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СпутникиРНSpaceXРоскосмосNASAIt is easy to see why people love the Northumberland village so much. The centre is quaint and pretty, the beach sandy and impressive, and the castle perfectly preserved and towering
Milo Boyd Deputy Travel Editor & Commercial Writer
08:04, 11 Jul 2026
Has there been a run as dominant as this in the history of British seasides?
Once again, Bamburgh has been named the best coastal town or village the UK has to offer, bringing the run of victory to six in a row in the Which? annual survey.
It is easy to see why people love the Northumberland village so much. The centre is quaint and pretty, the beach sandy and impressive, and the castle perfectly preserved and towering.
In a gushing show, 5,320 Which? readers handed Bamburgh perfect marks for its seafront, scenery and beach. "It is a wonderful historic village with miles of sand and glorious views," one happy visitor enthused.
Another said: "Bamburgh Castle, a stunning building, is the core of the village and leads through the sand dunes to an extraordinary beach, which never fails to captivate us."
And a third agreed: "It’s just gorgeous and is as good now as it was years ago; it’s not been spoiled by commercialisation. What made it successful then has been retained."
But amid all of the enthusiasm for the settlement of 300 people, not everyone is convinced by its dominance of the Which? survey. In fact, a number of locals are fed up with the limelight that is being cast on Bamburgh.
"I wish they wouldn't do things like this. All it does is make rich southerners read it and then decide to buy a holiday house there, pushing up house prices and pushing out actual locals," one irked person wrote online.
Another chimed in: "Peace and quiet?! Not on a sunny summer’s day. The village (it is not a Town) is rammed with vehicles and visitors."
The gripes are consistent. Back in 2022, when Bamburgh's reputation as the best of the best was still being forged, resident John Graham shared his frustrations. He said: "When the sun is out the place can be overrun. In the day, you get the ice-cream brigade leaving their rubbish everywhere and in the evenings the drunken louts have their fun.
"On an average morning in the summer, I pick up five or six burnt-out disposable barbecues and half a dozen or so bin bags full of bottles and cans."
One business owner said it is really sad to see a big increase in litter being dumped in the sand dunes below the castle. They added: “A friend of mine summed up the problem quite well the other day when he said it’s like over-fishing.
“Pubs and hotel owners might be enjoying the money rolling in, but the more people who come here, the more damage is done to the environment."
I visited last summer and was not overly impressed by what I found. One major issue was the cars. On a hot June day, the stream of traffic on the arterial road that runs through Bamburgh's centre is relentless. The closest train station is seven miles away in Chathill, and the buses are sporadic, so any hopes of embarking on a relaxing, car-free day trip will prove difficult.
For me, the real issue with Bamburgh is its vibe. Central to the charm of Britain's great seaside towns is a slightly edgy, salty quality in some way connected to large quantities of sailors. Bamburgh, with its Farrow and Ball doors and memorial benches, has none of this.
The stars of the show in Bamburgh are the beach and the castle. It is undeniable that the combination of the two — how the 1,400-year-old fort hangs above the broad, sandy shore — is magnificent. You won’t find me criticising Bamburgh Castle.
The beach, however, is arguably a little one-note. Once you’ve waded out half a mile to get to a patch of water deep enough to paddle in, you’ll be frozen by a North Sea that rarely swells itself into anything remotely as interesting as what you’d find on the UK’s Atlantic coast.
If you’re in search of a very long beach, Camber Sands near Rye in East Sussex not only enjoys a lot more sunshine — as one of the sunniest places in the country — it also has superior sand dunes, particularly so if you’re a teenager interested in launching yourself off their summits.