Stay and play review: Matfen Hall, Northumberland

Why Matfen Hall in Newcastle upon Tyne ranks second behind The Grove as the best golf break I’ve experienced in England over the last decade.

A romantic retreat for golf-obsessed couples, Matfen Hall is all about peace, pampering, and attention to detail. It starts as soon as we arrive outside the 200-year-old double doors, where porters swoop in to pick up our bags and park our car.

Once inside, we’re ushered into the Great Hall where a rum punch and mocktail are waiting for us between the grand piano and roaring fire.

It’s made even more impressive by the sweeping staircase which directs our gaze towards a cathedral-scale stained glass window and an intricately painted ceiling above. It’s all very Harry Potter.

The hotel

Built as a country manor for the Blackett family in 1832, the Grade II-listed building was used as a nursing home up until 1999, when it was reimagined as a 31-room hotel. It has doubled in size since then and undergone a multi-million-pound renovation.

The transformation has restored the original look of the Gothic interiors and revamped the 63 bedrooms, which are split across several floors.

Ours was a deluxe room of simple, vanilla tones with a roll-top bath, huge corniced ceilings, and a bed so big we could have been sleeping in different postcodes. You can upgrade to a luxury room or suite to enjoy chocolates, champagne, and underfloor heating alongside the Penhaligon toiletries, but you’re better off saving over £250 and spending it on food or golf instead.

The golf

More should probably be made of the fact that Matfen Hall charges just £35 for a winter green fee, which places it among the best value parklands you can play in the UK. There are three loops of nine holes, with the Douglas and Standing Stone said to be the best configuration.

Both courses sneak in at just over 3,000 yards off the yellows and slot in among slender pines and quirky obstacles to form an eclectic mix of risk-reward holes.

The best example arrives on the Douglas’ short par-4 2nd, where my attempt at driving the smallest green on the course rebounds off the dry stone ha-ha wall. I finally find my ball beyond the 3rd tee box, blocked out altogether – a sign of things to come.

On the 7th tee, I use the big oak tree on the left of the fairway as my target line and proceed to hit it twice in succession. I do at least manage to miss the 180-foot-long bunker on the left of the 9th fairway, which is the obvious bail-out with a lake on the opposite side.

The difficulty ramps up on the Standing Stone, the hardest of the three loops, where you cross the River Pont five times and play around the boundary’s edge. On the par-5 4th, there is out-of-bounds on the right and another ha-ha wall which stops people like me from getting greedy with the lay-up.

Lesson learned: two intimidating approach shots over water follow on holes 5 and 6, before I begin the steep climb to the 7th green, with eight bunkers scattered below.

The signature hole – a 179-yard par 3 – comes next and plays to a narrow green set at a 45° angle with the River Pont cutting in front and to the left. The 315-yard finishing hole feels tame by comparison, albeit I still had the pressure of teeing off over water (again!) and putting out in front of the clubhouse and terrace.

I had intended to play the newer, less demanding Dewlaw course the following morning, but a harsh frost meant I had to make do with a round at Royal Troon on Matfen’s Foresight simulator instead. Not that I was complaining.

Food and drink

There are five distinctly different restaurants and bars – all fighting for your attention. We start in 1832, a speakeasy-style bar with oak paneling, jewel-colored armchairs and sofas. Next door, Emerald is very much an occasions restaurant, serving an eight-course tasting menu for meat eaters and vegans alike.

For half the price, you can enjoy three seasonal courses of the same ilk in Cloisters, which sits beneath a stunning glass ceiling with stone archways and a central luminescent bar and mezzanine. We return here for an all-you-can-eat breakfast, served in a cozier side room, before feasting on a magnificent Sunday lunch in the newly opened Keepers lodge.

Facilities and service

We visited in November, when Matfen’s calendar of events included wreath and candle making, as well as wine and champagne tasting in the Cellar, cocktail making in The Vault, and afternoon tea in the Drawing Room.

In better weather, you can try axe throwing and zip-lining at Go Ape Matfen, which is handily located on the grounds of the 300-acre estate. Staff seemingly pop up from nowhere to point you in the right direction and will even arrange a buggy to take you to and from the Golf Academy, so you can warm up on the 10-bay Toptracer driving range or play the nine-hole, par 3 course.

Back at the hotel, you can set up camp in The Retreat Spa, which includes all your usual staples, plus an aromatherapy suite, ice fountain and a glass-roofed pavilion pool. A menu of 39 treatments means you’re spoilt for choice.

Things to see and do

History buffs can find remnants of Hadrian’s Wall within a two-mile walk of the hotel. Chesters Roman Fort – the best-preserved Roman cavalry fort in Britain – is 10 miles west. Keep going and you’ll end up at Kielder Water and Forest Park, which is home to England’s largest forestry and the biggest man-made lake in Northern Europe.

You can then stay for the evening and move on to the Observatory if stargazing is your thing. If not, there’s always Newcastle city center for a night on the ‘Toon’.

Stay and play deal

A one-night B&B stay starts from £267.50 per person and includes 36 holes of golf, spa access, a complimentary buggy for one round, 1st tee gift pack, and 30 minute’s use of the Foresight simulator. The offer is based on twin occupancy in a classic room, subject to availability.

To book, call 01661 886500 or email info@matfenhall.com