Northumberland Holiday Guide 2009
So Near,
YET SO NEAR...
The delights of Northumberland just go on and on – as the many visitors
who return year after year will tell you. But North East England’s treasures
don’t end at the county’s borders. Northumberland is uniquely placed
to provide the peace and tranquility to get away from it all, while bustling
cities, towns and heritage sites are within an easy drive.
Durham Cathedral, mike mcFarlane
From the City of Durham’s rich history to the dazzling In Newcastle, visit The Castle Keep - the last remaining
lights of the NewcastleGateshead Quayside to the picture- part of the ‘new castle’ that gave the city its name - and
postcard market towns of the Tees Valley, there is a huge The Cathedral Church of St Nicholas an impressive, yet
range of activities and events vying for your attention. The
welcoming church that imparts a vivid sense of the city’s
hard part comes in deciding what to choose…
history. Due to open in April 2009.
For a taste of urban life, you can’t go wrong with
The Great North Museum is a new £26 million museum
NewcastleGateshead. The city has it all: excellent shopping,
bringing together collections from around North East England.
great theatres and galleries, historic buildings, and excellent
Highlights will include a large-scale, interactive model of
nightlife, whether you’re looking for a gourmet restaurant or a
Hadrian’s Wall - northern England’s spectacular Roman
night on the town. What’s more, it is surprisingly compact and
frontier.  There will be major new displays showing the
easy to walk around. Why not leave the car behind and take a
wonder and diversity of the natural world, spectacular objects
train into the city centre?
from Ancient Greece and mummies from Ancient Egypt, a
planetarium and a life-size Tyranosaurus Rex skeleton.
On a day trip to NewcastleGateshead, make sure you visit
the Quayside, an excellent example of the regeneration of South of the river Tyne, Gateshead’s MetroCentre is a shopper’s
the whole of North East England. Just over a decade ago the paradise, offering one of the largest shopping malls in Europe,
Quayside area still bore the scars of a city built on coal and with a fantastic range of high street retailers and smaller
shipbuilding. Today, it is vibrant and revitalised; sizzling with boutiques. Ideal for family-friendly rainy days, as well as for the
life and home to many of the city’s best bars and restaurants. shopaholics among us! Don’t miss the spectacular Angel of the
Saturday night sees the area transformed as the bright lights North sculpture, by Antony Gormley OBE. While it can be viewed
attract many revellers, while Sunday morning offers a great from the road (and is done, by 33 million people a year), it is worth
Quayside market. Don’t miss out on The Sage Gateshead; a stopping the car for a proper look, as it is impossible to judge the
landmark concert venue on Gateshead Quays, and BALTIC scale of this most wonderful landmark until you get up close.
Centre for Contemporary Art; the place to go for cutting
edge, international art. The viewing platform on the top floor of Sunderland is another city that has benefited from regeneration,
BALTIC offers wonderful views across NewcastleGateshead. while retaining a sense of its heritage The National Glass
60 www.visitnorthumberland.com
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