📌 Town in Northumberland
★★★
As one of the largest and most attractive Tyne Gap settlements between Carlisle and Newcastle, Hexham makes an obvious and rewarding base for exploring this picturesque part of southern Northumberland. Despite the proximity of Hadrian’s Wall, about three miles to the north, there is little evidence for the town having Roman origins; instead, it developed around the early incarnations of Hexham Abbey. There has been a regular market here since 1239 – still held weekly – and after finally shrugging off centuries of threats from Border Reivers, the town became notable for its leather, hat making and milling industries in the 1800s. The most attractive streets and buildings all spider off from the market place – chief among them the magnificent abbey.
🌍 Location
📌 Northumberland
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NY 936641
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 54.971582,-2.101194
🚶 The abbey, jail and town centre are all within a few minutes’ walk of each other, with the River Tyne also reasonably accessible.
🚆🚌 Hexham has a station on the Tyne Valley Line between Newcastle & Carlisle. Numerous buses serve all these and the settlements & attractions along the Tyne Gap & Hadrian’s Wall, plus rural routes north into Northumberland National Park and south into the North Pennines.
🚗 Wentworth car park on the east side of town is the obvious entry point for car uses. Many other spaces require displaying a parking disc, purchasable locally for a small fee.
Explore nearby
<1 mi away
>> Hexham Abbey ★★★★
>> Hexham Old Gaol ★★★
