Derbyshire's hot tub cottages for dog owners are mostly working houses in working villages, chosen for the valley they sit in rather than for any sense of seclusion. Half of the twelve below are strung along a short reach of the Derwent between Matlock and Crich: a big house on the hill at Starkholmes, two cottages in the mill village of Cromford and three more on the ridge at Crich. Two stand in Bakewell itself, one is at Tideswell, one at Alsop-en-le-Dale in the White Peak, one on a farm at Cutthorpe, and one at Longnor, which is just over the county line in Staffordshire.
What they share matters more to a dog than the tub does. Each was drawn from the Wildpack stays directory and clears the same three tests: the listing describes the garden as enclosed, it states how many dogs may come, and it confirms a hot tub on site. Seven of the twelve stop at two dogs. Three take three, Fair View House takes four and Arkwrights Manor five, so anyone travelling with a pack has a short list before reading a word further. Ten of the twelve also have a wood burner or open fire indoors, which is the other half of a Derbyshire weekend once the light goes.
Riber House, Starkholmes
Riber House is the one to book when the party is large and the priority is a view. It sleeps fourteen in seven bedrooms on the hillside at Starkholmes, looking down over Matlock, with five bathrooms, a four poster, and a bedroom and bathroom on the ground floor. The hot tub is on the patio and faces the valley, and the garden around the whole house is enclosed, which at this scale is harder to find than the tub.
The limit is arithmetic. Fourteen guests share an allowance of two dogs, so a group of friends who each own one will have to decide who leaves theirs at home. What the house gives back is walking from the door: the High Tor circular from Matlock Bath starts 0.6 miles away, taking in the limestone cliff above the river, and the listing puts a pub less than a mile off. Indoors there are games and an open fire for the evenings.
- Sleeps: 14 across 7 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 2
- Hot tub: Yes, on the patio facing Matlock
- Enclosed garden: Yes, lawn and patio all round the house
- Nearest walk: Matlock Bath and High Tor Circular, 0.6 miles
- Best for: A big family gathering with two dogs between them
The Cottage, Longnor
The first thing to say about The Cottage is that Longnor is in Staffordshire, not Derbyshire, though it sits on a ridge above the upper Dove with the same limestone and gritstone country on both sides of the boundary. It sleeps six in three bedrooms, one a four poster and the other two able to make up as kings, with two en suite shower rooms and a further bathroom downstairs. Behind the house the lawn is enclosed, and on it are seats, a fire pit and the tub, facing back across the village roofs to the hills.
Guests need to bring their own towels for the tub, which the owners state plainly, and two dogs is the ceiling. The strongest reason to stay is the landscape two miles north, where Chrome Hill and Parkhouse Hill stand up out of the pasture as fossil reef knolls. The Parkhouse Hill and Chrome Hill from Earl Sterndale route starts 2.4 miles away and follows the spine of the larger hill.
- Sleeps: 6 across 3 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 2
- Hot tub: Yes, on the lawn; bring your own towels
- Enclosed garden: Yes, lawned, with a fire pit
- Nearest walk: Parkhouse Hill and Chrome Hill from Earl Sterndale, 2.4 miles
- Best for: Three couples who want reef knolls rather than a town on the doorstep
Woodland Cottage, Bakewell
Woodland Cottage solves a problem most Peak District stays leave open: where to eat with a dog in the evening without anyone driving. It is in Bakewell, sleeps four in two bedrooms with two bathrooms, and carries five stars. The garden at the back is enclosed, with seating, a barbecue and a hot tub on newly laid decking, and a pub is under a mile away.
It is one of a small group of properties on the same site, so the setting is shared even if the garden is not, and anybody expecting fields on every side should look elsewhere. The trade is worth making for the walking. The Monsal Trail and Ashford in the Water route is 0.2 miles away, on the old railway line that runs level through lit tunnels to Blackwell Mill, which suits a dog that likes distance and an owner who does not like hills.
- Sleeps: 4 across 2 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 2
- Hot tub: Yes, on new decking in the garden
- Enclosed garden: Yes, with seating and a BBQ
- Nearest walk: Monsal Trail and Ashford in the Water, 0.2 miles
- Best for: Two couples who want to walk to dinner and to the trail
Woodland View - Bakewell
Woodland View is Woodland Cottage's larger neighbour, sleeping six in three bedrooms in Bakewell with the same five star grading. The layout is unusual. A raised seating area at the front is enclosed, and the rear garden, which holds a six person hot tub under a gazebo, is also enclosed but sits across the driveway and through a gate, so the two spaces do not connect.
That split works well once everybody knows about it, since one enclosure can hold the dogs while the other is in use, but it does mean crossing a drive with them, and the gate only helps if people shut it. The other constraint is plumbing: six guests share a single bathroom. The Monsal Trail is 0.2 miles away here too, and Haddon Hall, a fortified manor house kept almost unaltered, lies two miles south.
- Sleeps: 6 across 3 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 2
- Hot tub: Yes, six person, in a gazebo in the rear garden
- Enclosed garden: Yes, two separate spaces either side of the drive
- Nearest walk: Monsal Trail and Ashford in the Water, 0.2 miles
- Best for: A family of six happy to queue for the bathroom in exchange for a town centre base
Fair View House, Tideswell
Fair View House takes four dogs, twice the allowance at Riber House, the other fourteen sleeper in this guide. It sleeps fourteen across seven bedrooms at Tideswell, carries five stars, and has an enclosed garden that goes the whole way round the building, with bench seating and a hot tub. A utility room just inside the front door catches coats, boots and wet dogs before they reach the rest of the house, and the kitchen is built round an AGA.
Four dogs among fourteen people is still a cap, so a group where every household brings its own should count carefully. The closest walk we list, Chee Dale Stepping Stones from Miller's Dale, is two miles off rather than at the door, and the moor between Tideswell and Eyam is sheep country, so leads stay on there. In the village itself the church is big enough that locals call it the cathedral of the Peak.
- Sleeps: 14 across 7 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 4
- Hot tub: Yes, in the garden beside the bench seating
- Enclosed garden: Yes, surrounding the property on every side
- Nearest walk: Chee Dale Stepping Stones from Miller's Dale, 2.0 miles
- Best for: A large gathering that arrives with three or four dogs
Dawn's House, Cromford
Dawn's House is in Cromford, the mill village in the Derwent valley where Richard Arkwright built the first water powered cotton mill in 1771, and it sleeps six across three bedrooms with a five star grading. The enclosed garden drops down the slope in three terraces, with the hot tub looking out over the village and water in the view. Indoors there are games for wet afternoons.
The terraces are the caveat. Steps connect each level, which a young dog will love and an old or short legged one may find hard work several times a day. Six guests also share one bathroom. On the other hand this is one of the few houses here that takes three dogs, and the Cromford Canal Towpath Walk (Cromford Wharf) is 0.4 miles away, flat and easy for an evening stroll.
- Sleeps: 6 across 3 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 3
- Hot tub: Yes, at the top of the garden
- Enclosed garden: Yes, over three levels linked by steps
- Nearest walk: Cromford Canal Towpath Walk (Cromford Wharf), 0.4 miles
- Best for: A family with three agile dogs and an interest in industrial history
Valley View - Peak District, Alsop-en-le-Dale
Every one of the four bedrooms at Valley View is zip and link, so the house can be set up as doubles or singles for eight when the booking is made. That flexibility helps when two families sleep differently. There are three bathrooms, one downstairs next to a ground floor bedroom, a log burner in the lounge and a games room. The garden is enclosed with lawn, patio, seating, a barbecue and a fire pit, with the hot tub outside as well.
Alsop-en-le-Dale is a handful of buildings and a Norman church in the White Peak, and the listing puts the nearest pub and shop within two miles. The dog allowance is only two for eight guests, though, and electric vehicle charging costs extra. For walking, the Dovedale Stepping Stones and Thorpe Cloud route is 2.8 miles away, and Hartington with the quieter Beresford and Wolfscote Dales lies five miles north.
- Sleeps: 8 across 4 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 2
- Hot tub: Yes
- Enclosed garden: Yes, lawn, patio and fire pit
- Nearest walk: Dovedale Stepping Stones and Thorpe Cloud, 2.8 miles
- Best for: Two families who want to walk the Dove dales and sort the beds out their own way
Arkwrights Manor, Cromford
Five dogs are allowed at Arkwrights Manor, more than anywhere else in this guide, and the large flat lawn behind the house is enclosed to go with that allowance. It sleeps eight at Cromford in four bedrooms, one of which is a converted outbuilding in the garden rather than in the main house. There are two wood burners, a ground floor bedroom and bathroom, parking for six cars, and a patio with seating, a barbecue and the hot tub.
Three steps lead up from the parking to the front door, a small but real obstacle for an elderly dog. The garden bedroom also means somebody crossing the lawn at bedtime, pleasant in August and less so in a January downpour. The Cromford Canal Towpath Walk (Cromford Wharf) is 0.2 miles away, and a pub and shop are within 500 metres.
- Sleeps: 8 across 4 bedrooms, one in the garden
- Dogs welcome: 5
- Hot tub: Yes, on the patio
- Enclosed garden: Yes, a large lawn
- Nearest walk: Cromford Canal Towpath Walk (Cromford Wharf), 0.2 miles
- Best for: A multi dog household or a group bringing a whole pack
Green Farm Holiday Cottages - The Pig Sty, Cutthorpe
The Pig Sty is a stone barn conversion for four at Green Farm, down a private lane at Cutthorpe, a village on the Peak District's eastern fringe. It is the one house here with a dedicated dog walking field on the farm, shared with the other two cottages, alongside a private enclosed garden set out with a patio, table, chairs and a barbecue. Inside, underfloor heating runs through the ground floor and a wood burner warms the open plan living space.
The important caveat is that the covered hot tub is not automatically included: it has to be added to the booking, so check it is on your confirmation. Two dogs are allowed. Footpaths from the farm lead through woodland to the Linacre Reservoirs Loop, 0.6 miles away, and Cutthorpe has two pubs that take dogs. Chatsworth's park is about ten minutes' drive, though deer and sheep graze there, so dogs stay on leads.
- Sleeps: 4 across 2 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 2
- Hot tub: Yes, covered, added to the booking on request
- Enclosed garden: Yes, private, plus a shared dog walking field
- Nearest walk: Linacre Reservoirs Loop, 0.6 miles
- Best for: A couple or small family who want a secure field for off lead runs
Lane End - Crich
Lane End has five bedrooms for eight people, and two of those are singles, so an odd numbered group does not leave anyone on a sofa. There are two doubles and a twin as well, two bathrooms plus a separate WC, a utility room with washer and dryer, and parking for four cars. The garden is enclosed on all sides, with patio, lawn and seating, and a hot tub stands outside. Three dogs are welcome.
Two limits stand out. The walking is not on the doorstep: the nearest route we list, the Cromford Canal towpath, is 3.5 miles away, though the steep Derwent woods at Whatstandwell are two miles down the hill. There is also CCTV in operation at the front of the property, which the owners disclose and some guests prefer to know about in advance. Pubs and a shop are within a mile.
- Sleeps: 8 across 5 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 3
- Hot tub: Yes
- Enclosed garden: Yes, patio, lawn and seating
- Nearest walk: Cromford Canal Towpath Walk (Cromford Wharf), 3.5 miles
- Best for: An odd numbered group with three dogs who need separate rooms
Bilberry Cottage - Crich
Bilberry Cottage is on a working farm at Crich and sleeps eight across four bedrooms: two kings, a twin and a bunk room, which makes it a natural choice for families with children. One bedroom and a bathroom are on the ground floor, a log burner heats the lounge, and the enclosed garden holds the hot tub and a barbecue. Three dogs are allowed, and there is private parking for three cars.
Being on a working farm means livestock in the surrounding fields, so dogs need leads beyond the garden gate. The Cromford Canal route is 3.2 miles off rather than on foot. If a group is bigger than eight, the owners let the adjoining Bilberry Barn too, taking the combined total to fourteen. Wingfield Manor, a large medieval ruin, stands four miles east, and Shining Cliff Woods run down to the Derwent on the other side.
- Sleeps: 8 across 4 bedrooms, including a bunk room
- Dogs welcome: 3
- Hot tub: Yes
- Enclosed garden: Yes, with a BBQ
- Nearest walk: Cromford Canal Towpath Walk (Cromford Wharf), 3.2 miles
- Best for: A family with young children and three dogs on a farm stay
Bilberry Barn, Crich
Bilberry Barn sits beside Bilberry Cottage on the same working farm at Crich and sleeps six across three bedrooms with two bathrooms. It has two separate enclosed spaces: one garden holds the hot tub, and a further fenced lawn carries children's play equipment and outdoor seating. That division lets the dogs be shut into one area while the other is busy, which is useful with small children around. A travel cot and highchair are available on request.
The allowance here is only two dogs, one fewer than next door, and the farm animals in the fields mean leads for the first part of any walk. Like the cottage, it is about three miles from the canal towpath. Five miles north, the gritstone outcrop above Ashover known as the Fabrick is a short climb with a long view over farmland.
- Sleeps: 6 across 3 bedrooms
- Dogs welcome: 2
- Hot tub: Yes, in its own enclosed garden
- Enclosed garden: Yes, two separate fenced areas
- Nearest walk: Cromford Canal Towpath Walk (Cromford Wharf), 3.0 miles
- Best for: A young family with two dogs who need a play area apart from the tub
Practical Advice for Booking a Derbyshire Hot Tub Cottage with Dogs
The houses have more in common on paper than they do on arrival. Before booking, run through these:
- Count dogs before beds. Riber House and Fair View House both sleep fourteen, but one takes two dogs and the other four. Arkwrights Manor takes five, the most on this list.
- Check the tub is included. At The Pig Sty the hot tub is an optional extra that has to be added. At The Cottage in Longnor you bring your own towels for it.
- Mind the steps. Dawn's House has a garden over three levels and Arkwrights Manor three steps to the door. Riber House, Fair View House, Valley View, Arkwrights Manor and Bilberry Cottage all have a ground floor bedroom.
- Know which garden is which. Woodland View and Bilberry Barn each have two enclosures; at Woodland View the rear one is across the drive.
- Leads on farmland and moor. Bilberry Cottage and Bilberry Barn are on a working farm, Chatsworth's park has deer and sheep, and the moor towards Eyam is grazed.
- Tubs are for people. Treated hot water irritates a dog's skin and eyes, and paws can damage the shell. Let the dogs have the lawn while you soak.
- Use the level routes. The Monsal Trail at Bakewell and the Cromford Canal towpath suit older dogs and wet days better than the edges and dales.
Map of Dog Friendly Hot Tub Cottages in Derbyshire
Seen on a map, the twelve fall into a dense cluster around Matlock, Cromford and Crich, a pair in Bakewell, and scattered outliers at Tideswell, Cutthorpe, Alsop-en-le-Dale and Longnor. Open the Wildpack map to compare drive times from each door to Dovedale, the Monsal Trail and the Derwent valley walks.
11 stays on this pageMap these stays, and thousands more
The Wildpack Map plots every dog friendly walk, beach, stay and attraction we have listed across the UK. Open it to see what else is within reach in Derbyshire, filter by what your dog needs, and get directions to the car park.
What's Nearby?
Guides that fit around a stay in one of these cottages:
- Dog friendly walks in Derbyshire: Reservoirs, dales and edges across the county, for the days between soaks.
- Dog friendly walks in the Peak District: Longer hikes for anyone staying at Tideswell, Longnor or Alsop-en-le-Dale.
- Dog friendly cottages with hot tubs across the UK: The national list, which includes two of the houses above.
- Dog friendly walks in Staffordshire: Useful from Longnor, which sits on the Staffordshire side of the line.
- Reservoir dog walks in the UK: Water to walk beside, a good match for the Linacre routes near Cutthorpe.
For every Derbyshire stay, with or without a tub, see all dog friendly stays in Derbyshire.
Final Thoughts
Derbyshire works best for dog owners who want a town or village within walking distance as much as they want the hills. Most of these houses are in or on the edge of somewhere lived in, whether Bakewell, Cromford or Crich, and several have a pub within a mile. The heaviest concentration is in the lower Derwent valley, which means canal towpaths and wooded slopes more than open moor.
For couples and small families, Woodland Cottage in Bakewell and The Pig Sty at Cutthorpe are the obvious starting points, the second especially if a secure field matters. Families with children should look at Bilberry Cottage and Bilberry Barn, which can be booked together. Large groups have Riber House for the view and Fair View House for the higher dog allowance, and anyone travelling with a proper pack is really choosing Arkwrights Manor, where five dogs share a big fenced lawn.
Some links in this guide are affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you book through them, at no extra cost to you. It never affects which places we list or what we say about them.