Days Out NI
Country House Hotel Ardmore, Derry, Co. Londonderry

Beech Hill Country House

A Georgian country house hotel in mature wooded grounds — gardens, ponds and woodland, a restaurant and afternoon tea, and a US Marine wartime story.

5 photos
Hotel & restaurantStay · dine · afternoon tea
Dining & stays varyCheck with the hotel
Derry–LondonderryArdmore · a short drive out
Get directionsOfficial website
An hour–overnightHow long
Grown-up treatBest for
On siteRestaurant
On siteParking
Wartime storyUS Marines

A Georgian country house set in around thirty acres of mature wooded grounds at Ardmore, a short drive out of Derry — with gardens, ponds and woodland, a restaurant and afternoon tea, and a genuine wartime story tied to the US Marines. It's a hotel, so the day out is coming to stay, to dine, or to take afternoon tea.

  • What it is — a cream-fronted Georgian house, said to date from the early 1700s, run as a country house hotel with fine dining, afternoon tea and rooms.
  • Gardens, ponds & woodland — mature grounds with walled gardens, ponds and streams crossed by little bridges, a gatehouse and beech woodland — the kind of setting made for a slow wander before or after a meal.
  • The restaurant & afternoon tea — a fine-dining restaurant looking over the grounds, and a booked afternoon tea served in the house, its conservatory or out in the gardens in summer.
  • A wartime story — US Marines were based here from 1942 to 1944, in huts across the estate while officers stayed in the house. A memorial in the grounds remembers them, and an old "Marines' Tree" still carries carved initials and dates.
  • How to visit — come for lunch or dinner, book afternoon tea, or stay the night; a stroll in the grounds usually goes hand in hand with a meal or an overnight.
  • This is a country house hotel, not a public park. The day out here is staying, dining or taking afternoon tea — there's no general admission ticket.
  • The grounds are best enjoyed as a hotel guest — over a meal, afternoon tea or an overnight. If you'd just like to walk them, check and book ahead with the hotel first.
Plan your visit

Come to stay, to dine, or for afternoon tea

Beech Hill is a hotel, so there's no gate ticket — the day out is a table or a room. You can book lunch or dinner in the restaurant, which looks out over the gardens the kitchen draws much of its produce from; reserve afternoon tea, taken in the house, the conservatory over the grounds, or out in the gardens in summer; or stay the night and make a weekend of it. A wander through the wooded grounds tends to come with the visit. Dining and room prices vary, so check current menus, afternoon-tea times and rates with the hotel before you set off — and book, as afternoon tea and dinner fill up at weekends.

Restaurant & afternoon tea Rooms to stay Wooded grounds & ponds On-site parking
Good to know:

There's no general admission — the grounds are part of the hotel. To walk them, come as a guest for a meal, afternoon tea or a stay, and book ahead. Always confirm current opening, menus and prices directly with the hotel.

Before you set off

What to think about

  • 📞Book firstAfternoon tea, dinner and rooms are best reserved ahead — especially at weekends.
  • 🥾Comfy shoes for the groundsLawns, garden paths, bridges and woodland underfoot — easy going, but not a heels-in-summer stroll after rain.
  • 🧥A coat for the wanderThe gardens and ponds are the loveliest part; dress for a slow outdoor loop between courses.
  • 🎩An appetite for the occasionThis is a treat-yourself day — a birthday lunch, an anniversary night, a proper afternoon tea.
Good to know

Everything before you go

What it is
A Georgian country house hotel in mature wooded grounds at Ardmore, near Derry. The day out is a meal, afternoon tea or an overnight stay — there's no separate admission ticket for the grounds.
Cost
Dining and room rates vary. Afternoon tea, restaurant meals and overnight stays are all priced separately — check current menus and rates directly with the hotel. There's no gate charge to "visit".
Opening
Opening depends on what you're booking — restaurant service, afternoon-tea sittings and hotel reception each have their own hours. Confirm times when you book.
The grounds
Around thirty acres said to include walled gardens, ponds and streams with bridges, a gatehouse and beech woodland. Best enjoyed as a hotel guest, over a meal, afternoon tea or a stay.
Food
A fine-dining restaurant overlooking the gardens, plus afternoon tea served in the house, the conservatory or the gardens in summer. Booking is advised, and essential for afternoon tea.
Staying
It's a hotel with rooms, so an overnight is very much part of the appeal — a base for exploring Derry and the wider north-west.
Wartime heritage
US Marines were based here in the Second World War. A memorial in the grounds remembers them, and the "Marines' Tree" still carries carved initials — ask at the hotel about seeing them.
Parking
On-site parking in the grounds.
Getting there
32 Ardmore Road, Derry BT47 3QP — a short drive out of the city, in wooded countryside at Ardmore.
How long
An hour or two for afternoon tea or a garden wander; a full evening for dinner; longer if you stay overnight.
Questions

Before you go

Can I just turn up and walk the grounds?
It's a country house hotel, not a public park, so there's no general admission. The grounds are best enjoyed as a guest — over a meal, afternoon tea or an overnight. If you'd just like to walk them, check and book ahead with the hotel first.
What's the "day out" here?
Coming to stay, to dine in the restaurant, or to take afternoon tea — with a slow wander through the gardens, ponds and woodland while you're there.
Do they do afternoon tea?
Yes — an afternoon tea served in the house, its conservatory looking over the grounds, or out in the gardens in summer. Booking is essential, and prices and sittings are best confirmed with the hotel.
What's the US Marine connection?
US Marines were based at Beech Hill from 1942 to 1944, living in huts across the estate while officers stayed in the house, as part of the wartime US naval base at Londonderry. A memorial in the grounds remembers them, and an old tree still carries Marines' carved initials.
Is it good for a special occasion?
Very much so — a birthday lunch, an anniversary dinner or a weekend away all suit the setting. It leans grown-up treat rather than a run-around day for small children.
How far is it from Derry?
A short drive out of the city, at Ardmore on the Ardmore Road — roughly a few miles from Derry city centre.
Getting there

32 Ardmore Road, Derry-Londonderry, BT47 3QP — a short drive out of the city, in wooded countryside at Ardmore, with parking on site.

Directions on Google MapsOfficial website

Book or check ahead: 028 7134 9279

See it on our map
Nearby

Make more of the day

Derry's WallsCity centre · a short drive The Peace BridgeOver the Foyle · in the city Ness Country ParkWaterfall & woodland walks Museum of Free DerryCity history & heritage
The story

The house, the beeches and the Marines

The Skipton family came over from England in the 1600s and settled these lands above the Faughan valley. The present Georgian house is said to have been raised by Captain Thomas Skipton in the early 1700s — most tellings give 1729 — and the story goes he named it Beech Hill for the many beech trees standing around it. In time the estate passed down the family, was extended and softened with bay windows and its distinctive arched porch, and grew the wooded grounds, gardens and ponds you'd wander today.

Its most-remembered chapter came in the Second World War. From 1942 to 1944, US Marines were based at Beech Hill as part of the American naval base at Londonderry — around seven hundred of them, living in huts pitched across the estate while officers took rooms in the house. Many married local Derry women, and enough of a bond formed that the connection has been kept alive since. A memorial in the grounds remembers the Marines who served here, and an old tree on the estate still carries the initials and dates carved by men returning to visit — a quiet, personal record best seen with the same care it was made.

The house was bought and reopened as a hotel around the start of the 1990s, and it's run that way today — a place to dine, to take afternoon tea, or to stay a night among the beeches, with all that history still standing in the grounds.