Dog-friendly hotels in Norfolk | pack up your pooch and enjoy a break

Live like royalty with your pooch in this grand country house nestled in eight acres of beautiful grounds, and explore the spacious lawn with ancient trees to a quaint lake with swans and geese. The gardens run around the house and down to the banks of the River Bure where the Norfolk Mead keeps a private boat moored. Hire it for a day of exploring on the winding waterways of the picturesque Norfolk Broads.

Behind the graceful exterior of red bricks and white framed sash windows are contemporary rooms in understated neutral tones with sleek furnishings. Original cast iron fireplaces add a historic touch. Look out for luxurious details in some rooms like four-poster beds, a private balcony and rainfall showers.

When you bring your furry friend, book the split-level Juniper room with its own front door, courtyard and reception. Once settled, spend an afternoon being pampered in the hotel’s spa. Here you can have massages with products made with naturally sourced and botanical essential oils to relax, calm or invigorate your senses or have a soothing facial treatment to revitalise your skin.

Norfolk’s farms and markets provide the produce at the hotel’s restaurant, which boasts two AA rosettes. Sit down at your table by the wide bay window looking out onto the gardens and dine on dishes such as Norfolk quail or roasted hake loin followed by sticky toffee pudding or delicate crème brûlée. Keep the conversation flowing after dinner over a nightcap in the wing-back chairs at the cosy bar.

Briarfields Hotel is a peaceful retreat near the seaside town of Hunstanton, nesting between the wildlife reserve of RSPB Titchwell and the manicured greens of a golf course. Along Norfolk’s northern coastline, you’ll find plenty of walking routes for you and your pooch that will take you across the nearby salt marshes onto wide sandy beaches.

Check into one of the hotel’s homely rooms with subtle beachy details such as nautical stripes and shiplap walls. Bathrooms have plenty of space to relax in, with luxurious rainfall showerheads and deep baths that are ideal for washing away the sand after a day on the coast. Dogs are welcome in several of the hotel’s ground floor rooms: to make sure they feel at home, they’ll be given their own blanket to nestle into.

If you’re looking for refreshment after your journey, indulge in a spot of afternoon tea with home-made cakes and scones on the outdoor wooden terrace with views across to the shoreline. In the evening, dinner is served in the hotel’s elegantly rustic restaurant, where you can sit in intimate leather booths beneath sparkling pendant lights.

The kitchen prepares sophisticated dishes using locally sourced seafood and meat from the town’s butcher. Try dishes such as smoked mackerel rillettes, followed by tenderloin of pork with potato gratin and sautéed cabbage. If you still have room, treat yourself to an indulgent dessert, such as the chocolate marquise with orange sorbet. Walk it off with a quiet evening stroll with your pet.

Experience some of Norfolk’s rich history at the Berney Arms, where you and your pet can stay in a converted stable block or the old blacksmith’s forge. Each room has unique characteristics, with original features such as exposed beams, stone walls or a cast-iron fireplace. Decorated with antique furnishings and classic prints, they also feature up-to-date comforts like minimalist four-poster beds and rainfall showers.

Winner of Best Pub at the Norfolk Food and Drink Awards, the Berney Arms combines the relaxed comfort of a traditional pub with expert cooking and carefully sourced seasonal produce. Order a pint of Adnams ale at the half-timbered bar and take a seat by the brick fireplace. Once you’ve worked up an appetite, choose between familiar pub classics or head to the restaurant for a sophisticated à la carte menu. Start with dishes like pan-seared pigeon breast and follow it up hearty fare such as roast pork belly and mustard mash.

From your base in the village of Barton Bendish, you’re just a 10 minute drive from Oxburgh Hall, a 15th-century moated house containing secrets such as a secret hiding place for persecuted Catholic priests and needlework by the hand of Mary, Queen of Scots herself. Or head for a day out an hour’s drive away at the saltmarshes of The Wash, one of Britain’s wildest spots, where you can see curlew, oystercatcher, knot and dunlin as well as birds of prey like the marsh harrier.

This boutique retreat inside a striking red-brick farmhouse is filled with characterful, colourful rooms. Surround yourself with feature walls and bold prints and refresh yourself after the journey under a lush rainfall shower. Several rooms at Titchwell Manor offer sea views – for a real treat, upgrade to the room with its own hot tub. Or opt for the converted farm outhouses, where rooms have a beachy feel with a pastel palette of marine colours, painted floorboards and rustic wooden bed-frames.

Dog-friendly rooms are on the ground floor around the fragrant herb garden: head through the French doors and you can relax together on your private terrace. Four-legged friends are welcomed with their own blanket and some biscuits. After settling in, take your pet to explore the stunning north Norfolk coast. You’re just five minutes’ drive from Brancaster beach, a glorious stretch of sand that’s dog-friendly and even has its own shipwreck, visible when the tide comes out.

When it comes to dining, you can sit in the striking Eating Rooms, decorated with retro wallpaper and plush chairs in rich colours, or dine in the airy, elegant Conservatory with views out to the walled garden. Both offer a selection of stylish modern European dishes such as lamb three ways with onion and black garlic. In the morning you’ll be treated to a selection of fresh pastries and home-made granola as well as a hot dishes such as locally-smoked kippers or a full English with Dingley Dell sausages.

The Lodge is an ideal blend of old and new. Inside this historic pub, set in the centre of a village that dates back to the Domesday Book, you’ll find cosy brick fireplaces and weathered wooden floors alongside cool contemporary furniture and soothing neutral tones. Walk through the courtyard with its 16th-century well and wrought-iron garden furniture, then head into one of the dog-friendly rooms. There, surrounded by simple, modern décor and prints of local landscapes, sink into a leather armchair or sofa and settle your pet – in one of the superior rooms you might even find a Jacuzzi bathtub or a wood-burning stove.

Start your day with a breakfast menu featuring selections such as freshly made pancakes, grilled kippers from nearby King’s Lynn and a hearty full English. Food is served throughout the day in the bustling bar area (where dogs are welcome) or in the restaurant with its intimate booths and views of the garden. In the evening, try dishes like stone-baked pizza or Norfolk crab linguine with shellfish bisque.

The village of Old Hunstanton has plenty of walking routes for energetic dogs, taking in the coastal paths past sandy beaches and cliffs as well as the rolling hills of the Ringstead Downs nature reserve. Or, take a short drive to some of Norfolk’s most fascinating stately homes, such as the Palladian mansion at Holkham Hall or the Queen’s private residence, Sandringham House, which welcomes visitors.

Residing in a white Georgian manor house, the Congham Hall Hotel & Spa is the ideal place for a blissful rural retreat with your dog. This elegant hotel is surrounded by colourful flower and herb gardens, fruit orchards and 30 acres of parkland, creating a serene environment to lose yourself in.

For the height of tranquillity, wander to the hotel’s magical Secret Garden Spa, where you’ll be pampered with signature treatments made using botanicals from the hotel’s grounds and Elemental Herbology products. Take a dip in the pool with views through the glass walls into the garden or relax in the invigorating heat of the sauna and steam room.

The cosy library with shelves of books, snug armchairs and antique light fittings is the ideal spot for a coffee. For lunch or dinner, head to the refined restaurant with its white tablecloths, garden views and terrace. The commitment to local produce goes as far as harvesting ingredients from the kitchen garden daily: expect dishes such as grilled wood pigeon with mushrooms and pancetta, or haunch of venison with blackcurrant and thyme.

At the end of the day, retire to your plush room, individually decorated in a contemporary country-house style where understated, minimalist furnishings meet delicate floral patterns. Put your feet up in your slippers and robe while you savour a Nespresso coffee and some home-made cookies. The garden rooms are open to dogs, who also get a taste of luxury with their own blanket, bowl and bag of treats.