Northeast England trip advice?

If you've got a car, I wonder why you are staying in Newcastle. Not that Newcastle isn't interesting but it's going to be more difficult there with a car as it's a larger city and it will be difficult to get around and find parking. And it will be an awful lot of driving!

I would stay in one of the smaller towns in Northumberland if it were me. I was there in 2024 and spent about six weeks overall in England but I spent six nights in the Northumberland area and stayed in Seahouses, which I really liked. It was small and easy to get to other places. Bamburgh is another possibility as there are decent hotels there. And Alnmouth or Alnwick would be good as well,

If you're coming from York it would be quite easy to stop in Durham on your way up from there to Northumberland. You can stay as little or as long as you want. I mostly wanted to see the cathedral and the town so I didn't get to see Beamish. If you wanted to stay longer, just spend the night there, see what you want and then head farther north.

Otherwise you're going to be doing a lot of driving, especially coming from Newcastle to places like Holy Island where you're limited by the tides. In fact, I'm assuming you're familiar with the show Vera. I always wondered why they had Vera live on Holy Island. She certainly didn't do so in the book and it made no sense at all for someone who has such a wide-ranging area to patrol to be living in a place where she is is basically subject to the tides. Somehow she always seemed to be able to get to places she needed to go which is very unrealistic.

Besides it's so beautiful to stay right by the coast in one of the smaller towns. I really enjoyed that a lot and you would miss that staying in Newcastle. Many of these places just beg you to wake up in the morning and take a walk down to the water

In terms of redundancy most of the places you listed are pretty different. I'm not familiar with Hebden Bridge and I did not get to Tynemouth or Beamish but went to every place else and loved them all. They all have their attractions and as I said, it will be easier to get to those places if you are staying more in the center rather than south of everything. 😊 But regardless you will love Northumberland. It's one of my favorite areas of England.

Thanks so much Mardee for the reply! I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed your time in that part of the country. We can't wait!

We won't have a car in Newcastle -- we just plan to rent one on our last day, so we can drive up to Alnwick, Holy Island, and Bamburgh, where we'll spend the night and the next morning. We'll just be visiting the other places by train.

And yes, my husband is a HUGE fan of Vera, and I've watched a few episodes with him. I didn't realize it was only in the TV series (and not the books) that she lived on Holy Island! It does seem an impractical choice, especially for someone in her profession. 😆

Thanks again!

Beamish you can do direct from Newcastle by bus on the 28 and 29 (two an hour between the two services).

It's more streamlined than going by train to Chester le Street to pick up the buses at the other end of their route.

Another good and easy day trip from York (not that you have the days) which meets your criteria is Knaresborough/Harrogate/Ripon.

One thing to bear in mind is that Easter is the 1st week in April.

With a bit of luck Dales Bus will have started for the year. Again you don't really have the time but on a Sunday there are buses to Grassington and Hawes deep in the Yorkshire Dales, and another one to Fountains Abbey, Masham and Richmond.

That's added to the list, not subtracted from it.

On the Hebden Bridge day you could easily add on the Brontes at Haworth by bus. Hebden Bridge is a very nice town, but whether it merits a full day I'm not sure. You could do HB then Haworth then continue on to Keighley on the bus or steam train for the normal train back to York. That in my opinion makes much more of the day.

I totally agree. If you have car, staying in central Newcastle is going to slow you down. Newcastle is great but it’s a city and cities mean traffic. The North East roads are not that congested compared to some parts of the country and in general getting around by car is easy. If you stay somewhere within easy reach of the A1 then you can get anywhere you like very easily.

I don’t think you have any redundancies on your list. I am most familiar with the places in the Newcastle section of your trip and like them all. I would do all those trips by car, possibly with the exception of Durham. Beamish has a huge car park, Tynemouth has free on street parking without going too far from the seafront.

Up until 11 April the tide times are good for Holy Island, but the week after you would need to take Billy Shiel's high tide landing cruise from Seahouses- https://holyislandcrossingtimes.northumberland.gov.uk/Default.aspx?dt=0426

You have picked some wonderful places to visit.

I would agree with isn31c that half a day is probably long enough for Hebden Bridge. The railway station featured in Simon Jenkin’s book “Britain’s 100 Best Railway Stations” for its Victorian architecture. and has been restored to its original Lancashire and Yorkshire railway appearance. and original signs

There’s a walking trail around hebden Bridge you can follow

Have a look at this trip article for lots of photos about Hebden Bridge.

Heptonstall is only a short distance from Hebden Bridge - you can walk if it is a nice day and you are feeling fit (Its up a steep hill!) or catch a bus

It would nicely fill in the rest of the day before catching the train back. .

Tynemouth may not take a full day - the ruined Priory and Castle is worth visiting, so you might want to include Whitley Bay (also reached by Metro) and go for a walk along the beach towards St Mary’s Lighthouse. Have a read here about the walk.
This is on a tidal island and there is more information as well as safe crossing times here.

Beamish is definitely worth a visit. Plan your visit as there is so much to see and do - too much for a day visit! Have a look here for loads of information and pictures about the different areas to help you decide which to pick.

Check on safe crossing times to Holy Island here. The tide does come in very quickly, so don't chance trying to cross outside those times. You don't want to risk this happening.... (I felt the Rising Tide was irresponsible with its story about Vera trying to cross as the tie was rising...)

Bamburgh has a very good butcher and I can definitely recommend their sausage rolls. This is the place to stock up with a picnic lunch!

Alnwick is also worth a visit with its castle and garden but I’m not sure if you will have time to fit that in...

I’ve a feeling in the books Vera lived on the edge of the Cheviot. That is wild country and not easily accessible without a car. Again, I don’t think you will have time to fit that in.

Great choices, we loved York, Durham, Whitby and the Yorkshire Moors.

Also, we did Hadrian's Wall and the museum of the ancient Roman fort near Haltwhistle.

At York, we stayed at The Minster Hotel, which has free parking for cars and is walking distance to the old city.
https://www.thecrazytourist.com/15-best-things-to-do-in-york-yorkshire-england/

Also, we visited Castle Howard and enjoyed that great castle.
https://www.chasingthelongroad.com/england/best-day-trips-from-york/

Hi paulophonic

Your plan sounds great to me. We are doing a similar trip somewhat in reverse in early May. We will be renting a car in Edinburgh and driving to Berwick upon Tweed where we will stay for 5 nights. We are renting a car so that we can get to all the places in Northumberland that we want to see including a day in Durham and Beamish, a day for Bamburgh and Holy Island, and a day for Alnwick and Morpeth. We will turn the car into the airport at Newcastle on our second to last day and will spend the day (carless) in Newcastle upon Tyne. Then we head down to York and area for 4 nights (no more car). We are taking the North York Moors Railway to Whitby. Our time in Northumberland and York is part of a longer trip in which we are focusing on towns and villages, gardens, countryside, history, food and canals. We look for tea houses too.

I think Mardee's plan of staying outside the city and Helen's idea of anywhere near the A1 make sense since that is what we decided to do.

I'm curious what you plan to do in Tynemouth. We have not looked into that.

Tynemouth is a pretty seaside town. It was developed with the coming of the railways in the Victorian era as a residential area for those who could afford to escape the city and enjoy the fresh air of the coast. It’s still a rather upmarket place to live with nice cafes and some beautiful homes. It also has a ruined priory dating back to 750ish and maritime history.

I’ve visited many times and like the walk from North Shields along the water to Tynemouth. Good pubs and fish and chips on North Shields.

Helen has beaten me in posting.

Tynemouth is one of those places known and loved by locals and 'those in the know'. It has a lot going for it. Have a look at this article to get an idea of just how good it is!

Also have a look at these pictures....

https://c8.alamy.com/comp/GRKEGB/front-street-tynemouth-GRKEGB.jpg

https://c8.alamy.com/comp/2JJ206N/a-view-of-tynemouth-uks-front-street-with-visitors-on-a-summers-day-2JJ206N.jpg

The market hall with its glass roof is well worth a visit.

There are plenty of places to eat and drink as well as some superb sandy beaches... I've already mentioned the ruined castle and priory in an earlier post.

And yes, my husband is a HUGE fan of Vera, and I've watched a few episodes with him. I didn't realize it was only in the TV series (and not the books) that she lived on Holy Island! It does seem an impractical choice, especially for someone in her profession. 😆

Paula, tell your husband that not only did the series change the location of her home, they also changed a bit of her personality in my opinion. I wasn't that crazy about Vera in the TV series as she could be very rude and prone to stealing food from her subordinates and never paying for anything. That was totally different than what she was like in the book. He might want to pick one up and try reading one.

I really enjoyed all of the Vera books and Vera was a much different person: still a lot of the same quirks and idiosyncrasies but she cared very much about her subordinates and often made sure that they had pizza brought in and other foods when they were working late. 😊

By the way if you can, I would highly suggest visiting Cragside, which is one of the most wonderful manor houses I've been in. I just loved it. Not only the interior but the exterior gardens were just phenomenal. It's really a beautiful place and if you can, try to get there when you have a car. It's really worth a visit.

Thank you so much, Mardee, isn31c, Helen, wasleys, geovagriffith, and Katiecem for all the suggestions, links, and travel excitement! This is all really really helpful.

Katiecem, have you checked out this channel on YouTube?
https://www.youtube.com/@Kakibot
Kat lives in Edinburgh and has a bunch of well-made travel videos about the Northeast that I found very useful in planning our trip. I haven't watched her Edinburgh videos but I imagine they're very good as well.

An additional question for those who've been: how much of a must-do are Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay? Easter Sunday is the only day we'll be able to go to Whitby and RHB from York (not ideal, I know 😓), and I'm 1) concerned about whether the long bus ride, tight bus connections, and potentially crowded buses will be worth the trip; and 2) wondering if we're better off just staying in York and experiencing Easter Sunday there (especially since our visits to Tynemouth, Alnmouth, and Bamburgh later in the trip could give us our seaside town fix).

Well others may have a different opinion but in my opinion Whitby is very unique and I really enjoyed my visit there. Whitby is very different than the Northumberland towns you mentioned. and it has a lot of history and nice scenic views. There's so many interesting things to see, such as the ruins of Whitby Abbey, which was allegedly Bram Stoker’s inspiration for “Dracula" (along with Slains Castle in Scotland). Then there is the Church of St. Mary with its 199 steps.

Robin Hood's Bay is a bit quieter I believe and probably won't be as crowded. I think the easiest way to get to Robin Hood's Bay from Whitby is by bus, so you certainly could see both. Honestly, while I enjoyed York, it's not really one of my favorite places. That's me, I don't like the crowds there, so I would definitely want to take an opportunity to step outside of that area and visit Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay. But I know there are others who have different opinions, so I think it all boils down to what you like.

I’ve been to all these places during Easter when my children were young and as it’s Easter all are going to be busy, but a lot will depend on the weather. If it’s a nice weekend, Whitby and Robin Hoods Bay could be very busy, but saying that, York probably will be as well so it’s all swings and roundabouts.

Have you considered the train there? I don’t know how the buses work. I’ve done the train from Pickering before (as a special treat) but would mostly drive and use the park and ride since I’m not that far.

As regards Whitby - I was actually wondering about you doing that on transfer day to Newcastle, taking the early evening train on from Whitby to Middlesbrough, change for Newcastle.
There must be somewhere in Whitby to leave your luggage for the day.
The thing about the bus on Easter Day is that the Whitby bus starts from Leeds. I've seen the line for it at Leeds Bus Station a number of times (on various days of the week), and sometimes it can be epic, especially with the current £3 fares (and free fares for over 65's), but then those same £3 fares have saved the route from being cancelled. Clearly if I'm seeing that bus at Leeds I don't know how many of those people get off at York, then how many others board at York.
But there is no doubt the bus often leaves full from Leeds, and I've seen it leave would be passengers behind. Maybe Coastliner put on a duplicate bus from York when that happens- I don't know.

What you could do is take the 0939 train from York, change at Thornaby, arrive Whitby 1230, then the 1237 or 1337 bus to RHB, the 1332, 1432 or 1532 back, then the 1736 bus back to York.
That would leave you the option of the X93 to Scarborough for train to York or the 1834 train if the 840 to York was totally heaving.

In some ways what I'm saying is that while the 840 is called "Britain's most scenic bus ride" all the bus routes/roads into Whitby are great scenic routes. Of them the 840 is the only one to normally use double deckers.
The X93 to Scarborough or Middlesbrough (over the moors) or the X3/X4 to Middlesbrough (via the coast) are all scenic routes, and all have lots of other places on their routes to visit.
And that's before the steam train or the normal train.

You could probably spend a week in Whitby exploring coast and countryside just using public transport, with ease.

Paulophonic, have you considered having a car for the whole of your trip after York? I think it will be easier to see the places you want to see that way. I don’t think Whitby will be very easy by bus on Easter Sunday and the other trips you want to take are also easy by car. You’ll fit a lot more in and the NE weather is very unpredictable so you can adjust plans. Easter could be quite cold and/or wet.

Also, you haven’t included a visit to the Roman Wall. Housesteads is very easy to see by car from Newcastle. It’s only about 45 mins from central Newcastle, less if you stay somewhere closer to main routes.

Paulophonic, have you considered having a car for the whole of your trip after York?

I wholeheartedly agree with Helen. It is going to be so much easier for you if you have a car for the whole time. I know you said you're renting one for a couple of days, so you're obviously not afraid to drive there. And really that area is very easy to drive in. I've driven in England a lot and there are areas that can be difficult but the northeast is not. And it will be so much easier to get to the places you want to see with a car.

If you did get a car, I would rethink the idea of staying in Newcastle as it would be much more enjoyable to stay at one of the coastal towns there. That said, I drove into and out of Newcastle and it wasn't all that difficult. But it would certainly make it easier to travel with a car. You could take the train from York to Newcastle and then rent a car in Newcastle and enjoy your Northumberland travels. It will be especially easy going to Holy Island as you do have to watch out for the tides and it's going to make it more difficult going there by public transport.

I don't know if you've rented a car yet but I would highly recommend Arnold Clark. I've used Arnold Clark on my last two trips to the UK. In 2024, I rented directly with AC (17 day rental) and then in 2023, I rented from them through their broker, Celtic Legend (14 day rental) for my trip to Scotland. One advantage to running the Arnold Clark car through Celtic Legend is that they give you an extra driver for free. So if both of you are driving that might be a plus. Both rental experiences went very well. Arnold Clark is a pleasure to deal with. Their agents explain everything to you and make sure that you understand the fine print. They are good about upgrading sometimes, and very courteous and helpful. I will always use them in the UK for future rentals.

https://www.arnoldclarkrental.com/
https://www.celticlegend.co.uk/car-rental/

I also agree with Helen about seeing Hadrian's wall at Housesteads. That's what I did when I was there and I wound up moving my base from Seahouses to Haltwhistle so that I could spend some time visiting the walls like Vindolanda and Housesteads. But even if you just go there for one day from wherever you're staying, it would work. It's really something to see and it makes it so much easier with a car.

mae brings up a good point in that if you are going there in early April, you will hit England right around the time of the school Easter breaks. I believe it's from April 2 to April 10, 2026. So just be aware of that. It probably won't be a huge inconvenience but just might make it a bit more crowded.

That's essentially why we are flying 4/11/26 :)

The Easter holidays won’t make a huge amount of difference. The North East is not exactly a tourist hotspot (despite having some the best places to visit in my opinion) and the vast majority of people you’ll see anywhere will live pretty locally.

If you are staying at York on Good Friday, Easter Eve and Easter Day, as you seem to be do be aware that York Minster may well be closed to visitors on Good Friday (your apparent arrival day) due to the solemnity of the day, and also has very restricted opening hours on a Sunday (1245- 1430) in between the end of morning services and 3pm Evensong.
The same can be said for Durham and Newcastle Cathedrals. (Durham is open 12 to 3, with 3.30 Evensong on Sunday).
I know your Trip Advisor thread has told you that Haworth Parsonage and Salts Mill are not open every day- their closing days are Monday and Tuesday so that does not affect you.
I'm not sure where you are arriving from on the Friday to be able to say how to arrange that. I would expect Haworth Parsonage to be open on the Friday, but am not at all sure that Salt's Mill will be open.

I would hire a car for the whole time - it opens up ease of access to all the places you want to visit. Outside the Tyneside conurbation, the roads are relatively quiet. You could stay in a castle, country houses, small b and bs, or corporate chains.

https://englandsnortheast.co.uk/

A caveat that I haven't visited any of these places. However, as far as scheduling:

1. You say you have three nights in York, which is two full days But you have two day trips listed. When do you plan to visit York itself if at all?
2. Likewise you say you are staying in Newcastle for four nights, but have listed five day trips, and then plan to drive to a new location.

I may be missing something, but overall it seems like
a classic case of listing all the places you've ever wanted to see,
and trying to cram them all in to too short a visit.

PharmerPhil, I would imagine that the OP will be doing several of these in one day. For example Beamish it's an open-air museum that is right outside of Durham. And Alnmouth, Holy Island and Bamburgh could potentially be done in one day since they are driving (plus it looks like they plan on sleeping that night in Bamburgh).