Macdonald Linden Hall Golf & Country Club

In desperate need of an upgrade, all facilities were tired, dirty and many things were broken (lift, shoe cleaner at golf course, water machine in spa) Bathroom in my room was filthy, see photo below. Possibly the worst hotel I've stayed in for awhile.

Stay was comfortable and relaxing. TV did not work, no signal, but everything else great

Enjoyed food in the onsite pub

Hotel and rooms desperately need upgrading walls marked every where. Bath panel peeling mirror rotting furniture fading. Staff were amazing in every area of the hotel spa and pub. The reception area isn’t welcoming and needs upgrading again the friendly staff made this welcoming but they need their surroundings improved. Breakfast excellent food in the pub good too. Beds are comfortable so this is the only positive about the rooms. Lovely wooded walk and views of the well maintained garden view from the restaurant.

The property looks amazing from outside in the beautiful grounds and with a golf course and a pub … however, the inside needs a little TLC … our room had a shower head above the bath both of which need upgrading, the room was spacious but a little cluttered with too many chairs …

Awful Breakfast experience

Lovely pet friendly hotel, service very good, slightly dated

Great hotel

Some of the decor is becoming worn. Needs a refurb as location, building etc are superb.

Just as beautiful as we remembered 25 years ago, when we got married here. Staff were lovely, made you feel welcome and special. Service was great and the food amazing. The guy at the Linden Tree pub was so helpful with my wife's difficult dietary needs and went out of the way to make sure she had a wonderful meal. Thank you for making our special day, amazing.

Hotel location and the room itself was lovely

A comfortable bed and good shower and bathroom We stayed one night as meeting friends

Food in the pub restaurant was good but not excellent and pricey. Breakfast in hotel was average with limited continental options ( no cheese,vham, pancakes for example) . Cooked breakfast cooked to order but sausages pretty average ( was hoping for Northumberland tasty ones!) . Regarding the bed the linen was high quality and clean but mattress over soft for us. Don't book room 224 at end of top floor in the summer as it has a double aspect ( nice) and wasps enjoyed the room as much as we did. The TV is old and low quality in the standard room. Staff are lovely and keen to help .

Beautiful country hotel lovley grounds friendly staff,

Extremely poor value for money. Old and dated, unclean and poorly decorated

Swimming pool was lovely, bed was very comfortable but the room was a little tired with frayed curtains, would be nice to have some seating on the grass areas around the hotel. Although staff were helpful when asked there was a general lack of enthusiasm and service was slow (30 mins for a glass of wine). They were all nice people who no doubt work very hard but could perhaps just be encouraged to say hello, smile, chat a bit actually acknowledge that a guest is walking by etc

Lovely hotel. Staff were amazing and so kind with our toddler. Even gave her a sticker book at reception! Bed was incredibly comfortable and the room was really spacious.

Overall hotel requires a major refurbishment. Fantastic old building but very very worn and dated inside. Well over priced at £171 per night standard double with breakfast. Also played 9 holes after work (free as the clubhouse was closed at 6pm), nice course - but every tee box was bear with grass, fare ways

Been multiple times now always excellent we will return

Obvious smell of damp in bedroom. Room in general very dated and bathroom super tired. Staff helpful especially in attached pub.

Great relaxing stay, lovely setting and goid service.

Room was clean albeit a little tired We booked for a nights stay for our anniversary. I am vegan and was extremely disappointed with the options available for an evening meal. A Lack of consideration for dietary requirements- A vegan burger is hardly a meal fir a 48th wedding anniversary- I was so upset

The room, staff and breakfast were excellent. However we chose this for its spa facilities. Unfortunately the steam room was out of service, and it only left a hot tub, small sauna and small pool which were busy due to selling of “spa days”.

The room you would class as compact. The shower area was in need of some basic maintenance ie mouldy grouting needed freshening up. The doors leading to the named rooms were also in need of some freshening up ie revarnish etc. Overall we both thought that the place was very tired and needed freshening up. Thanks

Lovely hotel, very relaxing and private. Quiet with bar next door to it that serves beautiful food

Unfortunately ,as seems to be the way now, the hotel has gone cashless! The bar in the hotel was not open ,and the drinks in the "pub" extortionate. Staff pleasant .the room o.k. if a little dark .Fan in bath room inoperable.

Staff in hotel on evening were obnoxious you were made to feel unwelcome. Belly pork was under cooked. outside setting was broken and dirty. Room in need of up dating paint peeling in bathroom. Breakfast staff were in a hurry for you to order . Breakfast was nicely presented and tasty .

Lovely stay, comfy bed, dinner at onsite pub was delicious. Extensive, well maintained grounds to walk around. Loved the small things like the notice in our room offering fresh milk and ice if you called reception and the filtered water dispenser in the area outside our room

The hotel out front is very nice, but the rooms are very outdated, carpets very dirty, awful smell in our bathroom on our first night. Shower gels were not refilled (with just a tiny bit in the bottle), we left our towels on the floor in order for the cleaners to change them. She put them back on the rack with clear sign of dirt on it. WiFi not working. Overall experience is just bad… very different from other Macdonald spa hotels we’ve stayed at. Not relaxing at all once we got back to the room.

Enjoyed our stay here, but the annex area seemed a bit dated and could use some sprucing up. The main house area was beautiful though. Would come back, but I'd want to stay in the main building and not the annex next time

Service & food at dinner in Linden Inn was to a high standard Breakfast buffet was sparse. Breakfast cooked to order was well presented but lukewarm. Tea & toast ordered went to another table who had only sat down Very squeaky floors in bedroom and decor needs updating. Long driveway to hotel needs attention

Sadly needs a huge update looking very tired and breakfast was cheap quality compared to our other visits here

Great night in the hotel spa

We booked a superior room but it was very tired and in need of redecoration also had to change rooms to get a late checkout. We were told at reception that our room was one of their most popular but the door outside the room was continually banging through out the night. I would advise anyone staying not to take room 9 or 10.

The hotel seems a little underfunded. All of the staff are both helpful and pleasant. However, the bar was never open during our stay and reception was not always manned. Yes, tea and coffee in the room, standard teabags and Nescafe sachets, perhaps a little biscuit or real milk would have been more pleasant. Or perhaps not screwing the soap to the wall like a Travelodge would have given a better impression. Breakfast was very pleasant but don't be looking for hygiene as there were no tongs for pastries and the yoghurt and fruit was open to, well, anything :-(

Made the mistake of booking the most basic room. Take my advice and upgrade. We stayed here previously and had a fantastic room but this one was tiny, the bed was too small for us and the duvet was so thin we were cold overnight. Breakfast was great and dinner nice too We will return but I will pay for a better room next time

Stayed for a large family birthday celebration. Allocated private room for the event. Staff very friendly, country side location with large grounds. Overall food was very good (evening meal and breakfast) A great time was had by all.

Bedroom and main areas of the hotel were a little tired, though the spa/swimming pool area was very good - very clean and nicely lit. The Linden Tree pub/dining area was nice enough. The food was delicious, though some parts of the mains were a little cold, which was disappointing. Breakfast was a 3/5 - the tea was flavourless and buffet options were a little limited. The poached eggs were very well done, though.

Will stay again

Excellent Stay nice Spa and Room

Lovely, hotel i paid to upgrade the room to a king size bed. The staff were friendly and the breakfast was great. Only niggle is the bathroom, there was a crack in the sink and the bath had a lot of mildew on the silicon. The pool is quite small but very clean. I would stay there again.

All the staff were lovely and helpful so friendly and helped make our stay better. We got breakfast in with the price and spa facilities were in with the price too which were all great and fully working

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at this magnificent property! Sitting at breakfast with views of the gardens was a dream! The food was amazing- the staff were friendly and the property was stunning! We enjoyed walking the grounds and soaking up the beauty and privacy of this amazing place. We literally cannot wait to return to Linden Hall on our next trip to Northumberland!

Lovely grounds and setting. Used to be a high class hotel but things have gone down hill. Food was good but all staff miserable. We stayed last year and they still havent sorted the towel supply out for the pool- bring your own if you want one.

We stayed for 3 nights as a family of 6 adults and 2 teens. Had a great time, staff were excellent especially Sharron on reception and a lady on breakfasts. Did not get her name. Nothing was too much for the staff. We had a puppy with us, so every morning they laid a table for us in the lounge So Winnie could sit with us. The rooms are spacious and clean and beds best I’ve stayed in. Lots of areas to sit with fires burning to be comfortable and warm. Pool area was nice and times for children were good. Gentleman who worked on the cocktail was very friendly and always said when he was moving over to the pub to see if we wanted a drink before he left. We throughly enjoyed our stay and will definitely be back when visiting family again. Thanks to all staff

Lovely location. Staff very friendly.

Fantastic venue, staff very helpful. The food in the attached pub was exceptional quality and quantity at a decent price. The use of the spa facilities was an added bonus.

Last stayed nearly 33yrs ago on our wedding night Bizarrely stayed in same room! Places a little tired but froendly helpful staff Meal in the linden tree was super quick and tasty

Don't stay here! We foolishly booked in to this "hotel" for 3 nights at he end of October 24. The building,grounds and claimed facilities appeared to warrant its 4 star classification.Big mistake....learn from our error The building is beyond tired,its exhausted. Scruffy,dirty and uncared for is being polite. Our room on arrival was unheated and squalid. It was positioned close to the banqueting hall and next to the "dogroom" The music stopped after midnight but the barking of abandoned dogs lasted much longer. The night porter was inept and powerless. Breakfast was appalling. Tossed out with rudeness and disinterest by untrained personnel. The sausages and bacon were raw and the single slice of toast per guest measly. A request for another tea was declined. The final straw came when the shower spontaneously, and without warning, changed from tepid to scalding causing significant burns. We left to the luxury of a real 4 star establishment in Newcastle. Subsequently we wrote to the manager. He offered a return stay...ha never again! More importantly he claimed to be surprised by our criticisms. Clearly he has never read previous reviews. (I wish I had) I wrote to the Mac Donalds directors and got no reply. So be warned...save your money book elsewhere.

Lovely location well presented grounds and main house . Friendly staff and great value for money. One of the best hotels I’ve stayed in recently

Lovely secluded hotel, beautiful building in absolutely gorgeous scenery. Food was delicious both in hotel restaurant for breakfast and afternoon tea and also in Linden Tree pub for evening meal. Bedroom was spacious and had all that was needed, comfy bed, good sized bathroom with a decent pressure shower over the bath. The spa was well worth the money too.

It needs a little updating our room was quite tired.

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Not bad but not the standard one would expect for the price and star rating.

we paid for an upgrade which included 2 bottles of water- didnt have slippers didnt have no toiletries in bathroom and 7 dead flies!! we asked for housekeeping to clean the flies up we were given small bottles of toiletries and 2 bottles of water. asked for extra milk! during the evening we killed another 7 flies so asked to be moved which they did allow is to was given the upgrade money back and 10% back as well. i did feel that the staff didn’t believe me that there was no toiletries and also about the flies! also they want an extra £6 for poached eggs and avocado breakfast cost £24 already how can they justify another £6 it wasn't worth £24 the spa was u supervised and changing were untidy and not very clean

Spa staff were lovely and very accommodating. Long waits in the bar restaurant but food was good.

Not entirely sure my wife didnt get bit to death by bed mites, she has bites all over the sides of her face from the pillow, I travel with my own pillow so NO BITES.. my wife unfortunately is coverein bites..

The bathroom had mould in it and we requested a move to another room which took place; the lockers in the gents changing room were dirty and in the ladies changing room there were flies; in the swimming pool the ceiling requires attention and showers next to the steam room the pannelling was curling up and dirty; we reserved a table in the restaurant and later informed that it only served breakfast and had to eat in the pub where the food was average and attention needs to be taken concerning peoples clothing which had food stains on them which is not a good look. The whole property is somewhat tired and requires investment. The staff were pleasant and listened to our request concerning the room.

we arrived last minute and were made very welcome. The staff were very helpful. A good night sleep was had.

Beautiful property in excellent, well maintained grounds. Dining was exceptional and the spa and leisure facilities were perfect.

This should not be advertised as a 4 star hotel. It looks great and the staff are fantastic. The rooms are falling apart and are dirty, needing upgrading. No bar after 7 pm which means a trip to the pub full of football fans if you don’t want to sit in your room. Restaurant is advertised as being upstairs with a view - it was in a conservatory next to the pub. If it is raining you need a coat to get to it. Breakfast was tiny and limited. Restaurant was very limited in choice. This is not worth the money - save yourself the expense and get a premier inn

The property is in need of some basic maintenance and the rooms could do with an upgrade. But the staff were great as was the facilities.

Great property

We wanted to give a balanced view of our stay. The upgrade we requested was not available so we were given an alternative near the spa which was unfortunately noisy due to other guests. Upon request the receptionist was great & sorted us a suite which was quiet. The suite had a bit of a strange layout. It had 2 bathrooms, one with a shower & one with a bath, but the lounge area did not contain a tv. The sofas were a bit dirty so we didnt use it. The showet over the bath would fluctuate in temperature which wasn't good. We didn't use the restaurants for evening meals. We opted for the full english breakfast. The only part which was well cooked was the poached egg, all other items were either under or overcooked. Other guests have mentioned that you only get 1 slice of bacon, 1 sausage, half a tomato etc. It costs £24 per head and it really wasnt great . I was also shocked to see a £6 supplement for eggs benedict & other dishes which you can order in other establishments locally for under £10. The choice of cereals was good but pastries were limited. We looked at the menu for the linden pub & thought it was expensive for pub style food. The public areas are elegant & clean. We walked around the grounds which were lovely. However, the entrance driveways need the potholes repairing. We were saddened to see the state of the conservatory on the back of the property. That could be so lovely if restored. We really felt the hotel needed a bit of tlc.

Very nice old property, well run and friendly .

Nice place moderate respect from staff

The hotel and facilities is old and tired, needing maintenance and renovation. Some parts (bathrooms, corridors and swimming pool/leisure facilities) require paintwork and retiling to bring it up to the usual MacDonald standard. The dining experience sadly was poor. The evening meal in the Linden Tree pub was not of good quality and the children’s menu was more expensive and chargeable per course which differed to the two courses for £7.95 promoted in the hotel website menu. The cooked breakfast was also poor quality and the menu was full of expensive supplement costs.

Great stay apart from the extortionate sum paid for a continental breakfast, £18 per person. Really?? Swimming pool great, room great

Situated in a great location, overall a good stay.

Liked: quiet; clean; nice staff Disliked: limited facilities; chipped washbasin; repeated inconvenience of false fire alarms

Lovely place, spa lovely too. Good golf course

Fabulous place I only stayed here because of a Bruce Springsteen concert in Sunderland so all the Hotels in Newcastle were full. Well worth a visit. Only downside was the size of my fish at dinner. Can only be described as a child’s portion but they brought another half without any complaint.

Really enjoyed our stay here with family. Great hotel, great staff would 100% go Back again.

From a property like this, I expected a much better stay but it wasn't up to the mark. The floor of the room was creaking so bad that we were afraid of walking & disturbing the guests downstairs & the shower was broken, we had to shower getting verrry close to the wall during our stay. for the price we paid here, we have had much better stays and expected this to be a wonderful experience as well but this isn't a property that looks well maintained or even looked after by the owners.

Already shared in the check in and dining review. First time I’ve ever been told that I am 15’ early for my dinner reservation and therefore can’t have a menu. Also the communication between hotel and spa reception is hopeless. Overall we felt like an inconvenience to staff. Hotel facility was very good standard but I won’t stay again.

If the boss of Macdonald from secret millionaire was to visit here I think they would re-deploy the young woman on reception! Three times I conversed with her and each time she was either flustered during checkin (I would guess this is more her doing than workload), curt - when simply asking where the restaurant was for breakfast or unhelpful on checkout when asking for a VAT receipt. She replied can you wait until Christmas for the receipt! When I said I willwait because our company accounts require it, it took her 1 minute only to produce!!! This is the first and last impression you encounter at the hotel. The staff in the on-site pub were great. Maybe put one of these on reception? The present one with dark hair and a face like she's not really cut out for hospotality needs more training in my opinion.

An enjoyable stay at the Hotel, the spa was good except for the showers which required repair of the shower heads. The breakfast was very good. However the dinner was only available in the Linden Tree pub. The menu there was limited and the standard of food was very poor. I would eat elsewhere rather than here.

It was good for the price paid but would not like the service offered at full price.

The hotel is tired and needs some updates. However the positive are the staff, nothing is too much trouble

Kate and Sharon were great.

We had an amazing stay. The staff were fantastic , and the hotel is beautiful, surrounded by stunning grounds. We slept like a log every night , and the bed was so comfortable . Breakfast was amazing too , one of the best hotel breakfasts ive ever had. Unfortunately the corridors and rooms are a bit tired around the edges and needing a little tlc , the carpets are getting a bit threadbare and the corrodors smell a bit stale

Would highly recommend, lovely place will definitely be returning

Stay was amazing. On initial arrival reception was manned by a new member of staff who was very helpful. The older member of staff was very demeening to the new member on over three issues which i thought very unprofessional and impolite.

The leisure facilities are well maintained and work very well. The grounds are also very well maintained and extensive, ideal when your dog loves running. The pub menu is limited in choice (usual burgers and other pub fare that we don’t eat), plus and their food is expensive, hence we went somewhere else. The restaurant food was very good quality and reasonably priced, apart from the cheese platter. There is, however, little choice when it comes to vegetables.

Hotel is very dated and shabby looking, I booked a king size room which was 2 single beds which were pushed together and kept parting in the middle, carpets were stained and worn, i felt the room was overpriced for the standard, there was no bottled water, or mini bar and no mention of any kind of room service. We found kettle which was stored away out of site in tv cabinet on depature so didnt use, you can get water if you are happy to traipse to dispenser which wasnt ideal at 3am if you dont want it warm, as for the spa i wouldnt bother as you will be lucky to find a lounger and its tiny! Food was awful took a fork full of bubble and squeak which took a layer of skin off roof of my mouth no warning from waiter that it was going to be as hot, im just glad it wasnt a child (i eat out regularly and have never been served food that hot!) Especially without warning!! We wont be back !!

Excellent, responsive staff, beautiful location, relaxing ambience, fantastic spa and swimming facilities, great breakfast....not sure what else one can ask. Will certainly be one of my top place to indulge and relax.

Really didn’t enjoy my stay. The room was old and I could hear so much noise all night - I didn’t sleep. Wi-Fi didn’t work and food for room service was extortionate!

The staff were excellent - friendly and endlessly helpful. The spa was well appointed and spotless. However our room was "tired": the bath was chipped and marked in several place, the mirror was chipped around every edge, the paintwork was poor and missing in some places and there were two large damp patches on the bedroom ceiling. We also had a grim meal on the second night in "The Pub" - about which we complained.

I arrived just after 11pm at the front desk which is 24hr manned. I wasn’t seen to till just gone midnight. I had to wait over an hour when I was tired and just wanted to get my head down. In the morning when I complained the receptionist was unapologetic and did not think I was entitled to anything back. It was only when the manager came that I received some compensation and she was a lot more understanding. Nobody wants to wait over an hour to be seen. I was five minutes from having to leave and pay again for somewhere else at midnight

The hotel was used as a venue for a university reunion. Location, comfort and service all very good. Would very happily return

Staying for a work trip in the aera. Lovely old hotel, full of character in a beautiful location. Although the room was clean, the shower head was loose and a bit of a pain. The room was very warm but did have a fan (no air conditioning). Ate in the attached Pub and had an enjoyable meal if a little pricy. Had to skip breakfast as it was £24 and over our budget! All the staff we encountered were extremely helpful and friendly.

The hotel is in a lovely setting. The staff were all great. The biggest let down was the room quality. I booked a super deluxe hoping for a higher end finish, I couldn’t be further from what I was given. The room, particularly the bathroom was extremely tired. It appears no upkeep has been undertaken for a decade or more. I expected much much more for the price of the room. The facilities - spa was very good. Then £24 for breakfast which was passable but the size is laughable. The sausage had been held on heat and was dry. This hotel needs re-evaluation for its star rating. I would say it struggles to get a 3 but no where near a 4.

Lovely spot, really friendly, warm, cosy, excellent brekky, lovely grounds, welcoming, massive rooms!

Beautiful hotel, amazing facilities, lovely bedrooms. Faultless.

Hotel was lovely, very relaxing break. Staff were outstanding nothing was too much trouble, very friendly. We are planning a return.

Breakfast scrambled eggs - not to be missed

Room was very tired, paint flaking off the walls and bathroom although clean had black mould in the grout. Didn’t make it very appealing! Service was very slow. Good at the pub was nice and standard again slow service. Everywhere was cold. Enjoyed the spa facilities but no robes provided (supposed to be in rooms but not in). Lots of potential but missed the mark.

Enjoyed our stay at Linden Hall, staff were great and the food in the Linden Tree pub and in the Dobson restaurant at breakfast was very good The hotel is possibly in need of some TLC but our stay represented good value for money

Rooms looking tired. They really need some tlc. Cocktail bar needs a larger choice of cocktails if its to stay a cocktail bar.