Newcastle upon Tyne Things to Do Tips by maykal

TYNESIDE COAST: city beaches Day trips from Newcastle Review

TYNESIDE COAST: Surprisingly, Newcastle has a nice coastline with good seaside resorts within the city limits.
Whitley Bay with it's Spanish City amusement arcade and funfair is tacky and brash, but has a nice beach ending in St Mary's Lighthouse on an island reached only at low tide. Cullercoats has the Sealife Centre, then further south is the nicest of the Tyneside resorts, Tynemouth. A small beach backed by tall cliffs and a ruined castle and priory, Tynemouth is my favourite place around Newcastle. As for shops, there is an unusual shopping centre built inside a church, consisting of some good craft shops. On the Tyne estuary is the ferryport of North Shields. Apart from the quayside(where there are music festivals in summer) there is little to do in North Shields apart from taking the Shields ferry to it's counterpart South Shields. Famous as the finishing point of the Great North Run (Newcastle's half marathon which attracts over 40,000 runners each year), South Shields has a decent beach and is the start of the National Trust coastline which stretches south to Sunderland. Highlights of this walk include Marsden Bay (in picture), Marsden Rocks bird sanctuary and Souter Lighthouse. In summer, you'll hear Sunderland before you get there, as the funfair behind the beach obviously thinks that it should be heard along the length of the beach (about 2 miles). Having said that, the beach is long, sandy and clean, and Sunderland surprised me as I had expected something more industrial and depressing!!

Directions: Within the city limits of Newcastle, all of these resorts can be visited using the Metro. A day ticket which covers the whole metro system and the Shields Ferry costs £3...and since the opening of the

Other Contact: For more pictures, please see th

BAMBURGH: Castle and beach Day trips from Newcastle Review

BAMBURGH: Worth visiting for it's impressive castle and the fantastic beach, as well as views of the Farne Islands and even Lindisfarne on a clear day.

Directions: Seahouses and Bamburgh are located on the Northumbrian coast north of Newcastle. It is difficult to get there by public transport...even though a railway track passes nearby, the nearest train station

Other Contact: See my travelogue for more photo

LINDISFARNE: Holy Island Day trips from Newcastle Review

LINDISFARNE:You should try to get to Lindisfarne, although it is difficult unless you have your own car. For more pictures and info, see my travelogue about Lindisfarne.
I forgot to mention in the travelogue that Lindisfarne produces its own variety of alcohol, called Lindisfarne Mead....it is very strong and tastes vaguely of honey, and you can try a free sample at the imaginitively titled 'Lindisfarne Mead Shop'. Small bottles start at £1.50.

Directions: About an hour and a half by road from Durham, lying off the coast between Berwick-upon-Tweed and Bamburgh.

Other Contact: Before travelling to Lindisfarne