St Cuthbert's Way - Holy Island Option
Walk St Cuthbert's Way, crossing the causeway to Holy Island, on a self-guided walking holiday. Accommodation, luggage transfer and custom holiday pack included
St Cuthbert's Way - Holy Island Option
https://www.contours.co.uk/st-cuthberts-way-holy-island-option
A self-guided walking holiday celebrating the many historic sites associated with St Cuthbert.
From £590 per person
St Cuthbert's Way follows the story of a 7th century saint who travelled through Scotland and northern England, spreading the Gospel and performing healing miracles. Beginning at Melrose, where the saint started his ministry, and ending at Holy Island where he ended his days, the trail passes through scenery of great variety and beauty.
The walk takes in heather-clad hills, tranquil riverbanks and old Roman roads, visiting attractive villages and border towns along the way. Particular sites of interest include the ruin of Dryburgh Abbey, Cessford Castle, St Cuthbert's Cave and the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, complete with its ruined abbey and spectacular castle.
We offer multiple holiday options along this trail. If you wish to experience the entire trail and stay on Holy Island, simply select the Holy Island option from the list below.
Dogs are welcome on select routes along this trail. Look for the pawprint icon when choosing your holiday.
From £610 per person
This 62-mile holiday option takes in the entire St Cuthbert’s Way, staying in accommodation on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne at the end of the walk. This is a great opportunity to spend more time exploring this historical island and provides a spectacular finale for your walking holiday.
Code | Tour | Duration | Price per person | |
---|---|---|---|---|
CUTH0 | From Melrose to Holy Island | 4 days walking | £610 | |
CUTH1 | From Melrose to Holy Island | 5 days walking | £735 | |
CUTH2 | From Melrose to Holy Island | 6 days walking | £850 | |
CUTH3 | From Melrose to Holy Island | 7 days walking | £970 |
Please note that the causeway on to Holy Island can only be crossed during low tide. Before booking, please check the Holy Island Safe Crossing Times by clicking here
Travel to Melrose where your first night's accommodation will be booked
Melrose to Harestanes(T). 15 miles (24km) / 1512 ft (461 m) ascent
Harestanes(T) to Kirk Yetholm. 17.5 miles (28km) / 2185 ft (666 m) ascent
Kirk Yetholm to Wooler. 13.5 miles (21.5km) / 2221 ft (677 m) ascent
Wooler to Holy Island. 18 miles (28.5km) / 1427 ft (435 m) ascent
Depart from Holy Island after breakfast
This itinerary lists our preferred overnight stops for this tour. Sometimes there may be a shortage of available accommodation in a preferred location, in which case we will transfer you from the trail to your accommodation and back again at no extra charge. Overnight stops marked with a (T) will always require transfers as standard.
Overnight stops marked with an (L) have very limited accommodation, and therefore more often than not will also require a transfer, particularly on bank holidays and weekends. We will use non-transfer accommodation wherever possible.
The daily mileages quoted are average trail miles only and do not include the distance from the trail to your accommodation. We do not expect you to have to travel more than a mile from the trail to your accommodation in most cases; should your accommodation be further than this, transfers will be provided as standard if practical. A very limited number of stops will require you to travel on foot up to two miles off the trail, however these instances will be clearly communicated to you if applicable.
Further transfers may also be required due to some accommodations having a two-night minimum booking policy, especially at weekends.
Below are the additional costs that may apply depending on your requirements. Dog-friendly tours are subject to a Daily Dog Charge, which will be listed below if applicable. Our standard prices per person are based upon two people sharing a room; if you are on your own, or are part of a group but require a room of your own, then the Solo Traveller or Single Supplements apply respectively:
You can add rest days at any of the overnight stops:
Exploring the attractive borders towns of Melrose, Bowden and Jedburgh.
Admiring far-reaching views over the border country from the slopes of the Eildon Hills.
Spending the night on the tranquil Holy Island, with its 16th century Lindisfarne Castle and Priory, home to the Lindisfarne Gospels.
You can add rest days at any of the overnight stops:
Useful information and travel links that will assist you in your plans to travel to the start of the holiday and back from the end of it are sent to you with your full tour pack. A summary is given below:
The most convenient major city and international airports are Edinburgh and Newcastle.
The nearest rail station to the start of the trail (Melrose) is at Tweedbank (about 3 miles away). The nearest rail station to the end of the trail (Lindisfarne) is at Berwick-upon-Tweed (about 13.5 miles away).
A bus service runs from Tweedbank to Melrose. From Beal (closest mainland location for Lindisfarne), buses run to Berwick-upon-Tweed. There is also a rather infrequent bus service to Berwick-upon-Tweed from Lindisfarne on some days - see the following for more details:
Trains run from London Kings Cross station (and occasionally Euston) to Tweedbank. From there a bus/taxi will be required to Melrose.
The easiest way to return to the start of the trail is to take a taxi from Lindisfarne to Melrose. Alternatively, you, could take a bus/taxi from Lindisfarne to Berwick-upon-Tweed rail station. From there trains run to Tweedbank, where a bus/taxi will be required to Melrose, but this would take much longer.
To find out more about the weather forecast for your chosen holiday's general location, please see the following websites:
“We were extremely fortunate with the weather, the walk itself is lovely and the accommodation was for the most part very good.”Mrs Hawkins, UK
“I am writing to thank you for making our recent walking holiday, St Cuthbert’s Way, so memorable. Each section of the walk was well planned, the accommodation reached high standards throughout the week, and we were thrilled to experience a competent baggage service and outstanding taxi service which were comfortable and the drivers information helpful. I will not hesitate to recommend your organisation to fellow walkers.”Mrs Hallows, UK
“We really did enjoy this walk. The weather was reasonably kind to us, good walking conditions, great scenery and Contours did a great job as usual with the organisation and standard of accommodation. Well done as usual and thanks!!”Mr Pattison, UK
“It was absolutely wonderful - a beautiful walk, very peaceful with a wonderful range of scenery, not too difficult and great accommodation, all of a high standard.”Ms Huffington, UK
“We were very lucky with the weather, didn't need any of the wet weather gear we had packed. So grateful that it was carried from place to place efficiently for us. The most memorable part was walking the 4km across the Pilgrims' causeway before the tide rose. The whole route was gently undulating and varied, and on hot days walking through deciduous woods provided welcome shade. It appears this is not a well-known route and there were few other walkers. We were glad to avoid crowds. We're grateful to Contours for making the bookings at short notice and finding accommodation for us.”Dr Moss, UK
“Though relatively short this was a superb walk through quiet countryside, a mix of hill walking as well as riverside paths, woodland walks and tracks crossing farmland. Highly recommended. It helped that the weather was fine, sunny and (especially on the last two days) hot. This was our 7th walk with Contours.”Mr Gill, UK
“The walk included an interesting variety of landscapes. It was well laid out and the distances walked each day were good.”Dr Matthews, UK
“An excellent and not crowded walking route with decent accommodation.”Mr Biro, UK
“We had a wonderful trip!! Loved every minute. I had been on three previous walking tours with Contours, but none of my three sisters had. This was new to them, but they had a great time and were very happy with the accommodations, the information provided, the transfers, and the luggage service.”Ms Green, USA