Lace up your boots – we’ve found plenty of trails for you to try. If it’s stirring sea views you’re after, plump for the Jurassic Coast which traces the cliffs between Exmouth and Swanage. Prefer to have plenty of quaint coffee shops or cosy pubs along the way? It’s got to be the Cotswolds. Think about what would suit you best: self-guided strolls or multi-day group walks? Here are plenty of options to pick from complete with difficulty ratings.
1. Lake District
The U-shaped valleys and steep ridges of the Lake District include England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike (978m) as well as some of its longest and deepest lakes (think Windermere, Ullswater and Coniston Water). Meanwhile, its 214 fells are known as Wainwrights after the writer whose pictorial guides popularised Lake District walking in the 1950s and ‘60s.
Why not follow in the footsteps of famous literary figures who called the Lake District home? They include romantic poet, William Wordsworth; Beatrix Potter, creator of Peter Rabbit; and Arthur Ransome whose children’s classic Swallows and Amazons was set in the Lakes.
Difficulty: Hard.
2. Jurassic Coast
The South West Coast Path tracks the Jurassic Coast for 95 miles between Exmouth and Swanage and became England’s first natural Unesco World Heritage Site in 2001. Keep your eyes peeled for fossils covering 185 million years of Earth’s geological history which are visible in these dramatic cliffs.
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Spectacular landscape features include the limestone arch at Durdle Door and contorted rock layers at Lulworth Cove; the ammonite fossil pavement at Lyme Regis; the fossil-hunting beaches of Charmouth and Kimmeridge; 18-mile Chesil Beach and the Fleet Lagoon near Portland; Golden Cap, the highest point on the south coast.
Difficulty: Hard.
Recommended holiday: Walk the Jurassic Coast with Intrepid for five days from £627 pp – see the details here.
3. West Highland Railway
The West Highland Line from Glasgow to Fort William at the foot of Britain’s tallest mountain, Ben Nevis, connects with some of the most spectacular walks in Scotland and passes through some of its most beautiful scenery including mountains, forests, lochs, and glens.
Expect everything from gentle strolls to challenging ascents of Munro summits (over 3,000ft) either on circular walks or linear walks from station to station. Take your pick from the remote Rannoch Moor to historic drover routes, military roads, scenic glens and lonely passes.
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Difficulty: Hard.
Recommended holiday: Walk Scotland’s Orkney Islands on a five-day tour with Intrepid from £878 pp – see the details here.
4. Northumberland Coast
This is the wild frontier between the North Sea and the Cheviot Hills. Here, you’ll find beaches, isolated coves, rocky headlands, castles, villages, and historic off-shore islands punctuating the 60-mile Northumberland Coast Path from Cresswell in the south to Berwick-upon-Tweed in the north.
Three centuries of warfare against the Scots has left its legacy in the medieval castles of Lindisfarne, Bamburgh, Dunstanburgh and Warkworth. The three-mile Pilgrim’s Way to Holy Island crosses the sand at low-tide following the course of medieval pilgrims and seabird breeding colonies and grey seals (in winter) can be spotted all along the coast.
Difficulty: Medium.
5. Cotswold Ring
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Starting and finishing in Cheltenham, this 61-mile village-to-village walking tour of the northern Cotswolds takes in the area’s most picturesque villages including Bourton-on-the-Water, Stow-on-the-Wold, Moreton-in-Marsh, the Slaughters, and the Saxon capital of Winchcombe.
Highlights include the Cotswolds Edge with its panoramic views from Cleeve Common; the Iron Age hill fort of Belas Knap; the dreamy River Windrush; and Broadway Tower, a late 18th-century folly with views across 13 counties. The trail also connects with the Cotswold Way National Trail, Heart of England Way,Windrush Way and Warden’s Way.
Difficulty: Medium.
6. Hadrian’s Wall
Hadrian’s Wall Path is an 84-mile National Trail in Northumberland on the Scottish Borders running coast-to-coast alongside the ruins of the Roman wall from Wallsend, near Newcastle on the east coast, to Carlisle on the Solway Firth on the west coast.
Crossing some of the most rugged landscapes in Cumbria and Northumberland, you’ll discover Roman forts, temples, and lonely watch-towers with stretches where the wall (built 122 AD) is almost completely intact. Don’t miss the tour of Housesteads Roman fort.
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Difficulty: Medium.
Recommended holiday: Walk Hadrian’s Wall with Intrepid for seven days from £855 pp – see the details here.
7. South Downs Way – Plumpton to Eastbourne
This 20-mile walk in easy reach of London by train at the eastern end of the South Downs Way in East Sussex. The route crosses the Downs from north to south and reaches the coast at Cuckmere Haven before following the chalk cliffs of the Seven Sisters to Eastbourne.
Between the ancient woodland, rolling downlands, and meandering river valleys, look out for the Iron Age fort at Mt Caburn; Firle Beacon and the village of Firle; the Long Man of Wilmington (pre-historic chalk figure); the famous ‘screensaver’ view of the chalk cliffs of the Seven Sisters; Birling Gap and Beachy Head.
Difficulty: Medium.
8. Loch Ness and the Caledonian Canal
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Built in the early 1800s, the Caledonian Canal runs from Inverness on the east coast to Fort William on the west coast. It connects four lochs in the Great Glen including Loch Ness which follows a geological fault line between the Grampian Mts and the North-West Highlands.
Running parallel to the Caledonian Canal, the Great Glen Way is a 73-mile trail of stunning highland scenery, historic battlefields, and loch-side castles that ends near the foot of Britain’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis. A circular walk of 81 miles also runs around Loch Ness.
Difficulty: Easy.
Take a look at the best places to stay near the Caledonian Canal
9. North Wales
Covering the three counties of Denbighshire, Flintshire, and Wrexham, the landscapes of the Clwydian Hills and Dee Valley – one of the UK’s least-known AONBs – includes heather moorlands, Iron Age hillforts, and panoramic views. It is also crossed by the coast-to-coast Offa’s Dyke Path National Trail.
Sites not to be missed include the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage Site, Valle Crucis Abbey, Castell Dinas Brân, and the Marcher fortress of Chirk Castle. Looking for easier family walks? Opt for Moel Fammau and Loggerheads Country Parks. The popular Dee Valley route begins at Corwen and finishes in Llangollen.
Difficulty: Medium.
10. Saint Patrick’s Way
The 82-mile trail between Armagh and Downpatrick connects key sites relating to the life of St Patrick while passing through some of Northern Ireland’s most spectacular scenery. It also combines with two other Celtic Trails, the Newry Canal Way and the Mourne Way, a filming location for Game of Thrones.
The trail’s diverse landscapes include farmland sweeping down to the sea, ancient stone walls, and views over Carlingford Lough. Walkers can collect ten stamps in an official passport stamped at locations en route to claim an official Certificate of Achievement.
Difficulty: Medium.
11. Giant’s Causeway
These 40,000 hexagon-shaped basalt columns are to be found on the coast of County Antrim in the far north of Northern Ireland. Theory one: 60 million years ago, volcanic activity created a molten basalt lava plateau that cooled into the hexagon shapes. Theory two: the giant, Finn MacCool, built it to reach a rival in the Hebrides. Most believe the latter.
The Cliff-Top Experience is a guided five-mile cliff walk from the ruins of Dunseverick Castle to the award-winning National Trust Visitor’s Centre. Look out for the camel turned to stone, MacCool’s trusty steed, and his size 93.5 boot.
Difficulty: Easy.
Take a look at the best places to stay near Giant’s Causeway
12. Yorkshire Dales
Known for its trademark dry stone walls criss-crossing meadows and moorland, the limestone gorges of the Yorkshire Dales National Park were carved out by melting ice caps at the end of the last Ice Age. Walks here take in a landscape dotted with tarns (lakes), becks (brooks), scars (cliffs) and forces (waterfalls).
Classic walks include Gordale Scar and Malham Cove with its famous limestone pavement; Kisdon Gorge and Swinner Gill with its tiers of waterfalls and views over Swaledale; Aysgarth Falls and Bolton Castle where Mary, Queen of Scots, was held prisoner; and 12th Century Jervaulx Abbey near Middleham Castle, the childhood home of Richard 111.
Difficulty: Hard.
Take a look at this gorgeous boutique hotel in the Yorkshire Dales
13. Cornwall
The Cornish coastline is famous for its stunning beaches, rocky coves, and quaint fishing villages. The 300-mile Cornish section of the South West Coast Path runs west from the River Tamar along its south coast, around the Roseland, Lizard, and Land’s End Peninsulas, before passing through St. Ives and up the north coast to Marsland Mouth near Bude.
Highlights include the Helford Passage, Kynance Cove on the Lizard Peninsula, the Minack Theatre near Porthcurno, St Ives with its famous beaches and Three Miles of Golden Sands at nearby Godrevy, and the ruined castle of Tintagel on the north coast.
Difficulty: Hard.
Recommended holiday: Walk the Cornish Coast with Intrepid for four days from £491 pp – see the details here.
14. Norfolk Coastal Path
Prepare yourself for a packed coastline that includes everything from the seaside resorts of Sheringham, Hunstanton, and Cromer to the north coast wildlife reserves of Blakeney Point (seals), Holkham (pink-footed geese), Cley Marsh (world-class birdwatching) and Titchwell Marsh (wading birds).
The Peddars Way and the Norfolk Coast Path combine to form one of the UK’s 15 National Trails. The former follows an old Roman Road for 49 miles from Knettishall Heath (Suffolk) to Holme-next-the-Sea where it joins the Norfolk Coast Path for 83 miles to Hopton-on-Sea. Expect golden beaches, salt marshes, dunes, and marram grass.
Difficulty: Easy.
Take a look at the best boutique hotels in Norfolk
15. The Thames Path
The 184-mile Thames Path is a long-distance walk which follows the river from its source at Thames Head near Kemble in Gloucestershire through Oxford, Henley, Windsor Castle, Hampton Court, and central London to the Thames Barrier in Woolwich just a few miles from the sea.
The path along the banks of the river passes through water meadows, picturesque villages, and historic towns and cities. It’s flat, making for easy walking, and with much of the river being a busy waterway, there’s plenty of activity to watch as you stroll.
Difficulty: Easy.
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