6 Days & 5 Nights

4.7

Berwickshire Coastal Path

Walk the Berwickshire Coastal Path from Dunbar to Berwick-upon-Tweed
The Scottish and English Borders immersed in thrilling history
Exhilarating walking on some of Britain's highest sea cliffs
St Abbs Head, an extinct volcano and a National Nature Reserve
Discover the fishing villages, smugglers coves and birdlife on one of Scotland's Great Trails

The Berwickshire Coastal Path crosses the border from Scotland into England and is a hidden gem that has some of the most spectacular scenery in the UK. One of Scotland's Great Trails, this long-distance walk is an absolute winner and very easily accessible from Edinburgh. There is plenty to discover; breathe in the salty air from the high sea cliffs, soak up the history of Scottish and English border conflicts and view the remains of forts and castles left behind. Explore its fishing villages and smugglers coves, award-winning beaches and St Abbs Head, a National Nature Reserve famed for its rare bird life and coastal flora, such as marsh orchids and meadow saxifrage. Try local produce at various eateries scattered along the coast and stay in local, carefully-selected accommodation. This area will captivate you so why not check this tour off your bucket-list?

From £650.00

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Itinerary

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Day 1 Arrive Dunbar & Overnight

Arrive in Dunbar, which is easily accessible in approximately 30 minutes by train from Edinburgh. You can also drive and leave your car in Dunbar for the duration of your trip and then get a train back from Berwick-upon Tweed to Dunbar which takes 25 minutes. This picturesque harbour town on the Berwickshire coast is a hidden Scottish gem and birthplace of the conservationist John Muir. With its small independent shops and wide high street, museum and a ruined castle, where Mary Queen of Scots took refuge, there is plenty to explore.

Overnight Dunbar

Accommodation

A sample of our typical carefully chosen accommodation in this location. Where you stay will vary depending on availability, but will be a similar standard.

Royal Mackintosh Hotel | 3 Star | Hotel

The Royal Mackintosh Hotel is an independently family run hotel situated in the seaside town of Dunbar, it has 16 bedrooms all of which are en-suite. Each room contains a tv and dvd player, tea and coffee making facilities and a hairdryer. Free wifi is available in the public areas. The Mauretania Restaurant is open to both hotel guests and visitors. It is named after the RMS Mauretania and the restaurant itself is decorated with wood panelling taken from the ship's boardroom.

The Rocks | Hotel

The Rocks at Dunbar has 11 rooms, which all enjoy superb views across to Victoria Harbour and the ruins of Dunbar Castle, or over to Winterfield Golf Course and Belhaven Bay. Enjoy a delicious meal in the Inn’s restaurant and revel in the views across to Victoria Harbour and the ruins of Dunbar Castle.

Springfield Guest House | Guest House

You will be guaranteed a warm welcome when you check into this B&B. This guest house has modern facilities in a traditional period house in its own grounds. All rooms are comfortably furnished and have all the amenities you require for a lovely overnight stay including free WIFI, relaxing rooms overlooking surrounding gardens and breakfast prepared to Healthy Living Award standards.

Day 2 Walk to Cockburnspath, transfer to Dunbar 11 miles / 17 km

On today's walk along the John Muir Way link trail, there will be plenty of coastal views as the route hugs the shore. After setting off from the harbour you pass the Barns Ness Lighthouse. Standing at 37m tall and built between 1899 and 1901 by the novelist Robert Louis Stevenson's cousins, it is a distinctive feature of the landscape. With sandy beaches en route, you will be sure to enjoy the peacefulness of this day. You will be transferred back to Dunbar for a second overnight (20 minutes).

Ascent: 136m (446ft) / Descent: 71m (233ft)

Overnight Dunbar

Accommodation

A sample of our typical carefully chosen accommodation in this location. Where you stay will vary depending on availability, but will be a similar standard.

Springfield Guest House | Guest House

The Rocks | Hotel

Royal Mackintosh Hotel | 3 Star | Hotel

Day 3 Transfer to Cockburnspath, walk to St Abbs 14 miles / 22 km

Today a transfer back to Cockburnspath to begin your walk to St Abbs is included. This is the official start of the Berwickshire Coastal Trail and you will be initially walking to Cove Harbour, used by smugglers in the 1700's. Then follow the coast past Pease Bay, a Site of Special Scientific Interest which is managed by the Scottish Wildlife Trust as a Nature Reserve. Keep a lookout for woodpeckers, treecreepers, dippers and various tits and finches. Roe deer and red squirrels have also been known to make this reserve their home.

Pass the ancient remains of Fast Castle (rebuilt in 1522) and then see St Abbs Head before you, a National Nature Reserve and home to an array of seabirds, including kittywakes, puffins (in season), and guillemots. Here you are on the highest cliffs on the Berwickshire Coastal Path and some of the highest in the UK. Another transfer will take you to Eyemouth, where you'll stay for two consecutive nights.

Ascent: 463m (1,519ft) / Descent: 516m (1,693ft)

Overnight Eyemouth

Accommodation

A sample of our typical carefully chosen accommodation in this location. Where you stay will vary depending on availability, but will be a similar standard.

The Home Arms | Bed and breakfast

The Home Arms is a family-run B&B located at the heart the seaside resort and picturesque fishing port of Eyemouth. A historic listed building, the large house has run as a hotel & guest house since the late 1880s. While still retaining its charm and character, the whole house has been modernised and there is plenty of room to relax in comfort. Rooms have Tea & Coffee making facilities, TV/DVD/ Radio and FREE Wireless Internet.

Day 4 Transfer to St Abbs, walk to Eyemouth 4.5 miles / 7 km

After a hearty and sustaining breakfast an included transfer will take you to St Abbs. Although the walk is short today, there is plenty to explore and this gives you the extra time to do exactly that. If you did not have the time to explore St Abbs yet then now is the time to do it. It's an attractive fishing village and you can also check out its lighthouse (you will have to divert off the trail and backtrack slightly to St Abbs).

After a detour and lingering in lovely St Abbs follow the coastline to Eyemouth, the largest town in Berwickshire with lots to discover. It is also a fishing port and remains one of the busiest in Scotland, with around 80 boats regularly fishing out of it and a bustling early morning trade at the fish market. You could also visit the Eyemouth Museum which provides information about its fishing history, including the storm in 1881 which destroyed the local fishing fleet. Spend the afternoon exploring, before you can check into your welcoming accommodation.

Ascent: 23m (77ft) / Descent: 102m (335ft)

Overnight Eyemouth

Accommodation

A sample of our typical carefully chosen accommodation in this location. Where you stay will vary depending on availability, but will be a similar standard.

The Home Arms | Bed and breakfast

Day 5 Walk to Berwick-upon-Tweed 12 miles / 19 km

Leave this lovely fishing harbour behind and reach the coastline where there are plenty of short ups and downs as you walk into coves and along clifftops. In a short while, you come to the village of Burnmouth, where there is a small harbour and where the local name for crab is partan, a gaelic word. Then cross the border into England and reach Marshall Meadows, the most northern point in England!

From here it's only a short distance to Berwick-upon-Tweed. Pass the Needles Eye, an impressive natural archway. At Magdalene Fields Golf Course see your first glimpse of the impressive Berwick town walls.

Since 1482 Berwick-upon-Tweed has changed hands between the Scots and the English fourteen times. Explore the ramparts and see the barracks that were designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor who is generally famous for his London churches. Also view Old Berwick Bridge built in 1611, The Royal Tweed Bridge, built in 1925 and the Robert Stephenson's Royal Border Bridge over which carries the main East Coast Railway Line. There is plenty to explore here and if you have the time we recommend an extra night.

Ascent: 333m (1,093ft) / Descent: 338m (1,109ft)

Overnight Berwick-upon-Tweed

Accommodation

A sample of our typical carefully chosen accommodation in this location. Where you stay will vary depending on availability, but will be a similar standard.

Cowrie Guest House | Bed and breakfast, Guest House

A quality Bed & Breakfast with 4 ensuite rooms and set in the heart of Berwick-upon-Tweed, just minutes from the railway station. With a tasty breakfast and a very warm welcome from the owners, you are sure to enjoy your stay here.

Tweed View House | Bed and breakfast

You are assured a very warm welcome from Liz and Graham at the Tweed View House. The rooms have free WiFi, flat screen televisions, a fridge, tea/coffee making facilities, fresh milk, bathrobes, hairdryer, toiletries, information pack & much more.

Day 6 Onward Travel

THIS TRIP'S CARBON SCORE

This trip has a carbon score of 10kg per person per night, meaning it’s one of our best trips! For comparison, a carbon count of 10kg is equivalent to 18 lattes. Here at Macs, we pride ourselves on being a responsible travel company and continue to adopt, develop and innovate ways to positively impact the environment. Find out more information on how we've carbon counted our trips.

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Other Information

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Is it for me?

Walk along easy to moderate trails on the Berwickshire Coastal Path, with some of the most renowned coastal views in all of the UK and soak in the history of the area, including the smuggling culture, plus the English and Scottish border struggles. If you like fresh sea breezes, walks with few elevation gains and losses and staying in cosy local B&B's, you will really love this tour!

Trip Type:

Classic Routes | If you’re the active, outdoorsy type, who’s interested in taking on the great routes of the world or looking for a challenge, then our Classic Routes are for you. We’re talking the West Highland Way, Tour Du Mont Blanc and the Passau to Vienna Danube Cycle Path, to name but a few!

Activity:

Multi Centre Walking | With a mix of loop and point-to-point walks stay 2 or 3 nights in one place which offers the chance to slow down and really explore a destination.

This trip is suitable for:

Solo Travellers

The minimum age for this tour is: 12 Years

Ideal if you have an interest in:

Coastal Walking

Grade & Terrain

This route is graded easy to moderate overall. On the walk from Eyemouth to Berwick-upon-Tweed there is a fair amount of elevation gain and loss, but nothing too strenuous. Daily walking distances vary between 5 - 15 miles. A good level of fitness will be required. On most days the average is 13 miles with one exception. When you walk from St Abbs to Eyemouth this walk is only 5 miles. This is due to a lack of accommodation in one area. Even though the walking day is short it gives the opportunity to explore the local area. You will mostly be walking on coastal trails, sometimes on sandy beaches and along cliff tops. You will need to be careful not to walk too close to the cliff edges.

Accommodation & Meals Navigation What's Included

Included

5 Nights in B&B's, guest houses and hotels
5 Breakfasts
Baggage Transfers
Transfer from Dunbar to Cockburnspath
Transfer Cockburnspath to Dunbar
Access to maps, GPX tracks and daily route information with the Macs Adventure smartphone navigation app
All your trip documents provided digitally through your online Macs “My Account”
24/7 Emergency telephone support from our UK office

Excluded

Travel Insurance (required)
Travel to Dunbar
Travel from Berwick-upon-Tweed
Lunches, dinners, snacks & drinks
Personal equipment

Extras

Extra Night

When to go Travel & Transfers

Getting to the Start

The start of the tour in Dunbar is easily accessible from Edinburgh by train. They run approximately every hour and the journey time is around 30 minutes. You can find more information at the Scotrail website.There are various airlines that fly into Edinburgh from international gateways and more information may be found on the Edinburgh Airport website. This airport is a 30 minute taxi to the city centre, which is also easily reachable using the Tram or Citylink bus networks.

You could also drive and leave your car in Dunbar as there are plenty of car parks.

Getting from the End

Berwick-upon-Tweed is on the East Coast Main Railway Line. The train operator for this line is the London North Eastern Rail. The trains run up and down the east coast of England and Scotland from London to Edinburgh and vice-versa. You can take a train back to Edinburgh. Trains run approximately every hour and the journey takes around 50 minutes. You can also take the same trainline south to Newcastle. This journey is a bit shorter an d the trains run slightly more often. As stated London is also accessible. You can take direct trains, or via York. The journey time is 3H40.

If you have driven to Dunbar and parked your car there, you can take the Edinburgh train back there on the same trainline, which takes approximately 20 minutes. These trains do not run as often however, so you will need to refer to the website above for times and schedules.

Baggage Transfer

Your bags will be transferred from your accommodation as per your itinerary and moved onto your next overnight accommodation. We ask you to limit your luggage to one bag of up to 20kg per person.

At Macs Adventure, we work in partnership with many luggage transfer providers who set a limit on how many bags/suitcases they will transfer per person, and also the weight of the bag/suitcase. Your booking includes transfer of 1 bag per person. It is very important that you read the luggage information specific to your tour before departure. If you do not adhere to these limits, there is a great possibility that you will be charged locally both for extra bags or if they are too heavy. This limitation can be a challenge, especially as airlines generally have limits that are higher. However, our luggage providers have reasons for these limits (usually due to the Health and Safety of their employees), which we must respect.

Info & FAQ

General Information

The distances and ascent/descents are approximations of the recommended routes. Please be prepared by packing all necessary items, for example, proper rain gear (jacket and pants), sun hat, sunscreen. Your information pack has a detailed equipment list which includes standard walking/cycling gear such as good walking boots or shoes, warm and waterproof clothes for the cooler months and lightweight clothing for summer, and a day pack.

Equipment

Please be prepared by packing all necessary items, for example, proper rain gear (jacket and pants), sun hat, sunscreen. Your information pack has a detailed equipment list which includes standard walking gear such as good walking boots or shoes, warm and waterproof clothes for the cooler months and lightweight clothing for summer, and a day pack.

Travel Insurance

It is a requirement of booking this tour with Macs Adventure that you have suitable travel insurance which covers you for the activity and emergency evacuation and hospital care.