Berwick Upon Tweed - good holiday destination?

[Wiifitmama]

I am thinking of booking a week in Berwick Upon Tweed for the first week of July and looking for opinions.

For context, we go as a family of mostly adults (me, dh, two adult boys with girlfriends, and one teen boy). We enjoy holidaying together every summer.

We like: small towns near the coast with river or estuary, castle or historic house to visit, lots of nice walks, good food a must (both shops and restaurants). We travel by train from London - no car so would not travel further afield for trips out.

We did Conwy in Wales last summer which was perfect. We want to go further north this year and Berwick Upon Tweed seems to fit the bill.

I would love to hear from anyone who knows it well. Does it fit the bill?

I agree North Berwick is gorgeous

To be fair, I would also recommend North Berwick! It's another couple of hours further along, though. Maybe I'm biased because I and my DD like wildlife photography and the Bass Rock is almost as good as the Farnes. 😀

NB Is Pretty but still not a lot to do

Another vote for tynenouth here

Aargh, I have to bite...

• Scottish Seabird Centre
• Boat trips around Bass Rock and other islands
• Two beautiful beaches to walk along plus other coastline
• Swimming, sailing, paddleboarding
• Gullane Beach a short way away
• West Links (one of the best golf courses in Scotland - and that's saying something)
• Free putting green on the sea front
• Full of independent shops, cafes and some excellent restaurants (Herringbone)
• Walk along the cliff to Drift at Canty Bay
• Lobster Shack at the Harbour
• Walk up and incredible view from North Berwick Law
• Tantallon Castle
• Everything easily walkable (including the train station)
• Two of the best hotels in Scotland (Marine, and short way to Greywalls)
• Edinburgh a short train ride away. Edinburgh FFS!!!

But sure... Go to Tynemouth!

North Berwick is just too far. I don’t really want to travel more than about 4 hours by train from London. Tynemouth and Whitley Bay are too small really and we would need to go into Newcastle I think to fill our time. We live in a city so don’t really want to visit another.

It’s so bloody hard! I am tempted to just go back to Conwy!

@Wiifitmama I completely understand the problem! One more suggestion: have you considered staying in Newcastle itself? I know it's a city, but, as someone who knows both very well, it feels nothing like London. It's incredibly compact and has some nice walking and tons to see and do. I know it's odd, but the centre feels a lot more like a town than a city to me!

If not, then have you considered the North-West? Carlisle ticks a lot of your boxes!

Yorkshire coast?

Alnmouth? Alnmouth's main attraction is its beautiful beaches, but it also has a couple of nice restaurants and lovely deli.

If you didn't mind using the buses, it's a short trip to Alnwick and Warkworth, both with historical sites. There are further parts of the Northumbrian coast you could explore - again, on the bus.

Northumberland is beautiful, as is Berwick but you really do need a car for a week to take advantage of the area.

What about east coast of Yorkshire? Whitby, Scarborough, access to York, Leeds.

Durham?
It's v small for a city and the coast is v accessible on public transport, plus it's the same train you'd be getting to Berwick.

I am laughing at the idea that tynenouth /Whitley bay is too small given the suggestion was Berwick

I agree re Newcastle v London as a city as well as Edinburgh. Just not comparable, totally different vibes.

I love Northumbria and we often go to Alnwick and the surrounding area but we went to Berwick last Easter for a change. The house we rented was right in the centre and while we had a great time and there were some nice places to eat I felt the town looked very sad.

You could spend a couple of days there and then travel to Edinburgh?

You can easily access the beach from there: places like Portobello or Aberdour (Fife).

Do any of you drive - could you hire a car at your destination?

Berwick Upon Tweed no. I'm fairly local and it's not somewhere I'd go ever for a holiday. A little further up the coast is North Berwick which is beautiful with lots of things to do, nice restaurants etc.

North Berwick is only an hour further north.

I agree, North Berwick is beautiful and not that much further. You have to connect through Edinburgh which is 4 hours and 20 minutes by train - get out at Waverley, dump your bags at the baggage store and go for lunch, then get the connection to North Berwick which takes 30 minutes. I think NB is exactly what you're looking for.

That said, I think staying in Edinburgh is a much better idea, it's nothing like London, tonnes to do, you can be on the coast in 15 minutes by train, brilliant walks from the Old Town through to the New Town, or up Arthur's Seat, or through the Meadows. World-class food. Plenty ruins too!

Which is to say, I would not choose to go to Berwick on Tweed for a holiday...

If you are not set on the NE, I’d consider Tenby ( if before school hols; it’s busy in the hols), St David’s (a city but a v v small one, loads of history) or Bridport / West Bay - less sure on history but fabulous food and great walking,

North Berwick much nicer and so close to edinburgh for sll the tourist attractions & fab restaurants x

Stay in Newcastle, get the train the Hexham, Durham, Alnmouth, metro to Tynrmouth and Whitley Bay for trips out . Could even get the train to Berwick u Tweed!

The Northumbrian coast is gorgeous with sandy beaches and castles on the headlands. There is plenty to see and do. But wherever you stay, you really do need your own car to make the most of it. The are quiet. Driving and parking are easy. Nothing like the congestion in Cornwall and Devon.

I'd go for Alnmouth as PP said. It's a lovely area round there, and easy to get to Alnwick and its castle and Garden.