Notes from the host
The Old Chequers On a river
The Old Chequers is a spacious six-bedroom house with a charming kitchen, luxurious master bedroom, and luxury amenities. The hot tub, large garden, and recently added games room provide plenty of entertainment and relaxation options. Our home has a sunroom conservatory that gives access out to the incredibly private south-west facing, flint stone walled garden and to the River Burn, which runs through it. Having had a full renovation, the property has all the modern conveniences while keeping its old-world charm. It is a wonderful property and is the perfect base for large groups of friends or families looking for a peaceful, relaxing retreat in a great location.
All bedrooms have their own en suite bathroom, Bluetooth speaker, wardrobes and exceptional quality mattresses. The pillows and duvets are top quality imported down and feather to ensure they are temperature regulating for the different seasons and the bed coverings are all high thread count cotton to ensure the best night’s sleep whilst staying at The Old Chequers.
Entrance
Stepping through the blue front door, you are welcomed into a large entrance hall with a chequered tiled floor. There is a circular dining table where you can enjoy lunch or play board games. The entrance hall provides the central access point to the TV room, lounge, dining room, kitchen, courtyard and the main staircase.
Kitchen and Dining
As you head through the house, you walk into a large open-plan modern kitchen and dining area. The classic kitchen has solid wood worktops and is well equipped with a large freestanding oven and separate grill, hob, dishwasher, microwave, fridge, coffee machine, milk frother, kettle and toaster. The kitchen has been thoughtfully equipped to a very high standard for large groups who want to self-cater and enjoy meals together.
The dining area is beautifully furnished with a solid wood table as the centrepiece of the room. We have always felt that it is important to have a grand dining table to enjoy long and relaxed meals with your friends and family. The dining table seats twelve, and you can squeeze a few highchairs around it if you need to. The dining room is also equipped with a wine and drinks fridge and drinks serving area so as not to disrupt the chefs as they work in the main kitchen area.
From the dining room, you can use the arched window to pass food and drinks through to the Courtyard and Firepit area, where you can enjoy alfresco dining and relax under the fairy-lit sky above you.
Utility Room
The utility room holds the washing machine, tumble dryer, an additional dishwasher, sink and two fridge freezers. We felt it was important to be able to do a big shop in Wells or Fakenham and have enough space to keep it all fresh for your time at The Old Chequers. There is also a larger unit for all the overflow food and a cleaning cupboard. This is a great space that keeps the entertaining area fuss-free and organised.
Living Areas
The main living areas has been cleverly divided up to cater for all staying in the house. You could either sit next to the cosy log burner in the "library" or enjoy a movie in the TV room, which has a large corner sofa and surround sound system. The playroom has a few toys and board games to keep the children occupied. In a separate room, is a dedicated workspace with a mounted screen and high-speed internet. Finally, guests can relax in the conservatory and hopefully be lucky enough to meet our feathered friends on the river with their ducklings. The living areas really do provide a space for all to enjoy and make our home perfect for families with children or friends on a relaxing retreat.
The new games room is an additional entertainment space, featuring a pool table, darts, and arcade games. Guests can enjoy a game of pool while watching sports, or relax on the couch with some music.
The house is a tranquil and relaxing spot where you can disconnect from the world if you please. We are connected to high speed fibre internet and the smart TV has Netflix, Amazon video, etc. at the click of a button. Networked speakers throughout the house allows music to be played simultaneously or separately in each room.
Walled Garden
The quintessentially British, mature, flint stone walled garden has been planted with a variety of plants, shrubs and bushes. There is a large lawn to enjoy a run-around with the children, play a few lawn games or just watch the river flow by. The garden has a Webber BBQ to flip a few burgers and sear a nice steak or some fist-sized scallops if you are lucky enough to pick some up from the local fishmongers at Burnham Market.
There is a decked area in the garden which adds a whole new social space in the private garden next to the river. The wood-fired hot tub is filled with fresh water for each use and fits up to 8 people at a time.
Courtyard
The pebbled courtyard on the north side of the house has been thoughtfully furnished to add additional social space. It is a cosy corner to tuck away into at night time with the fairy lit skyline, dining table to enjoy alfresco dining and a seated fire pit area to keep warm on the chillier evenings.
Master Bedroom with dressing room and ante room
The Master Bedroom is positioned above the lounge, which is slightly separate from all the other rooms. To access the master you first walk through a large dressing room and then enter the beautiful and tranquil bedroom that looks over the walled garden and stream. There is a sumptuous superking bed, armchair and vanity. The underfloor heated en suite has a large, freestanding bath, a walk-in shower and a double basin.
We’ve recently added a bunk bed to this room, so there’s more sleeping options for kids. This room also has an extra room, which is referred to as the Ante Room, furnished with a sofa bed and TV. We use it as a bedroom for our younger children when we visit.
You can also access this side of the house through its own separate entrance from the pebbled driveway. The separate entrance, which is also the side access to the garden, is the preferred area to leave your dogs if they are being left at the house on their own.
The Blue Room
The blue room, also thought of as the second master bedroom, enjoys a superking bed which can be split into twin beds. This bedroom has a little more space than the rest of the bedrooms so ideal for a travel cot or blow up mattress for younger children. This room also has a bath and shower in the en suite which is ideal for those with young children.
The Taupe Room
At the far end of the house upstairs is the taupe bedroom which has a solid wood kingsize bed, bedside tables and matching wardrobe. This bedroom has an en suite with a shower.
The Yellow Room
The yellow room has a kingsize bed with a wardrobe and an armchair. This bedroom enjoys the wonderful afternoon sun and looks out onto the pebbled driveway. The en suite to this bedroom has a bath/shower.
The Green Room
The green room is the third kingsized bedroom and has been furnished with solid mango wood pieces. This room is next door to the yellow room which also sees the afternoon sun. This en suite has a shower.
The Grey Room (wheelchair friendly)
This room was the original entrance to the pub where the bay window now sits. It’s the only bedroom on the ground floor and has been designed to be wheelchair friendly. The bedroom has a superking bed which can be made into twin beds and an en suite wet room shower. The bedroom has been tasteful decorated with a solid wood wardrobe, bedside tables and two comfortable armchairs.
Location
The Old Chequers is nestled in the quiet village of South Creake on the North Norfolk Coast. You are conveniently located within a 8-minute drive to both Burnham Market and Wells-next-to-the-sea and a 10-minute drive to the famous Holkham Estate and Holkham Beach. There are a few small wayside stalls that stock locally grown vegetables and fruits, cakes, eggs and the summer delicacy, samphire. The village includes plant centres, a fishing lake and other attractions, which vary year from year. There is a large playing field, which has a children’s play area, bowling green, two grass tennis courts and football pitches for the village team and juniors. Our "what3words" location is "owned.scarves.healthier".
Our History
Previously called the Chequers Inn, this property was the centre point of South Creake village for over 300 years as the local pub to the neighbouring brewery, which is no longer in operation. This historic pub building has recently been beautifully renovated and furnished to a very high standard.
Parking
The driveway holds 2 cars, but you may be able to squeeze in up to 4. You can also park on Front Street, right next to the house, along the bollards (the same as all the other cars in the street). The driveway is enclosed by a manual gate so you haven’t got to worry about a child or dog running out.
Other Information
You'll have the whole house to yourselves. Logs and all things fire can be found at the local nursery or at the petrol station in Burnham Market. The log burner has a fireguard to keep little fingers at bay. The hot tub lid can be closed to prevent accidents. Please let us know in advance if you will need a travel cot, so we can ensure this is set up for your stay.
Please be mindful of the open river if you are bringing children. We feel very comfortable with our children playing outside in the shallow water, albeit we do make sure they are supervised. Dogs can also enjoy paddling in the shallow river that runs through the garden, but please be mindful of the small tunnels at either end of the stream that is not fenced off.
Dogs are not allowed upstairs or in the ground floor bedroom. We ask our guests to refrain from letting animals onto the furniture and rather bring their own dog baskets along, as we have a few allergies in the family.