Berwick-upon-Tweed is completely encircled by Europe’s finest preserved Elizabethan Fortifications. No visitor should miss the 1.5-mile circuit, with every aspect of the town on show, clear views of our stunning coastline, and glimpses of a dangerous past. Berwick changed hands at least thirteen times in 300 years of Border warfare, making it one of the most fought-over towns in history.

An insight into the military background of the town can be discovered with a visit to the Berwick Barracks Museum, Britain’s first purpose-built army barracks, which houses The Borough Museum, English Heritage and KOSB. The three museums are open from Easter to Oct.

The unique Cromwellian Church stands opposite the Barracks. Visitors are welcome throughout the year to view the 16th century stained-glass windows, original Communion table, and beautiful rose window. The Viking and plague graves in the churchyard complete this fascinating church.

The spine-chilling cells of the Town Hall Museum can be visited throughout the summer with two excellent tours a day (Mon-Fri). Visit the “drunks” cell, “condemned” cell, and courtroom to learn of bygone law and punishment.

Exploring the town walls and bridges can be achieved by following The Lowry Trail, which follows in the footsteps of L.S.Lowry as he wandered the town on holiday, painting many familiar views. The interpretation panels are scattered around Berwick, then draw the follower over the river into Tweedmouth and Spittal.

Tweedmouth was once a small fishing village, and is now very much part of the town with the Swan Centre for Leisure (sports centre and swimming pool), Tweed Docks, various accommodations, eateries and shops.

The small seaside resort of Spittal has a character all of its own. The long sandy beach, modern children’s play park, seafront café and amusements create a haven for families, while the romance of the promenade leads to the cliff top walk, affording spectacular views to the sea.

Three bridges sweep over the River Tweed, connecting the elegant Georgian town of Berwick-upon-Tweed to its neighbour communities of Tweedmouth and Spittal. The Old Bridge dates back to King James VI of Scotland’s ascendance to the English Throne and was opened in 1624. From the Tweedmouth end of the Old Bridge you will encounter the town’s famous herd of mute Swans.

The most recently completed is the Royal Tweed Bridge, which opened in 1928 to ease the number of motor vehicles over the Old Bridge. It carried all the old A1 traffic until 1984 when the bypass to the west of Berwick opened.

The spectacular Royal Border Bridge is the most imposing of the three. Stephenson’s great feat of engineering spans the Tweed with 28 looming concrete arches, 38m above the river. Queen Victoria opened the railway bridge on 29th August 1850.

Other bridges in our beautiful Borough include; the Union Chain Bridge built in 1819-20, this was the first suspension bridge for vehicles in Europe, and the only one built by Captain S Brown which still survives today; Norham Bridge, a powerful stone bridge of four segmental arches, built for the Tweed Bridges Trust in 1885-7; and Twizell Bridge, crossed by the English Army to surprise the Scots at the battle of Flodden Field, Branxton.

Our history is palpable, with the ages laid bare before you in buildings and landscapes. What was once the most advanced military technology now stands as monument to the past, there for you to gaze on and never to forget.

The stunning heritage coastline offers wide sweeps of clean golden beaches and is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. This powerful landscape forms a backdrop to Bamburgh Castle, the abundant birdlife of the Farne Islands and the cradle of Christianity, the Holy Island of Lindisfarne.

Bamburgh village is dominated by the magnificent castle seemingly built out of and on top of a huge rocky outcrop. This beautiful and instantly recognisable view of Bamburgh castle featured in Britain’s Best View 2007. Bamburgh beach is long, wide and never crowded. Along with Seahouses and Beadnell beaches, it was recognised with a Marine Conservation Award 2007. It was in sight of this beach that the national heroine Grace Darling set out with her father to rescue survivors of the wreck of the SS Forfarshire in 1838. Grace Darling is buried in the village church yard opposite the newly furbished museum dedicated to her bravery.

The village of Seahouses is proud of its links with the sea; the harbour wall allows a platform for anglers and a promenade with a good view of the boats for strollers. The Farne Islands nature reserve lies just offshore and is home to over 20 species of breeding seabirds, a must for any bird watchers visiting the area. Boat trips leave from the bustling harbour. In previous times the Farnes solitude was treasured by missionaries who helped bring Christianity to England. Seahouses offers a real mixture of seaside flavours from fish and chips to amusements and ice cream.

A few miles south of Seahouses is the village of Beadnell with its gem of a bay around its peaceful headland. The beach is the only west facing beach on the north east coast of England and has a seaside flag award for cleanliness and facilities.

The Holy Island of Lindisfarne is 12 miles south of Berwick-upon-Tweed and is accessible twice a day when the tide drops back from the causeway. Before crossing to the island always check the tide times.

Lindisfarne has an ethereal quality where nature and history combine to provide a refuge for the spirit. The island has a number of attractions including the fairytale castle, now a National Trust property, perched on the highest point of the island. Lindisfarne Priory was built to re-establish a Christian community on the island and is now run by English Heritage. Visitors to the Lindisfarne Centre can view an electronic version of the world famous Lindisfarne Gospels. The Gospel Garden can also be visited all year round. Visit Lindisfarne Ltd and taste the Lindisfarne Mead a delicious honey based alcoholic drink that dates back some 1300 years to a time when it was first produced by the monks in the priory.

For those that hanker for space, freedom and almost total solitude, there is no better place than the weatherworn beauty of the Northumberland National Park and the Cheviot’s heather-clad sheep dotted slopes. This gentle wilderness has a real sense of ‘otherness’, this is Glendale. An area of hill farming communities centred in the market town of Wooler, where a rustic warm welcome is always to be had.

The attractive stone-built town of Wooler is the natural gateway to the Cheviot Hills and from its main street, three roads wynd through the foothills into the National Park. With quiet roads and bridleways this is an ideal base for cyclists and a walker’s paradise offering some of the most challenging and rewarding hill walking in the country.

The village of Belford 14 miles south of Berwick-upon-Tweed, a small attractive village of stone houses whose broad main street contains some interesting shops and a fine old coaching inn, reflecting the fact that this was once an important village on the Great North Road. Today it is the ideal holiday base, standing on the edge of the Kyloe Hills, where there are some fine walks close to the long golden beaches and rocky outcrops of the coast.

The Cheviot Hills herald the regions sternest walking challenge, with exhilarating climbs to gaze over inspiring panoramas. St Cuthbert’s Way covers 63 miles of border landscape, a lengthy challenge from the Scottish Border town of Melrose all the way to The Holy Island of Lindisfarne. The newly opened Northumberland Coast Path, which is part of the North Sea Trail a 64 mile walk from Cresswell to Berwick-upon-Tweed. The route follows the coast in most places with an inland detour between Belford and Holy Island, passing stunning cliff tops in stark contrast with beautiful long stretches of sandy beach.

Launched in 2006 St Oswalds way is a 96 mile walk from Lindisfarne to Heavenfield. The walk is divided into six sections and there are guest houses and hotels along the way. Whatever the time of year the paths are open and every season shows a different side of the landscape.

It is always advisable to book your accommodation before you set out. Berwick-upon-Tweed Tourist Information offers an advanced booking service for St Cuthberts Way, Northumberland Coast Path and St Oswalds Way.

If you prefer to see the rural splendour of the Borough on two wheels, then why not complete the ultimate cycling challenge… The Coast and Castles Cycle Route. The route runs from Newcastle to Edinburgh via Berwick and Melrose, a distance of 200 miles, 39 of which are traffic-free. For an alternative long-distance route, why not try The Pennine Cycleway. This breathtaking 150 mile cycle way begins in Appleby-in-Westmorland and finishes in Berwick-upon-Tweed. The final 17-mile stretch from Wooler to Berwick, taking in the castles of Ford, Etal and Norham, has become a popular route in its own right.

For visiting golfers the Borough of Berwick-upon-Tweed offers a varied terrain of quiet, beautiful courses. There are courses at Berwick (Magdalene Fields), Goswick, Belford, Bamburgh, Seahouses and Wooler as well as Dunstanburgh, Warkworth, Rothbury, Alnwick, Alnmouth, Burgham Park and Swarland (Percywood Golf and Country Retreat) in the neighbouring District of Alnwick. Eleven of these courses have joined forces to promote the excellent golfing facilities on offer through the ‘Golfer’s Parsport’ scheme. The ‘Parsport’ is a 3 or 5 day pass which can be purchased from any of the Tourist Information Centres in the Borough of Berwick-upon-Tweed and District of Alnwick.

The Borough of Berwick-upon-Tweed and surrounding area provides a wide variety of fishing opportunities, from the internationally famous Salmon fishing on the River Tweed to the excellent Sea Trout fishing on its tributaries. With some of the country’s most beautiful scenery, many people find fishing in the Borough one of the most enjoyable sports in Northumberland.

Berwick is different, very different from other places in the UK. It has always been this way, so much so that, in the past, people have fought to get in. We always seemed to have something special that other people wanted. It is the same today. The only difference is that you don’t have to fight your way into the town. The people standing on the Town walls are waving to visitors, not shaking their fists at them.

Berwick has always had for company beautiful countryside, a delightful coastline and the estuary of the River Tweed. Over the years it has added, through its own labours, a fascinating history and some remarkable buildings. Many visitors are attracted to Berwick by this rich heritage and in the knowledge that they will receive a welcome to match that of King James in 1603 when en route to London to be crowned. The cheering crowds may be missing, but the sincerity of the welcome will be obvious. The people of Berwick want visitors to experience the quality of life that they themselves enjoy every day simply because they live here.

The Berwick coastline and hinterland is home to farmers, cooks and fishermen deeply committed to producing food of outstanding quality. It is an area unusually rich in good food, the source of much of this quality food and drink is identified in the Directory of Local Produce made available to the public by Berwick Slow Food, with many of the producers also selling through the regular Farmer’s Markets.

Over the centuries Berwick has experienced many changes. Not all of them have been welcomed and some of them have been painful. The town is currently in the early stages of another period of change, but on this occasion it is peaceful and welcomed by the residents. It is to enhance, even more, the quality of life in this quality town of ours. The town you enjoy and appreciate as a visitor. Contributing to this programme of change ‘Slow Food Berwick-upon-Tweed’ was created in 2006 and after fifteen months of endeavour by members of the community, Berwick attained Cittaslow status in 2007.

Cittaslow is an international status that came into being in 1999. It is available to towns with a population of less than 50,000 providing the town attains a standard against a set of sixty criteria all associated with quality of living for those who live and/or work in the town. It is because visitors are considered to be residents for the duration of their stay that their needs are also anticipated and catered for. Cittaslow status is an acknowledged indicator of excellence and only five other towns in the United Kingdom have the status so once again Berwick is somewhat different to most. “Quality Living in a Quality Town” is Berwick today. Improving both is the vision for Cittaslow-Berwick.

Slow Food Berwick-upon-Tweed (www.slowfoodberwick.org.uk) is working with local producers to provide an even better and wider choice of good, locally produced food and drink for our visitors. One of the highlights of the 2008 season will be a major food festival in Berwick.

In the 7th and 8th centuries AD, the area that is now the Borough of Berwick-upon-Tweed was the principal centre of power in Anglo-Saxon England. From their royal fortress at Bamburgh and their palaces in Glendale, the kings of Northumbria ruled over a domain that stretched from the Humber to the Forth. Excavations at these and other important sites in north Northumberland have unearthed remarkable evidence of that Golden Age. Discover about life in Anglo-Saxon Northumbria through our programme of living history events, exhibitions, talks and open days at archaeological sites associated with the characters and events of the period.

In 635AD, King Oswald brought the Irish missionary Aidan from Iona to Lindisfarne to found the first monastery in Northumbria. During the next two centuries Lindisfarne flourished as a beacon of learning and spirituality. Monks carried the Christian gospels from the Holy Island to convert other kingdoms and found bishoprics and churches throughout Britain. Our year-long Festival is based on the calendar of feast days of the saints of Northumbria’s Golden Age such as Aidan, Oswald, Ebba, Cuthbert and Bede.

The beautiful Lindisfarne Gospels are among the country’s greatest treasures and represent the high-point of Anglo-Saxon art. Early in the 8th century, the Northumbrian monk Bede wrote the first history of the English people. To celebrate this wonderful cultural heritage the Golden Age of Northumbria Festival features the skills of a wide variety of artists and craftspeople, from calligraphy to floral art displays, textiles to wood-sculpture.

The Northumbrian saints shared a love and understanding of the natural world. Join one of our themed guided walks to explore the unspoilt landscapes and the historic sites that would have been known to the saints, kings and ordinary folk of the Kingdom of Northumbria. Experience peace and sense of place among the seabirds and seals on the Farne Islands, or alone with the sheep and skylarks on the Cheviot hillsides.