Northumberland coast without car!

[Whistledown2]

As the thread says, has anyone done this and is it worth doing?

Failing that may hire a car in the area.

This might be useful.
https://www.visitnorthumberland.com/travel-tips/while-youre-here/getting-around
I have only explored that area driving, and don’t think I would want to be without a car. There are so many wonderful places, and beaches, and being able to drive meant that we could see more of them, also leaving our cottage early and coming back late if we wanted to. It’s a gorgeous area - have fun!

I think you might struggle without a car to be honest. Buses are very infrequent and other than Alnmouth, no train stations between Morpeth and Berwick. Hire a little car, it’ll be fun.

I live in Northumberland and it's really tough without a car. Even towns that are near each other don't have busses.

Hire the car

We did it with a hire car and it made life much easier. I think it's worth the extra cost.

Get the train/metro or fly into Newcastle airport and hire a car from there will probably give you the best option for rental companies.

Get the train to Alnmouth (it's on the main east coast route but one of the smaller stops) and then walk the 2 miles to the coast. And then just walk the.coastal.path north. It's easy to follow and there are lots of coastal villages like Boulmer, Craster, low Newton, Beadnell and Bamburgh where you could stay or camp. You could walk accross to Holy Island though watch the tides. Loads of people do it all the time.

There are buses along the coast road, so doable to reach Bamburgh, Seahouses etc if perhaps not as convenient.

I love that area but I would certainly not go without a car.

I think tricky to walk the coast route with a car! 🤣. I'm assuming the OP wants to walk a fair bit.and if so it's easy. Obviously if not walking on the agenda then a car essential. Buses are few and far between.

Train to Alnmouth and there is a bus that goes up the coast (we’ve used this). https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/NorthumberlandCountyCouncil/media/Roads-streets-and-transport/Public%20transport/Bus%20travel/E_1604_X18sum.pdf

I remember the coast bus as being pretty good, but of course it limits where you can go. But definitely doable - I spent a few days there relying on the bus and it was fine.

Ooh thank you all so much for the helpful replies.

Could I ask where best to hire a car if that's what we decide to do?

Airport? But you won't be able to access the coastal path with a car if youre planning on walking along it obviously..but definitely essential to have if you aren't walkers.

My brother went from my place in North Yorkshire to Holy Island for a day visit by public transport (he likes a challenge!). With very careful co ordination of timings he did it, but it took him about 15 hours. I'd say a car is essential.

I was in a little village with a good bus route near Saltburn in June last year. With the £2 offer on bus journeys I managed to get around easily and cheaply. I think the offer has gone up to £2.50 now.
Solo traveller with barely any luggage.

Don’t hire a car at an airport if you have a choice - you pay a premium to do that. If flying in, get the metro into Newcastle and pick one up there.

https://www.northeast-ca.gov.uk/buscap

I did the scenic route past The Angel of the North for two quid!

Saltburn isn't in Northumberland though.

OP by the way where are you coming from?
Are you getting the train or flying? What are you actually wanting to do up here?

Saltburn isn't in Northumberland though.

You’re right. It was my first time visiting the NE so boundaries not clear!

Dh and I did. We used the train to Berwick and the bussed it to Seahouses where we'd rented a house for the week. We used buses to get around, plus lots of walking. It was 20 years ago though so public transport might have deteriorated since then.

Well I’d be quite happy getting around by bus in the area, OP. You just have to be prepared for waits between connections and plan well. I haven’t done the coastal route, but I bumble around quite happily by bus between Berwick-upon-Tweed and inland (Alnwick, Wooler etc) when I’m visiting my family.

The maps from this page are useful for showing bus links from the main towns (Alnwick/Berwick - ‘Northumberland Route’, Morpeth).

If I was doing a carless holiday I’d stay in Berwick (well connected train station) & do the bus or train from there, as you can go down towards Alnmouth, Holy Island and up towards St Abbs, Eyemouth, Edinburgh etc, as well as inland towards Alnwick, Wooler, Kelso, Galashiels.

I don’t think it has! New services have been added quite recently. It’d be difficult to get from A-B as a working-hours traveller - and the OP will need to be aware that Sundays served on several routes - but for tourist purposes I think the services are fine.

Gah!! Sundays aren’t served on several routes..