Chester-le-Street is a pretty modern market town just south of Newcastle, north of Durham, and inland from Sunderland, with markets on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Many visitors are drawn here for historic Chester-le-Street, for this was once the home of the Bishop of Lindisfarne, and the centre of Christian Britain, but it has also got a famous test cricket ground, and is surrounded by some beautiful scenery, edging up to the Pennines. We don’t have a lot of recommendations for the best places to stay in Chester-le-Street, but our castle conversion will not disappoint!

In addition to the picturesque location, and historic architecture, Chester-le-Street has an excellent museum — the Beamish Museum — which is designed to be a “living museum of the north”. It’s an open air museum which has collections from northern life in the 1820s, 1900s, 1940s, and 1950s.

The best places to stay in Chester-Le-Street also provide a great base for exploring County Durham and the North East corner of England.

The Best Places to Stay in Chester-le-Street

For a Special Occasion

• Lumley Castle has the kind of towers, battlements, and crenelations loved by those who illustrate books about King Arthur. And it has interiors to match: think grand, vaulted banqueting halls, flagstone floors, lavish drapes, spiral staircases, thick walls, four-poster beds, and staff in medieval dress. There are 73 rooms and suites, food is traditional English and the dining-room is all you’d want from a castle: stone pillars, vaulted ceiling and soft candles. Don’t miss the proper afternoon teas served in the library. And if your stay coincides with an Elizabethan banquet or murder mystery dinner, well, who knows what might happen...

Prefer a Private Apartment or Cottage?

• If you'd prefer the privacy of a self-catering option then browse through the wide variety available online with our partner, Booking.com.

Travel Information

• Chester-le-Street’s closest airport is Newcastle International Airport. It’s about an hour and a half away via train through Newcastle, or 20 minutes by car or taxi. If you’re travelling via London, the quickest route is probably by train out of Kings Cross, which can take as little as three and a half hours.
• If you want to hire a car we recommend you visit our online partner, Rentalcars.
• County Durham isn’t known for extreme temperatures, it’s warm, rather than hot in the summer, and cold rather than freezing during the winter, and there’s a smattering of rain all year round. Chester-le-Street has plenty of indoor attractions, as well as outdoor ones, so it’s very much a year round destination. Summer is the most popular time to visit. If you plan to do a lot of walking, or outdoor exploring, then late spring through mid autumn are probably the best times to visit, because the days have extra sunshine hours.

Still not sure where to stay?

• Expand your search to include all the best places to stay in County Durham
• Consider nearby Durham?
• Refine your search by the kind of holiday you’re planning and consider our Gurus’ recommendations for the best pubs-with-rooms in Northumberland or the best pubs-with-rooms in Country Durham
• Or you could contact one of our friendly Gurus for personalised advice.