The Lodge, Prickwillow

The Lodge is a self-contained house on a working farm at Prickwillow, a few miles outside Ely, reached down a quiet track that runs alongside the river. It is one of the more thoroughly dog-ready places in the Fens: bowls and blankets are provided as standard, there is open farmland to run in, and the riverside footpath starts at the door.

The hosts are the reason most people come back. They live next door, leave a fridge stocked with eggs, milk, butter, bread and jam for arrival, sell fresh eggs from the farm, and have helped guests out of practical scrapes on the property. Dogs get the same treatment, and owners consistently describe arriving and being made to feel the dog was expected rather than merely permitted. Horses can be brought as well, which tells you something about how the place is run.

The house itself is clean, comfortable and properly equipped, with a real kitchen rather than a token one, an excellent shower, and an information folder covering the farm and what to do nearby. The location works well for Ely, Mildenhall and Lakenheath, and the surrounding fen is flat, quiet and almost entirely free of traffic, which suits older dogs and dogs that need space more than they need scenery.

Two caveats. There are house rules for dogs and they are not decorative: pets are asked to stay off the beds and off the furniture. That is worth knowing in advance if your dog normally has sofa privileges. Related to that, cleanliness has occasionally slipped, with guests finding dog hair left on the sofa from an earlier stay and marks on bedding, which is exactly the failure you would expect when the rule is not universally observed. The hosts have been receptive when it was raised, but it is worth a look round on arrival.

Best suited to dog owners who want river and farmland walking straight from the door and a genuinely welcoming host, and whose dogs are content to sleep on their own bed rather than the sofa. It earns a 4.7/5 paw rating.