The Best Things to Do in Craster, Northumberland

The small fishing village of Craster is a delightful spot on the Northumberland coast.  It’s historically known for the cured herrings – aka kippers – the lovely harbor and the short walk to the magnificent Dunstanburgh Castle.  This is a great place to base yourself to be in a rural location with some facilities on your doorstep.  Here’s our guide to the best things to do in Craster.

THIS POST MAY CONTAIN COMPENSATED AND AFFILIATE LINKS. MORE INFORMATION IN OUR DISCLAIMER

The best place to stay here in Craster is in one of the cottages that overlook the harbor, you’ll get magnificent views and be in a great location.  You’ll get more points from me for picking one with a view of Dunstanburgh Castle. (Castle Point Cottage is one where you can just a say catch a peek of the castle).   It’s one of my favourite castles in Northumberland (you can read about it here).

BesT WAY TO VISIT CASTLES

Get Free Access to Castles

Get yourself an English Heritage Pass and get free access to English Heritage managed castles, gardens and attractions – for a week, a month, a year or life! It’s great value for all the family.

Buy Your Pass Here

Now I won’t beat about the bush, there aren’t a whole lot of fancy things to do here in Craster. But there’s a lot of countryside and coast to see and walk around on.  Plus you’re in a great position for exploring some of the nearby towns, villages, and yes, more castles.  So if you’re ready…

The Best Things to Do in Craster, Northumberland

I’m not going to start with the obvious (that’s the castle in case you were wondering), but the harbour and the beach here, which are both glorious.

Visit Craster Beach

The beach here is lovely and its open for dogs, so you can take your favourite four legged friend for a walk.  Bear in mind that this is a family beach so you’ll want to ensure that you keep your dogs on leads.  The beach here is small though, its just a small section inside the walls of the harbour.  Perfect for watching the boats moving around, or for a little sunbathing in a more sheltered spot.  

Fish from the Harbour Walls in Craster

If you fancy trying your hand at fishing, then set yourself up on the harbour walls.  There are fishing platforms here and you can usually catch something – it’s likely to be flounder, cod, perhaps conger eel or a coalfish.    You’ll want to check tide times to make sure there’s some water in the harbour (check tide times here), although you can fish the South Pier (on the seaward side) at all states of the tide.

Take a Walk from Craster

Craster is in a delightful location for walks.  My favourite would be heading towards Dunstanburgh Castle – it’s just a short walk through the fields there, but be aware that the ground isn’t particularly even.

Craster to Dunstanburgh Castle Walk

This is a 2.7 mile round trip walk – there and back.    It takes about 30 minutes to walk one way without stops.    Although I challenge you to not make stops along the way.  It’s great to walk back along the coastline with great views all the way, the rock pools are fabulous here too.

Craster to Low Newton-by-the-Sea Walk

Carry on further than Dunstanburgh Castle and head to Low Newton-By-The-Sea.  It’s about 6 miles (one way), although you can walk some of it on a road, instead of by the beach in Embleton Bay, which will be quicker and a little easier.  This isn’t a difficult walk, all relatively flat, but it’s rough underfoot.  You can make this a circular walk, by taking the coastal route one way (the paths are pretty worn and its easy to see your way).  Then you can return by the slightly inland route, or find the road and come back that way (it comes from Dunstan Steads through Dunstan into Craster).  The road shouldn’t be busy.

Craster to Cullernose Point Walk

If you head south along the coast, you can follow the cliffs to Cullernose Point. 

Make it a circular route by continuing further south to Howick Sands, and perhaps visiting the gardens at Howick Hall.  There’s more about the gardens at Howick Hall here.

Visit Dunstanburgh Castle from Craster

I think I’ve procrastinated long enough.  Too long perhaps.  Dunstanburgh is one of those magical castle ruins, made even better by the fact that you have to walk to it and you can’t just drive straight up.    The castle dates back to 1313 (and there’s more about the castle and how to visit in my guide to Northumberland Castles).  There’s a twin towered keep and the coastline here is gorgeously wild.  The castle land is maintained by the National Trust but the castle itself is looked after by English Heritage – so members of both organizations can get in for free.  It’s been used throughout the years, even as recently as World War II as an observation post.

Visit Howick Gardens from Craster

Tea lovers will want to make a pilgrimage to Howick Hall.  Not just for the glorious eighteenth century house with its terrace and wooded grounds, but also because it was the home of the 2^nd Earl Grey.  Yes that one.  The one that the tea is named after.

Address of Howick Hall Gardens: Howick Hall Gardens, Howick Estate Office, Alnwick, United Kingdom, NE66 3LB

Opening times of Howick Hall Gardens:

• Early Season – From Early February to March 31st 2025, the Garden is open every day at 10:30 am and closes at 4:00 pm.
• Main Season – From April 1st to September 30th 2025, the Garden is open daily from 10:30 am to 6:00 pm (last entry 5:00 pm)
• Late Season – From October 1st – Mid November 2025 (inclusive) opens every day at 10:30 am and closes at 4:00 pm.

Cost to enter Howick Hall Gardens:

Adults £12.10, Over 60s £11.00, Children 5 -16 years £3.85, and Children 4 years & Under (FREE)

Eat Kippers in Craster

It would be wrong to come to Craster and not at least try the smoked herrings, or kippers from here.   In the early 1900s fishing for herring in the North Sea here was a major industry, with more than 20 fishing boats supplying Craster and Seahouses harbours.  At the height of the industry, Craster gutted more than 2,000 herring a day! 

Today, in one of the original smokehouses, L Robson and Sons, you can still buy kippers that have been prepared using traditional smoking methods, and of course a secret family recipe.   The building in which the smokehouse is located was named a Grade II listed building in 2023, and it’s the only one remaining in the village.

You can buy kippers to take away for a picnic while you’re walking along the coast. This is a great idea if the weather is good.

Visit the Arnold Memorial Nature Reserve in Craster

Owned by the Northumberland Wildlife Trust, the reserve is close to the entrance to Craster Village (and next to the main car park for the village).  It’s set within an old quarry, within Craster Heugh (the whinstone outcrop).  You’ll find foxgloves, wood sage, gorse, Scot’s Pine and more here, making it a great home for migrant and breeding birds.    You’re likely to find (depending on what time of year you visit) sedge and willow warbler, chiffchaff and blackcap, who use this as a breeding ground.  Migrants include wryneck, icterine, reed and barred warblers, redbreasted flycatcher and bluethroat. It is also a moulting site for lesser redpoll.

Places to Visit from Craster

You’re in a great location here in Craster, so there are some super places within easy reach of the village.  If you’re not driving, then you’ll need to look for the X18 bus that runs between Newcastle and Morpeth.  The bus timetable is here.  However if you are driving, then its easy to get to other towns, villages and attractions in the area.

Visit Alnwick from Craster

The market town of Alnwick, the glorious castle and the Alnwick Garden are super places to visit from Craster.    You’ll find quaint cobbled streets, the amazing Barter Books and don’t miss the castle which is one of the top Northumberland filming locations with its role as Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films.

My guide to Alnwick is here, and the Alnwick Garden is covered in my guide to Northumberland Gardens.

Visit Bamburgh from Craster

Honestly you can’t come to this part of the world and NOT visit Bamburgh.  I’ve been to more than 120 countries now and this is still the best beach in the world.  Aside from the beach, you’ll want to visit the RNLI center, pay respects at Grace Darling’s grave and visit the stonkingly amazing Bamburgh Castle too.  (You’ll need the best part of an entire day to visit the castle!)  Check out my guide to Bamburgh Castle here, and here’s more on what to do in Bamburgh.

Visit Seahouses from Craster

After you’ve been in Craster a couple of days, Seahouses will feel enormous.  It’s a bigger (but still traditional) fishing village, also famous for its herring and kipper history.  You’ll find shops and more things to do here, and it’s the place to come if you’re wanting to go to the Farne Islands too.  My guide to visiting Seahouses is here.

If you’re looking for more inspiration of where to visit, then my guide to Northumberland’s prettiest seaside villages is here.

Where to Eat in Craster

For a small village you’ve got a decent selection here. 

• Start at the Jolly Fisherman – the pub on Haven Hill, just on from the harbour.  It serves great food, has a lovely terrace and don’t miss their homemade tartare sauce if you’re having seafood or fish.
• The Shoreline Café at 1 Church Street is a great place to pick up a kipper sandwich.
• Pipers Pitch in the Craster Quarry Car Park is a semi-permanent food van that serces excellent bacon, haggis and smoked kipper rolls.  There’s no inside space here.
• The Cottage Inn – there’s a full bar, with local beer, and a restaurant here, but check when you arrive for opening times.
• The Stable Yard, Craster Tower is open during the summer season – there’s a shop here for local specialities, including kippers, chutneys and preserves and also a café too.

Where to stay in Craster

 There’s no hotel in Craster, your options are a rather lovely B&B called the Cottage Inn (you can check availablty here, but they do book our rather quickly), luckily there are some rather lovely holiday cottages that you can stay in here.  My top picks are here.

The Cottage Inn

Perfect, with great reviews, this family run Inn has 10 rooms.  There’s a traditional bar and restaurant (although check opening hours if you’re traveling out of season)—a conservatory, a large garden, and a car park.  There’s also a kid’s play area too.

Castle Point Cottage, Craster

This 2 bedroom cottage sleeps four (no pets allowed) and gives you a fine view of Dunstanburgh Castle too. There’s an extra sitting room on the top floor of the cottage, and a well equipped kitchen as well as a super kitchen diner and furniture outside for al fresco dining too.  You can check out the photos and reviews of Castle Point Cottage here.

Harbourview Cottage, Craster

This beautiful, fully refurbished, stone-built cottage has fantastic views over the historic Craster harbour, it sleeps 4 in two bedrooms, is superbly fitted out and has everything that you need for a holiday stay in Craster.  It’s a superb location right on the front in Craster!  Check it out here.

Craster Tower Coach House

This glorious Grade II listed coach house sits within the grounds of the historic Craster Tower.  It sleeps up to 7 guests in 3 bedrooms and has 3 bathrooms.  There’s a private lawned garden for the Coach House and you’ll also have access to a shared tennis court and trampoline.  There’s offroad parking for 3 cars and an EV charging point.  This is a perfect family holiday cottage just outside Craster.  You can check availability of Craster Tower Coach House here.

Final Words on the Best Things to Do in Craster, Northumberland

The phrase “small but perfectly formed” could have been written just for Craster.  And this small village crams in one heck of a lot of facilities for its size.  There are places to eat, a magnificent castle on the doorstep and a glorious harbour and beach too.  Add to that stunning gardens that you can walk to and a great central coastal location in Northumberland; it’s just the perfect place to stay and visit in Northumberland.

Northumberland’s Best is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.