A weekend in... Berwick-upon-Tweed

With its elegant Georgian buildings sitting proud over the mouth of the Tweed, England’s most northerly town is a rare and wonderful place. By Jane Hayward

Photo: Visit Britain

At first glimpse, Berwick-upon-Tweed seems to have been granted the gift of invisibility. Even in midsummer, a blanket of sea mist drifts up the mouth of the River Tweed to descend on the Northumbrian town’s compact huddle of Georgian sandstone houses, obscuring its unique slate and red-tile rooftops and medieval alleyways.

The effect is a little sinister. But then Berwick was built as a fortified frontier town. Once a thriving salmon and sheep’s wool port, it was treated as the prize in a 300-year tug-of-war contest between England and Scotland, changing hands 13 times before Elizabeth I settled the issue by forcing the border three miles north and bolstering Berwick’s defences with chunky turf-topped ramparts that still encircle the town.

A quick clamber onto the walls is the best way to appreciate how well preserved its buildings are. On the narrow high street, Marygate, shoppers buzz around the steepled Guildhall, which still rings an evening curfew bell; a walltop stroll takes you past a Cromwellian church, a tiny gunpowder store and 18th-century barracks – now home to two museums.

Beyond the walls lies the River Tweed and its army of Berwick swans, which drift in and out of the mist. As the tide draws back its damp tendrils, the eye-widening spectacle of the Northumbrian coast appears, stretching south towards the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, one link in a chain of darkly forbidding castles built to protect the town.

Berwick is no longer wealthy, though a 35-minute train journey to Edinburgh means commuters have driven up prices to around £350,000 for a three-bedroom ‘town-wall’ house. Its future lies in tourism and, refreshingly, rather than simply drawing on the past, it is in the first stages of developing a funky seaside image. The centre of the action is Bridge Street, where independent shops create a bohemian feel and an August festival sees tables and chairs scattered across the Tarmac.

It’s friendly, too. Within five minutes you may well be chatting about nutty Doddington farmhouse cheese and the Heatherslaw Bakery’s delicious ginger parkins in the organic Green Shop, or the thriving music scene in Mark Irving’s light, bright art gallery, the Irving (the final band to be championed by John Peel was local).

A lovely place to stay is 1 Sallyport, a design-led B&B that has drawn city dwellers looking for a bit of urban chic-on-sea – boutique hotels have yet to arrive. However, it’s by no means the only B&B offering characterful panache plus imaginative Northumbrian breakfasts of Craster kippers and gargantuan Bamburgh bangers.

The reason is that here people like to do things in their own way. They see themselves as neither Scots nor English, but simply Berwickers. As a consequence, there are no chain restaurants, but small eateries such as the hugely popular Amaryllis, where Ruth Hartley uses all-local ingredients to whip up delicious, unpretentious dishes from scones with strawberry jam to crayfish salads.

Such abundance of character attracted the artist LS Lowry, who visited for more than 40 years. You can follow a well-constructed trail that displays copies of his paintings in their correct location all the way to Spittal, Berwick’s unpolished gem of a beach. On the Sands, an oil on canvas he painted in 1959, shows a joyful mêlée of excitable children and dogs on a gloriously sunny Sunday afternoon. This scene, like much elsewhere in beautiful Berwick, appears utterly unaltered.

The first 24 hours

• Walk the walls: an hour's stroll on the ramparts makes a great introduction. Call at the Tourist Information Office on Marygate to learn why Berwick is still at war with Russia and spot the lane where one quarter of Scottish rebel William ‘Braveheart' Wallace was gruesomely displayed, after he was executed in London. Or take local historian Derek Sharman's fascinating Monday morning tour.

• Hit the shops: concentrate on the unique and characterful. Sweet treats include Berwick Cockles - the town's own humbugs - from Sweet Memories (5 Walkergate, 01289 330101) and Heatherslaw Bakery biscuits from The Green Shop (30 Bridge Street, 01289 330897). The Townhouse, set into the Guildhall, sells fab Chain Bridge honey beauty products, including North Sea breeze-resistant Avocado, Honey and Beeswax skin cream, plus quirky souvenirs such as puffin cross-stitch cards. For local artists' cards and paintings, browse The Irving Gallery (25 Bridge Street, 01890 820268, www.the-irving-gallery.co.uk).

• Cruise the coast: car-free weekenders can whizz along the white sands and lunar dunes of the Heritage Coast by bus (not on Sundays). Idyllic empty stretches lead to Bamburgh Castle, which has interesting dungeons and the remains of a mysterious Bamburgh beast. Further along, the beaches of Seahouses and Belford are among England's finest.

Lazy-day Sunday

• Lowry's footsteps: The six-mile Lowry Trail explores the artist's lengthy relationship with Berwick, using 18 information boards that show work ranging from an isolated take on the Guildhall to euphoric beach scenes. It leads from cobbled Dewar's Lane in the centre, across the Old Bridge to Tweedmouth, and on to Spittal (a leaflet is available with a map from the TIC).

• Picnic on Spittal Beach: The unsophisticated charms of Spittal are wonderful for children and dogs (allowed on the sands all year round). A small Surfer's Café is the only source of lunch, so pack a picnic (James Ford bakers on Woolmarket does huge ones for £3 per person). For splendid isolation, hike along the cliff walk: the often deserted Cocklaw Burn beach is two miles south.

• Make a pilgrimage to Lindisfarne: Ten miles south, the Holy Island's 16th-century castle is a must-see. You'll need to plan your trip at low tide to cross the causeway, so check times with Tourist Information.

• Catch it if you can: The farmers' market outside The Maltings Arts Centre is worth a visit - on the last Sunday of the month.

Where to stay

• Sallyport, off Bridge Street (01289 308827, www.sallyport.co.uk). Chic B&B with impeccable breakfast. Doubles from £95-£150.
• 20 Castle Terrace (01289 302800, www.20castleterrace.co.uk). Five-star B&B with a home-from-home atmosphere. Doubles from £70-£80.

Where to eat

• Amaryllis, 7 West Street (01289 331711). This friendly restaurant makes imaginative use of local ingredients.
• Foxtons restaurant/wine bar, 26 Hide Hill (01289 303939). A friendly and informal space offering all-day food.

Getting there

By car, take the A1; Berwick is three miles south of the Scottish border. GNER (08457 484950, www.gner.co.uk) runs a service on the East Coast Main Line, connecting London King's Cross with Berwick-upon-Tweed: returns are from £24.90 and First Class from £69.40. For tourist information, call 01289 330044 or see www.berwick-upon-tweed.gov.uk.