[Closed] Northumberland - must go places?

No advice, but I'm watching this one as MrsMomo and I are spending a couple of days in Northumberland on our way back from honeymoon on Skye this summer.

You picked the furthest point away from the Roman wall.

Vindolanda has a proper visitor centre now I believe.

Food: The Ship at Newton by the Sea

Jolly Fisherman at Craster

Northumberland Arms at Felton

Cook and Barker at Newton on the Moor

Ahh Vindolanda looks spot on, travelling from Liverpool so can go on the way. Cheers for suggestions

Anyone recommend a castle? lots to choose from? Holy Island worth the effort?

Warkworth castle is fantastic.
Alnwick Castle / Gardens are impressive but expensive.
Housesteads is a good fort plus you can tie it in with a walk along the best preserved part of the wall in stunning scenery.
The Ship in Newport is good but small so book a table.
Cragside

Vindolanda gives you a double ticket to the other place nearby, can't remember the name but we certainly got one.

Kielder water is close by, there is the dam visitors centre as well as the dark sky observatory, worth a look if it's a clear night. The Riverside Hotel in Bellingham does a good meal as does the first pub you come to in town on the north side of the road (coming from the Riverside).

There's a bookshop in Alnwick I've been told is worth looking at inside the railway arches, apparently the biggest second hand shop in the UK or Europe or something.

Castles:

Bamburgh

Lindisfarne

Dunstanburgh

Alnwick

Walkworth

Chillingham

There's a bookshop in Alnwick I've been told is worth looking at inside the railway arches, apparently the biggest second hand shop in the UK or Europe or something.

Barter Books

You'll have no problem getting in The Ship when it's off season.

Kielder is miles from Berwick.

Walks - go to Barrowburn in the Coquet Valley and walk up to Windy Gyle - the view is spectacular but I can guarantee you'll be wishing you had your bike (unless it's blowing a gale) or do the 5 miler circular one from there which is more sheltered (ask at the tea room).

You are bringing your bike aren't you?

The walk from Craster to Dunstanburgh is ace (about 3 miles there and back).

Bamburgh castle probably best for kids. Plenty of cannons and weapons which my 5 year old lad loved.

Alnwick is pricey but if you time it to do the kids activities like broomstick and jester training it's more value.

Thanks for this, just me & the Missus, no kids to cater for.

No bike sadly as I have a back injury that won't go away 😥

all of above

barter books is worth a look in

any beach will be clean & quiet unless near one of the towns

boat trip to farne islands is a good day out for birds & wildlife etc - better when puffins nesting (too early now i think)

walk up the cheviot - reasonably big but not technical/taxing. simonside hills around rothbury make for good walking too.

the tourist bus along hadrians wall is running now i think so you can do a long linear walk and hop on to get back. a short but good stretch is from houseteads to steel rigg & back to add onto a visit to the fort

any beach will be clean & quiet unless near one of the towns

Then it will be clean with 3 other people on it.

Simonside Ridge and Garleigh Moor
Cragside
Coe Crags
Warkworth and Alnmouth along the beach and back via the dunes
Wallington House
Steel Rig - Crag Lough - Houseteads - Quees Crag - Greenlee Lough
Bamburgh north to Budle Bay
Farne Islands
Chillingham Castle and Old Bewick Moor
Climbing at Bowden Doors
Boulmer - Craster
Breamish Valley and the iron age forts walk. Plus a dip in Linhope spout if it's sunny and mid week.

Look up Cullernose Point near Craster and go there. Columnar jointing at it's best. Just down from there is Rumbling Kern, probably my favourite spot on the entire Northumberland coast.
On your way up or down to Berwick, think about a visit to Tynemouth. A great castle (with WW1 gun emplacements too) and a lovely area with great food and beaches etc.
Inland, Rothbury is always good for walks and general mooching about.

this pub is worth checking out if you are in the very south of northumberland on the way up/down (one of our locals) the food & beer is excellent

[url= http://thefeathers.net/ ]http://thefeathers.net/[/url]

Sorry had assumed family thing. I would say though that you shouldn't ignore the Tweed Valley. Different feel to Northumberland but equally as nice.

Theres a couple of nice short walks that fulfill a lot of your criteria...
NT car park at Once brewed, walk along the wall past sycamore gap (the one from Robin hood) to housesteads fort. away from thewall there towards greenlee clough and back towards the car park....

Walk 2, park at craster, walk up past dunstanborough castle to the beach beyond... back to craster for lunch/dinner at the Jolly fisherman

oh, and Farne islands, Holy island and Cragside

Sorry had assumed family thing. I would say though that you shouldn't ignore the Tweed Valley. Different feel to Northumberland but equally as nice.

Oh, the walk from Horncliffe to Norham's lovely, good castle and it's free. Ford and Etal's interesting too.

Train to Edinburgh?

any beach will be clean & quiet unless near one of the towns

Then it will be clean with 3 other people on it.

Weekend in summer eh? The beaches are Northumberlands best secret.

Oh and my favourite roman forts aren't the well preserved ones, they're the massively remote, extraordinarily positioned ones up above Rochester. High rochester's quite cool, a farmstead built into the walls of the roman fort Bremenium.

edit: that's bloody miles from you though. Don't bother with anything beyond the A696, there's plenty to do in the north and then come and stay in south Northumberland next time.

It's a horrible place, don't waste your time going 😈

One of my fav beach walks is on the opposite side lindisfarne from Ross to the 2 towers (can't recall their name) never seen anyone on that beach and it's beautiful .

One of my fav beach walks is on the opposite side lindisfarne from Ross to the 2 towers (can't recall their name) never seen anyone on that beach and it's beautiful .

Absolutely covered in seals a couple of weeks back too. Bloody hundreds of the things.

One of my fav beach walks is on the opposite side lindisfarne from Ross to the 2 towers

Minas Morgul and Orthanc

On second thoughts, they could have been Orcs.

BM'd too as we're heading that way in May.

ta

On second thoughts, they could have been Orcs.

😆

In lieu of a Roman Fort, How about Yeavering Bell?

Don't go it's horrible.

Tell all of your friends and family not to go it's horrible.

Don't go. You will not enjoy it.

It's a grey, miserable, post industrial landscape.

Don't go.

Rothbury - famous for the Raul Moat three day water pipe stake out a few years back

I would suggest coquetdale and Ingram valley (linhope spout at the top of Ingram valley). Grandparents used to farm in both those valleys for years and spent a lot of time up there, fantastic landscape and probably the most remote you can get in England.

i would also say walk from craster to dunstandborough is great,get yourself some skippers at craster?

Chillingworth castle is great and if you go to Alnwick castle you have the gardens with a great entrance building and then also the huge tree house which is worth a look!

Fish and Chips in seahouses or bamburgh,bamburgh castle is probably most impressive I think, especially with the way it sits on its huge podium of rock.

Craster if you like proper seafood

Bamburgh for a proper castle, Alnwick if the kids are older and have a Harry Potter inclination.

Seahouses for fish and chips.

Slight hijack: can anyone recommended a nice cottage near the sea for 2 people?
I know the area quite well but normally camp there

http://www.spitalford.co.uk/accom.htm

Sleeps more than 2 though.

Or next to one the best beaches.

http://www.lowsteads.co.uk/holiday-cottages/howdiemont-holiday-cottage/

Drac - thanks, they look great but fully booked (1st week of June)

I'll keep searching.

castles:
Bamburgh & Alnwick are all glass cabinets & musty clothes & IMO boring

Dunstanburgh (at Craster) is ace, as is Walkworth

Cragside was a nice day out, interesting house & great gardens to explore & walk about.

We actually stayed at Chillingham castle in the highest rooms - draft but a laugh.

The Chillingham cattle are interesting too.

Barter books in Alnwick is an interesting wet day explore with a good cafe.

If you want something one step up from camping the hides at springhill farm are worth a look. They also have cottages but haven't used those.

http://www.springhill-farm.co.uk/the-barn

Drac - thanks, they look great but fully booked (1st week of June)

I'd look sharpish then as thanks to Robson Green there's been a big interest in Northumblerland last year and this.

June busy as best time for puffins at the farne islands too

Thanks

Quite a fan of Seaton Deleval hall here, fits in well with a drive along the coast and a night out in Whitley 😀

Seaton Deleval for ice cream 😀

Went passed the shop at Easter Bank Holiday Monday when I was at work, the queue was about 150yds long.

I concur with Craster to Dunstanburgh. Some amazing coastline along there.

Holy Island is pretty cool too, but it will be rife with tourists. And make sure you check the tide times before you go!

Cragside: Very pretty + great industrial heritage (Vickers-Armstrong and Swann electric lights etc).
Warkworth Castle
Bamburgh Castle
Lidisfarne castle
Bargain books
Percy Arms near Belford.

OP: If you like real ale, Belgian beers and malt whisky, the John Bull Inn in Alnwick is fab.

Drac - do you know the owners of those cottages you suggested?

Drac - do you know the owners of those cottages you suggested?

Nope just been in them through work. 😀

Are you some kind of self-catering "secret shopper"?
😉

Hahaha!

stayed here a few times a few different size cottages not sure if any just for 2 - right by beach but a bit of a walk to pub - fine by bike

[url] http://www.linkhousefarm.co.uk/ [/url]

The bookshop in Alnwick is inside the old railway station and has its own train chuffing around inside. Good for picking up bargain books.

Cragside is fantastic if you like Arts & Crafts design and the pre-raphaelites; a really stunning place to visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cragside

Lindisfarne is definitely a must; have a look at the album cover for Lindisfarne's excellent Fog on the Tyne album and see if you can find the same doorway for a photo.

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It is a great area. If you have three days it would be worth spending plenty of time near or in Berwick. The walls offer a lovely walk right around the town and down to the lighthouse on the end of the harbour. Coldingham Bay, Spittal beach and Cocklawburn beaches are great the latter offers a great walk heading towards Holy Island. Also good walks from the town along the river Tweed to the Chain Bridge and Paxton House about 5 miles each way.

If you want food for self catering the Pizzaiola has a good wood fired oven and there is an M&S Simply Food on the Spittal side of town.

We had our first trip up there over Easter. Really enjoyed it. Most of our highlights have already been mentioned above:

Holy Island / Lindisfarne - if you can, try and stay over the tide - I was put off the place a bit by the crowds when we first arrived but once the causeway is covered, the place becomes deserted and is really magical once most of the visitors have left for the day. The castle is really interesting. Crown and Anchor was good for food but make sure you book! Try to return across the causeway at sunset. Stunning. Also worth checking out the beaches on the North side of the island.

Lower Newton - lovely beach, and the Ship is great for a drink but again you need to book for food. Walk to the end of the beach for a great view of Dunstanburgh castle.

Cragside was a great day out - lovely gardens and loads of interest for kids of all ages, particularly if you have an interest in engineering.

Dunstanburgh - Craster was rammed so we parked at Dunstan Steads and walked from there along the beach, which I'd also recommend.

Low tide walk from Seahouses to Bamburgh was lovely - some great rockpools en route.

Boat trip to Farne Islands was great - we were a bit early for puffins but loads of kittiwakes, shags and guillemots and umpteen seals.

We really liked The Old Ship in Seahouses - some may find it a bit tacky as it's crammed full of nautical stuff, but good fun nonetheless. The beer garden there has lovely view of the harbour and Farnes.

Admittedly we were there over Easter but I was genuinely surprised how busy everywhere was and how difficult it was to eat out without booking - we live in Devon, so are used to crowds in the summer around the coastal resorts here and over the Tamar but some places we visited were even more rammed than we are used to down here.

Admittedly we were there over Easter but I was genuinely surprised how busy everywhere was and how difficult it was to eat out without booking - we live in Devon, so are used to crowds in the summer around the coastal resorts here and over the Tamar but some places we visited were even more rammed than we are used to down here.

Easter was insanely busy this year the good weather helped but I've not seen it so busy for a very long time, even during the summer.

Vindolanda gives you a double ticket to the other place nearby, can't remember the name but we certainly got one.

No, it's the Roman Army museum at Cawfields. Housesteads is English Heritage/NT but Vindolanda and the RAM are privately owned. They keep digging things up at Vindolanda. "Oh, another Roman sandal. Hey ho"

Vindolanda/housesteads/Crag Lough/the wall in general are a long, long way from Berwick. Great as they are, a 4 hour round trip seems a bit OTT on a three day trip.

el-shalimo... Have a look at poppy cottage embleton...

http://poppycottageembleton.co.uk/

Belongs to a friend, it's small but lovely.

Dr_death: thanks, its booked but I've found somewhere nearby via one of secret self-catering shopper Drac's links
😀

Berwick is well within reach of the borders too - eg Floors castle (kelso). But there's probably enough to do closer than that.

Aye it's about 1/4 mile from the Border. 😀

About 2-3 miles on my map. But who's counting.