Middlesbrough and the Northeast whats good?

[Icepinkeskimo]

I am going to Middlesbrough for a work related trip. I have extended it by a week to do some exploring however my friends (London) are rattling their pearls and think I have lost the plot.
Telling me to avoid Redcar as the car will be nicked and all sorts of ridiculous things.

So now I am on a mission, i know the north east coast is beautiful and the people are great.

Any suggestions would be really welcome.

Thanks in Advance

Roker & Seaburn beaches at Sunderland are lovely, plenty of fish and chips there too!

Don't laugh but I've booked to see Middlesbrough play on Saturday! I haven't been to a football match for over 15 years! I wanted to see the Riverside Stadium and when I found the had a home match on I thought why not?

After two years of being of lockdown I can't think of anything more lovely right now. Being one of many watching football in real life, instead of it being on the tv.

I hope I don't regret it, it's right out of my comfort zone.

You’ll be fine, my daughter and her partner are going to the match too.
We won 4 - 0 yesterday. Up the Boro.

UTFB!! Ds2 is a big fan as is his dad. Great result. I saw the riverside being built from scratch. Exdh and I used to go nearly every week. He took lots of photos. I'll have to ask to see them again. They were printed off old style 🤣 I'm not a footy fan but love seeing them and Hartlepool win. Great fans.

Know you have some great information already - if you can and have time do take a trip to the Northumberland Coastline and things to do - amazing places - Seahouses, Bamburgh, Craster.

It's such a lovely part of the country. When I first got a job here couple of decades ago I was reading through my 'Rough Guide to Britain' to find out more about the area because I didn't know it at all and was getting excited about everything there was to see. So glad we live here and can enjoy this secret part of the UK that others overlook.

OP, hope you enjoyed the game and have a great holiday!

I may have missed someone else suggest it, but Staithes is a lovely little village, in fact if you drive to Whitby from Middlesbrough use the 'coast road' A174 there's loads of little villages (once you get past Redcar) along the way (there's also a bus, the X4) including Staithes, and then if you're driving the A171 back goes across the Moors. I think there's a bus that comes back along the Moor road too from Whitby to Middlesbrough.
There's Goathland where Heartbeat was filmed
and the station there is on the NYM railway and was Hogwarts station in Harry Potter, Danby beacon then the Danby Moors Centre (check it's open though depending on time of year).

You missed out that Staithes is where Old Jack's Boat is filmed. My kids were obsessed with that when they were little.