Anyone on here know this area well?
This is what I'm looking for...don't know if it exists though ;-)
A town or village with fairly cheap accommodation (hostel or b and b)...near enough to an interesting part of the wall,for a few days of walking.
We won't have a car, so accessible by public transport.
We won't have time to walk the whole wall either....
Thanks for suggestions
Luc
The Trailblazer guide to the Hadrian's Wall Walk is probably as good as any for information including accommodation.
Please note the useful Once Brewed YHA hostel is closed next year as it is being rebuilt.
R
Try Haltwhistle. It is about a mile and a half south of the wall and there is a lovely walk up the Haltwhistle burn to the wall. We can recommend Hall Meadows B&B which is in the centre of the village. It is quiet, comfortable, warm and does a very good breakfast. Heather knows the area well and will give plenty of advice for walking. There are also pubs in the village for evening meals.
You can walk either way along the wall from here. You should easily manage Housesteads and back in a day and may even get as far as Sewingshields.
There is lots of information about walking from Haltwhistle here:
http://www.silvertraveladvisor.com/forums/travel-type/406-northumberland-hadrians-wall-and-the-south-tyne#10082
There's also some more general information about the area here:
http://www.silvertraveladvisor.com/forums/travel-places/407-northumberland-gods-own-country?reverse=1
The most interesting part of the Wall is the central part. There is seasonal bus service along the Wall from April to September. http://www.visithadrianswall.co.uk/explore/ad122-hadrians-wall-country-bus/ad122-timetable
You can also just walk from B&B to B&B along the Wall. From Heddon-on-the Wall to Carlisle takes about 5 days. I used a tour company to book the B&Bs and move my luggage along. https://www.contours.co.uk/index.php
Also the Tullie Museum in Carlisle is very good, and the Lanercost Priory (which in near the Wall) is worth a visit. Most of the villages along the Wall are very small and not on main roads. Most of the B&Bs where I stayed were farm houses.
Once Brewed is not really a town or village, more like a hamlet. But it’s right at the best part of the Wall near Vindolanda and has a YHA hostel and an Inn, the AD122 bus should get you there easy enough from the train in Haltwhistle.
At Housesteads & Greenhead there are nice parts of the wall also. I think there are hostels/B&B's in those locations too. The AD122 OR 685 Bus (for Greenhead) will get you there from Haltwhistle.
If you can find a few days to explore, I thoroughly recommend to walk some of it as you'l probably get a better feel and experience of the history of it all. This tour company offer tours along the wall - http://www.hillwalktours.com/hiking-england/hadrians-wall-path-overview, and you can choose based on the number of days you might have to spare. We booked a tour with them before and everything was excellent.
Enjoy the Wall! :)
Wife's relations near Haltwhistle so never needed to check out accommodation. Using publuc transpirt, note that the main road between Carlisle and Newcastle has an hourly bus service number 685 ( already mentioned -less often Sundays and public holidays) and a train which also runs every 60 - 90 minutes, so in addition to the AD122 bus, there are occasional other services which link towns along the Carlisle -Newcastle route with the wall such as the 185 from Haltwhistle and the 680 from Hexham. You might find the bus info on www.northumberland.gov.uk/Highways/Public-transport/Bus.aspx worth checking out for most of the Wall area. Note the AD 122 bus stops for the winter, but usually starts up again around Easter.
As you're in that general area, note that to the north is the Kielder Forest, and to the south heading down towards County Durham lies Alston followed by Weardale and the area sometimes referred to as the North Pennines just in case they appeal. The scenery in the North Pennines is particularly impressive, but public transport very scanty as so few people live there.
Just to the south of this is the picturesque Eden Valley through which the famous Settle - Carlisle railway runs. Hope you're planning a long visit!