ONE of the North East's most successful walking festivals will return to Northumberland this year.
The popular Haltwhistle Walking Festival, one of the most successful walking festivals in the North East, will open for booking from March 1.
The Haltwhistle Walking Festival began in 2003 in response to the foot-and-mouth disaster, which closed footpaths and severely affected local tourism.
Given Haltwhistle’s location in the heart of Hadrian’s Wall country in Northumberland, it’s no surprise that the festival has chosen the Wall as the focus of its traditional three-day linear walk in 2026, but with a twist.
Titled ‘Wall Across Northumberland’, the Festival's feature walk follows the Wall across the county from the border with Tyne and Wear at Newburn all the way to Gilsland in Cumbria, totalling 42 miles.
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As well as being an iconic UNESCO World Heritage Site, Hadrian’s Wall Path was recently chosen as one of the World’s Most Amazing Walks by Robson Green in his recent TV series of the same name.
The Wall also holds a special place in the hearts of Northumbrians and visitors alike, as was demonstrated following the felling of the tree at Sycamore Gap.
The festival features a further 17 walks, with many of them dubbed as 'Special Interest', with local experts guiding walkers on walks covering local geology, mosses and lichens, a local castle, veteran trees and even a tea walk, with the last of these ending with an afternoon tea provided by the local WI.
All tastes are catered for by the festival, with walks varying in length from five miles to the now-infamous "Leg Stretcher' covering 20 miles in a day.
The website haltwhistlewalkingfestival.org provides detailed guidance on each walk, including a description and a difficulty grading.
The 2026 Festival, which attracts walkers from the UK and abroad, will run from April 25 to the May Day Bank Holiday on May 4.
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