'I went on a foodie trip to the North East - it's the perfect long weekend away from Yorkshire'

It’s got everything you could want for a staycation - fantastic beaches and walks, luxurious hotels and an increasing array of highly-regarded fine dining restaurants.

From the wild sandy dunes of Northumberland to Newcastle’s bustling Quayside, one of England’s most underrated regions is ideal for families or couples.

And it’s so close to North Yorkshire, making it the perfect destination for a long weekend.

In the spring sunshine, I’m keen to indulge in the North East’s vibrant and diverse food scene.

Ever since James Close shut his two-Michelin starred restaurant The Raby Hunt, near Darlington, and moved to become culinary director at nearby five-star hotel Rockliffe Hall (www.rockliffehall.com), I have been desperate to try his new venture.

Just south of the picturesque village of Hurworth-on-Tees, the 18th century manor house has been reimagined as a luxurious country retreat, complete with 50,000 square foot award-winning spa and 18 hole golf course.

The evening sun is beaming down onto the terrace outside our room, the ideal spot for an aperitif and a game of cards before dinner.

Close is currently helming the hotel’s fine dining restaurant Terra, which has three different seasonal dining menus throughout the year.

However, the dining experience is about to get a lot more expansive, as Rockliffe has just had planning approval for a new purpose-built pavilion which is set to house a new restaurant from Close.

The culinary director, who will no doubt be eying another Michelin Star, said: “We want to create a special experience that is inspired by our global travel influences, within a unique space that will attract diners locally, nationally and internationally to the North East.”

A reason to return certainly, however at the moment Terra is serving The French Bistro, with Close’s take on indulgent Parisian cuisine.

To start, we order a glass of house Champagne off the delightfully retro aperitif trolly, alongside six plump and juicy oysters. I then rather indulgently choose cheddar soufflé, with a sharp, mustardy salad which perfectly cuts through the rich cheese.

The steak au poivre with shoestring fries is the only way to go for a main, and rivals anything I’ve had before from French bistros.

Make sure you visit The French Bistro before it closes, if just to have Close’s mille-feuille stuffed with an indulgent double-helping of vanilla crème pâtissière and Chantilly cream.

After a decadent dinner, I spend the next morning in Rockliffe Hall’s spa, treating myself to replenishing body scrub.

It’s then time to work off all that food, so we head up Roseberry Topping, using the easy-to-find National Trust carpark at the base. The iconic hill was settled in the Bronze Age, Iron Age and by the Vikings, who gave it its name. The walk can be steep in parts, but there are several easier routes criss-crossing the mountain for families with young children.

After a brisk hour’s stroll, you get spectacular views across Teesside and North Yorkshire, including Captain Cook’s monument, who credited Roseberry Topping with inspiring his passion for exploration.

After the walk, we’re in need of some sustenance so we head to Saltburn-by-the-Sea.

Between the spring and autumn, Britain’s oldest funicular takes tourists the short drop down from the town to the pier. At the bottom of the tram, there is the Seaview Restaurant, which does delicious seafood and freshly-caught fish if you want to sit in, and also has a takeaway counter if you want to eat along the famous Victorian pier.

This is just one of many brilliant seafood restaurants dotted along the North East coast, with Colmans Seafood Temple, built in an old bandstand in South Shields, and Sam Fender’s favourite, Riley’s Fish Shack in Tynemouth, both also worth a visit.

That evening I want to try another North East restaurant going for a Michelin Star.

This year, the Bay Horse, also in Hurworth, was featured in the French food guide for the first time.

The high-end gastropub is artfully designed, and we bag a cosy table upstairs - out of the way of the regulars tucking into pints at the bar.

Starters range between £12 and £18.50, with mains from £29, so it’s not cheap, but the food is mostly locally sourced and of high quality.

Warm bread, freshly out of the oven, washed down with a damson negroni, is a wonderful appetiser, followed by the most refined serving of Whitby crab I’ve had, balanced delicately on a homemade crumpet.

The chicken ballotine dish seems to include something using every part of the bird, with a crispy leg croquette, a chicken fat potato rosti and a chicken liver parfait “cigar”.

The caramelised apple rice pudding rounds off a wonderful weekend of food.

On our final morning, with the sun out, we head to Raby Castle (www.raby.co.uk) in County Durham.

You can visit the spectacular gardens, as well as the castle which dates back to the 11th century, for £21 per adult.

Everything is so well preserved, it’s actually reasonable value for money - and you could spend hours relaxing in the gardens or learning about the building’s history, intertwined with Britain’s royals for centuries.

It’s a great spot for families to visit, with a special playground built into the forest, which exudes children’s whooping and laughter as we head back to the car.