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7 Best Beaches In Northumberland
Dress for a Northumberland beach the way you would dress for a hill. The seven recorded here are all outdoor with no shelter listed against any of them, they face the North Sea, and the wind that comes off it in any month has an edge that catches southern visitors out badly. Bamburgh Beach is the famous one, an enormous sweep of sand under a castle, and enormous is exactly the problem when the wind is up and there is nowhere to duck behind. Newton Haven Beach and Warkworth Beach are gentler in feel. Blyth Beach, Spittal Beach, Amble Links Beach and Cresswell Beach complete the list.
Top beaches in Northumberland
Showing 1–7 of 7
BeachesBamburgh Beach
BeachesWarkworth Beach
BeachesAmble Links Beach
BeachesNewton Haven Beach
BeachesCresswell Beach
BeachesBlyth Beach
BeachesSpittal Beach
Clothing decides everything on this coast. Get it right and there is vast, near-empty sand waiting even in August, and few things are rarer to hand a child than an empty beach. Get it wrong and you last twenty windswept moments and drive home. Waterproof outer layers, hats, spare everything, and a flask are what separate the two outcomes.
Beaches in Northumberland: FAQs
Is the sea warm enough to swim?
It is cold, and it stays cold long after the air has warmed up, so treat proper swimming as a wetsuit activity for most of the year. Paddling and splashing at the edge is what most children do here and it is plenty. Watch for how quickly small bodies chill once wet, and have dry clothes ready rather than in the car.
Which beach copes best with a strong wind?
The smaller, more enclosed ones, because a huge open strand offers nothing to shelter behind. Newton Haven Beach is the friendlier choice when it is blowing hard. Dunes help where they exist, and sitting with your back to a dune and the wind over your shoulder makes a considerable difference to how long a family will stay.
What about sand blowing about?
On a windy day it stings, gets into food and ruins cameras and phone ports, so a proper bag that shuts is worth more than a windbreak. Sunglasses are surprisingly useful in that situation even under grey cloud. If children are getting hit by it, move behind the dune line or accept the day has told you what it thinks.
Is it worth going in winter?
Yes, if what you are planning is a walk and not a beach day. Winter here gives you huge skies, wild sea and sand with nobody on it, which is a genuinely memorable outing for children old enough to enjoy weather. Keep it short, keep it moving, and have somewhere warm to go straight afterwards.