The North East of England

The North East’s wide open countryside and coastline lends itself to walking, cycling, following forest trails or mountain bike tracks – and if you prefer water to land you are sure to find the ideal location for sailing, surfing, fishing or white-water rafting.

Alnwick Castle

Kielder Water, Europe’s largest man-made lake, has unrivalled facilities for sailing and canoeing and the marinas at Amble, Sunderland and Hartlepool are ideal to berth your own boat.

Tynemouth is a highly regarded surfing and kite surfing area and the town has a bustling cafe culture during the day while things liven up at night.

The North East is blessed with a multitude of Art Galleries including the iconic BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art. Housed in a former flour mill on the south bank of the River Tyne in Gateshead, the BALTIC is the largest gallery of its kind in the world.

The Baltic Art Centre

The Sage Gateshead, also on the south bank of the River Tyne in Gateshead, is another landmark and is an outstanding centre for music and musical discovery.

Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens combines a museum, art gallery and Winter Gardens and not to be outdone, South Shields Museum & Art Gallery explores the story of South Tyneside through sensational displays, hands-on exhibits and stunning art.

Durham Cathedral

North East England boasts more castles than any other region in England. Bamburgh and Dunstanburgh Castles are coastal highlights whilst Lindisfarne Castle on Holy Island, is only accessible twice a day when the tide is out.

Warkworth and Alnwick Castles are impressive - Alnwick Castle has been in much demand as a film location particularly for the Harry Potter series of films.

Durham’s Castle and Cathedral, together with Hadrian’s Wall are impressive World Heritage Sites. The Castle Keep, in Newcastle replaced the original ‘New Castle’ from which the city name is derived.

Theatre enthusiasts will enjoy the Theatre Royal, Newcastle, the regional home of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Empire Theatre in Sunderland is renowned for its lavish productions of West End hits.