The new layout allows more flexibility, and even over peak season, our guests have commented on how good value their stay was, whether there were 2 or 9 of them. Rest assured, that nothing has been compromised – we still have a spacious open-plan diner / lounge with seating for at least 8 at a time, 2 shower rooms, a well-equipped kitchen, barbecue, outdoor seating, brazier and lockable bike shed for at least 10 bikes, with electric charging and pressure washer. Both properties have a TV (DVD in The Barn too), log burner, background central eating, washing machine, drying facilities, fridge and freezer.

The cottage is largely unchanged but now has a king-sized bed and space for a Z bed or cot in the upstairs bedroom, plus a sofa bed downstairs for occasional use.

The Barn has plenty of availability from the start of October, and Cuckoo Cottage from mid-October.