Irish Sea ©Dave Willis
Ennerdale ©Stewart Smith
Appleby ©Dave Willis
Haweswater ©Dave Willis
Whitby Abbey
Beginning with your feet in the Irish Sea and ending with a dip (optional) in the North Sea, Wainwright's 190 mile Coast-to-Coast walk will take you through some of England's finest scenery as you traverse three National Parks and cross the Pennine spine of the country, literally from Coast to Coast. This is England's most famous long distance path and a simply outstanding journey.
Prices are per person based on twin share and include all accommodation in twin share rooms on bed & breakfast basis, luggage transfer, information pack including map & guidebook and our emergency contact.
Entire Route
The shortest of our options for the full Coast to Coast is for fit and experienced long distance walkers. Even the shortest days are 11 miles long and there are not so many of them. However, walking the Coast to Coast over 12 days is not a super-human feat and for those who are well prepared, this is an option.
Arrive St Bees and check in.This option, walking the Coast to Coast in 13 stages is also for fit and experienced long distance walkers. The difference between this and our 12 day option is that the crossings of Greenup Edge from Borrowdale to Grasmere and Grisedale Hause from Grasmere to Patterdale, are split into two days.
Arrive St Bees and check in.Our recommended route for the Coast to Coast over 14 stages. This gives an average daily mileage of just over 13 miles with shorter days over the mountains of the Lake District and two longer days over the more level ground between Richmond and Robin Hoods Bay. This Coast to Coast option will provide a significant challenge for most walkers without requiring an iron-man constitution. If you have a good level of fitness, this option also provides opportunities for deviations and explorations along the way.
Arrive St Bees and check in.The 15 stage option allows for a more leisurely Coast to Coast experience. Comparing this to the 14 stage option, this one splits the remaining long day from Richmond across the Vale of Mowbry into two sections with an overnight stay at Danby Wiske.
Arrive St Bees and check in.Splitting the Coast to Coast walk into 16 stages will allow for a very pleasant pace and time to really engage with the great landscapes you pass through. On this option there are no 20-mile-plus stages and most days are between 11 and 14 miles with plenty of opportunities to extend the day's walk to take in mountain summits or special viewpoints.
Arrive St Bees and check in.This option splits the Coast to Coast walk into 17 stages, mostly under 14 miles. There are just two unavoidable longer days as you cross the watershed from Ennerdale to Borrowdale and the High street range to reach Shap, but even these are only 15 and 16 miles.
Arrive St Bees and check in.C2C West
This 5-day option for walking the Western section of the Coast to Coast is for fit and experienced long distance walkers. There are no easy stages and it has two particularly long days - one from Rosthwaite to Patterdale and the final day from Shap to Kirkby Stephen.
Arrive St Bees and check in.This 6-day option allows for the Western section of the Coast to Coast to be walked in a Saturday to Sunday slot (although you can start on any day of the week). This option splits the long day from Rosthwaite to Patterdale into two stages with an overnight at Grasmere.
Arrive St Bees and check in.This is our recommended route for the Coast to Coast Western section, covering the route from St Bees to Kirkby Stephen in 7 stages with an average daily mileage of around 12 miles.
Arrive St Bees and check in.C2C East
Our recommended route for the Coast to Coast Eastern section covers the route from Kirkby Stephen to Robin Hoods Bay in 7 stages with an average daily mileage of around 16 miles. This is more than the average for the Western section but the going is mostly easier and this option is perfectly achievable by the averagely fit long-distance walker.
Arrive Kirkby Stephen and check in.This option, walks the Coast to Coast Eastern section from Kirkby Stephen to Robin Hoods Bay in 8 stages. It splits the long flat section between Richmond and the North York Moors into two stages with an overnight stop at Danby Wiske. There are still a couple of long days to finish but nothing over 14 miles before those.
Arrive at Kirkby Stephen and check in.This option, walks the Coast to Coast Eastern section from Kirkby Stephen to Robin Hoods Bay over 9 days. It splits the long flat section between Richmond and the North York Moors into two stages and the section across the North York Moors into three stages. This option provides a very easy paced Coast to Coast with just one day which is over 14 miles.
Arrive at Kirkby Stephen and check in.The price includes:
Not included:
Our Accommodation:
As keen walkers ourselves we appreciate the importance of the place you put your feet up and rest your head in at the end of each day. We very carefully select our accommodations whether they be a cosy pub, family run guest house, or established town centre hotel. We choose places directly on the route or within easy walking distance of it and if we ever have to transfer you because of limited availability, we will always contact you to discuss this and never just leave you to find out later. We provide comfortable, clean and warm twin or double rooms, with private bathroom wherever available. Single occupancy of rooms is also available for a supplementary cost.
Meals:
Breakfast at your accommodation is included in the holiday price. In most cases your accommodation will serve dinner and will be able to prepare a packed lunch for you. Sometimes this will have to be arranged in advance and we will let you know if this is the case. Alternatively you can use our detailed notes to make your own dining and lunch arrangements using local restaurants, cafes and supermarkets.
St BEES: There are trains to St Bees from London and Manchester either via Carlisle or more scenically via Preston or Lancaster and along the Cumbrian coast. Journey times from London are a little over 5 hours and from Manchester approximately 3½ hours. St Bees can also be reached from Glasgow via Carlisle in approximately 3 hours. Alternatively, if you are arriving by car we can usually arrange parking and transfers from the end of the walk (at extra cost).
KIRKBY STEPHEN: Kirkby Stephen is a stop on the scenic Settle to Carlisle line. There are trains from/to London Euston via Carlisle or from/to London Kings Cross and Manchester via Settle and Leeds. The journey time from London is approximately 5½ hours and from Manchester is 3 hours.
RETURN: From Robin Hoods Bay (at the top of the village), there are regular buses to Whitby (20 minutes) from where it is possible to catch a train to London (5 hours) or Manchester (4½ hours).
Wainwright's Coast to Coast actively seeks out the high ground and there is therefore, a fair amount of climbing to be done. The toughest section of the trail comes early on as you traverse the heart of the Lake District. First time Long Distance Path walkers would do well to cut their teeth on something like the Cumbria Way or Dales Way before attempting the Coast to Coast, but for those with some experience and a fortnight to spare, there is no better walk.