Go Visit: Lindisfarne and Dunstanburgh Castle

Good morning! I hope you've awoken on this bank holiday to skies awash with sunshine.  If you're wondering how to spend your extra day off (assuming of course you have one) and are located in the North East, why not try Lindisfarne or Dunstanburgh Castle?  Today's post is the second Go Visit from our Easter trip to Northumberland - you can check out the first here.

Lindisfarne started out life as an old fort before being moulded by Edwin Lutyens and Gertrude Jekyll into a spectacular Edwardian house; what remains is the latter, complete with a viewing terrace with views out to Bamburgh Castle and beyond.

My favourite room is without doubt the kitchen (why is it always the kitchen?!) with its cosy wooden seating arrangement around the crackling fire and Mrs Beeton cookbooks strewn casually across the wooden table.

There are hidden treasures in every room; from images of the householders, to decadent furnishings and piles of paintings.  Yet by far the most interesting thing about Lindisfarne Castle is that it is located on Holy Island and is only accessibly by a causeway that disappears with the tides.  Check here for tide times to make sure you don't get stranded...

Less than an hour away via a picturesque coastal route lies the ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle,  Make sure you're kitted out for a walk, because the castle itself is an energetic 20 minutes away from the village of Craster, although the stunning coastline views make it worth the trek.

Walk to the top of the tower and cast your eye over the horizon that changes almost every moment with the weather; one moment the fields glow golden, punctured by the white coats of sheep; the next the waves are the stars, chasing the shoreline back to the edge of the grass.

Dunstanburgh is owned by English Heritage, but National Trust members also get it for free. As Lindisfarne is also National Trust, they can quite easily form the outline of a frugal day out.

Have you visited either of these castles, or do you have a favourite place in Northumbria to visit?  Wishing you all a bank holiday filled with happiness, good food and the best of company.

CC x