Forgotten paradise

Jul 18 2008 By Emily Shelley

Idyllic Northumberland coast still a treasured holiday destination

It's dangerous to revisit treasured holiday destinations from your childhood.

Inevitably peaceful seaside villages will have become sprawling towns, idyllic campsites hemmed in by main roads and once pristine beaches swathed in litter.

But my husband and his brother were determined to retrace smaller steps to the shores of Northumberland in search of the magical summers of their youth in the 70s.

Blessedly, the 'boys' found exactly what they were looking for.

Breathtaking beaches backed by still giant dunes and softly swaying grasses; pretty coastal hamlets with traditional, unpretentious pubs; rockpools and razorbills, castles and cream teas - it was all exactly as they remembered.

Well, not exactly. This stretch of Heritage Coast from Berwick-upon-Tweed south to Alnwick and Alnmouth may not have fallen prey to mass development or 'boutique chic', but it's not stuck in a timewarp.

Our base for the week was a case in point - a stylish holiday home available through the Premier Cottages group.

We felt the pull of Holy Island on our doorstep almost as soon as we arrived. Accessible by car only at low tide, the approach to the island is a bit of an adventure in itself, along a narrow strip of tarmac across the still damp seabed.

The so-called birthplace of Christianity in the UK, this was where St Aidan founded Lindisfarne Priory in AD635, but it was his successor, St Cuthbert, who made it famous - the holy man spread his message far across the North East and attracted a huge following.

The light here is dazzling, the view out to sea from the long strips of deserted beach is so vast that your head starts to ache, and the on-shore breeze that whips through the remains of the Priory - it was dissolved in 1537 - is bracing to say the least.

When you've had enough of the elements, explore the accompanying museum run by English Heritage, which gives an insight into the history of Lindisfarne - at times blissfully serene, at others breathtakingly bloody.

There's a village on the island and a handful of pubs, shops and cafes to wander round, as well as the National Trust owned Lindisfarne Castle, an Elizabethan fortress turned Edwardian pleasure palace.

Heed the warnings and keep an eye on the time though - the sea comes in swift and strong and when it does the village becomes a ghost town.

Of course, a little divine intervention with the weather is necessary on a British seaside holiday and we were gifted sunny blue skies - although the wind was uplifting to more than the spirits.

On our one rainy day we visited Berwick-upon-Tweed. There's plenty of history in evidence in this long fought over town, but don't expect a state-of-theart visitor centre to guide you through it.

Bamburgh Castle, on a majestic outcrop lording over a picturesque village and a golden sandy beach, appears as a too-good-to-be-true English scene.

Further south is the town of Alnwick where the castle - which doubles as Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films - draws thousands of visitors from all over the world, but it's the neighbouring Alnwick Garden that is the real star attraction.

Just make sure you turn your mobile off for the full Northumberland experience.

Travel facts...

Emily Shelley was a guest of Premier Cottages (www.premiercottages.co.uk), an independent association of four and five-star holiday cottages across Great Britain and Ireland. She stayed at The Stables at Bee Hill. Prices for Bee Hill Properties in 2008 start from £360 per week (low season) rising to £2,200 (high season). Visit www.beehill.co.uk or call 01289 303 425 for reservations.

Visit www.visitnorthumberland.com for more information.