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Of course our tours, which offer excellent value for money, can be customised to your own choice of route, number of passengers, etc. Call our Administration Office on 0191 2517738 to discuss your tour itinerary.
Some of the more popular routes, as detailed below (scroll down), have included Hadrian's Wall, Alnwick Castle (now famous as the setting for 'Hogwarts' from
Prices start from as little as £20 per person (based on 6 passengers
sharing, and exclusive of meals or accommodation which are to be agreed/arranged separately).
Suggested itineraries for 1 Day Tours:
1 Tyneside History and Heritage
2 Durham City and Weardale
3 Roman Wall and North Tyne Valley
4 Northumberland Castles and Coast
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9:30 Depart International Ferry Terminal, DFDS North Shields (Newcastle), or from your local pick up point of choice. We will visit the numerous historic buildings and sites revealing the heritage of Tyneside and the River Tyne — a vital sea connection between the cities of Newcastle and London for 800 years.
We will pass the many famous bridges which cross the Tyne gorge in Newcastle and see some of the modern developments which are part of the renaissance of this unique and previously
isolated community — a city and region which have played a vital part in the commercial and industrial history of Britain and the world for many centuries.
12:00 Travelling via Gateshead we call next at the site of Arbeia, a Roman Fort in
13:00 Travel to North Shields and the Magnesia Bank Public House for lunch.
A traditional pub in the heart of North Shields, high on the banks above the mouth of the River Tyne. This award-winning establishment offers superb food and a wide selection of Real Ales.
14:00 Depart North Shields and travel along the Coast to Tynemouth Castle and through North Tyneside to Segedunum (Wallsend), the eastern-most end of the Roman Wall. Look down on the site layout from the spectacular viewing tower.
15:45 Back to the Ferry Terminal, North Shields, or to your return destination.
9:30 Depart International Ferry Terminal, DFDS North Shields (Newcastle), or local pick up point of choice.
10:15 Arrive in Durham City, World Heritage Site, Cathedral and Castle. The burial place of St. Cuthbert, this splendid 11th century Norman Cathedral, sited on a spectacular peninsular overlooking the river Wear, is also the site of England's third oldest University.
The City is the county town of County Durham, reflecting a heritage founded in the spread of Christianity in England
from the 6th century onwards, to the 18th century Industrial Revolution
when the coalmines of Durham produced a large part of the nation's fuel. You
will have time to visit the Cathedral and some of the surrounding University buildings.
11:30 Depart for upper Weardale with a short journey on the preserved Weardale Steam Railway from Wolsingham to Stanhope (timetable permitting).
12:45 Time for lunch at the Black Bull Inn, Frosterley, a beautifully restored country inn, where you can sample
the local food and enjoy a meal in comfort, warmed by the open fires or eat in the garden — weather permitting of course!
14:00 Departing Frosterley, we now head into the heart of upper Weardale through an area of outstanding natural beauty, via Rookhope (a former mining village), and over the spectacular, vast open moorland of the High Pennines, the backbone of England.
Returning through the beautiful Derwent Valley and then via Newcastle, we will expect to arrive at the International Ferry Terminal at approximately 15:30, leaving a little time for some bargain shopping at the Royal Quays Outlet Shops. Or alternatively you will arrive at your return destination.
9:30 Depart International Ferry Terminal, DFDS North Shields (Newcastle), or local pick up point of choice.
10:15 Heddon On The Wall. The start
of 'Roman Wall Country' we take the scenic Military Road westwards to Housesteads Fort, located high on the Whin Sill crags overlooking the picturesque Crag Lough.
11:00 Housesteads Roman Fort. Enjoy a walk on the wall, built 2,000 years ago.
A World Heritage Site, view the open countryside to the North, looking much as it did to the mighty Roman Legionaries as they patrolled this northern fringe of their Empire. This part of the wall has been well preserved and includes a Roman fort still showing the workings of central heating and flush toilets as installed by those resourceful Roman engineers!
13:15 Time for lunch at the Battlesteads Hotel, recently refurbished to a high standard offering high quality food and prize-winning Real Ales from local breweries.
14:30 Depart Wark and return journey via the heart of rural Northumberland with a short stop at Otterburn village with its famous Mill and factory shop, offering for sale traditional knitwear and tweed cloth goods.
15:30 We arrive back at the Ferry Terminal, or your return destination.
9:30 Depart International Ferry Terminal, DFDS North Shields (Newcastle), or your local pick up point of choice.
We travel northwards up the Coast to Warkworth and Alnmouth, the beginning of the spectacular area of coastline designated as outstanding natural beauty and interest. We will see numerous castles which tell of the long struggles against the Scots and Vikings to conquer and subdue this area.
11:30 A visit to the picturesque village
of Bamburgh, the site of the massive, imposing castle which sits in spectacular position on the easternmost edge of
the Great Whin Sill, a geological
formation running from SW to NE Northumberland.
13:00 Arrive in Alnwick. Famous market town with Alnwick Castle at its heart, the oldest continuously occupied castle in England and home to the Dukes of Northumberland since the 14th century.
You may well spot the current Duchess of Northumberland, who has been constantly active in developing the Castle and its grounds; establishing the award-winning Alnwick Gardens with water features and a recently completed and very impressive Tree House. We will have our lunch break in the Gardens and Tree House area.
14:45 Time now to leave Alnwick and back to the Ferry Terminal at North Shields, or your return destination.