Darlington
South Park · Photo: Gordon Hatton
Follow the world's first passenger railway story from Darlington's 1825 station, now Hopetown with its Wagon Woods adventure play, to a hall of historic locomotives in Shildon. A Victorian park with play areas and an aviary fits between them. Site entry is free throughout.
Railway · 10:00–12:15 (2h15m)
Railway heritage, museums and Wagon Woods play park; cafe on site.
An indoor and outdoor heritage railway in Darlington, aimed at ages 3 and up.
Photo: hopetowndarlington.co.uk
Park · 12:30–13:45 (1h15m)
Picnic or park cafe lunch, play parks and the aviary.
Darlington's Grade II-listed Victorian park, the oldest in the North East, with toddler and junior play parks, a skate park, an aviary, a lake and a cafe. Free and open all hours, it is an easy town-centre stop.
Photo: Gordon Hatton
Museum · 14:10–16:30 (2h20m)
Free hall of historic locomotives; under cover.
An indoor and outdoor museum in Shildon.
Photo: Trevor Littlewood
North EastNewcastle city centre (Haymarket)
Three free stops within a mile of each other: a natural history museum with a T. rex and Egyptian mummies, Newcastle's oldest park for a picnic and a run-around by the lake, then the city's science and industry museum. It works in drizzle because two of the three stops are indoors.
The Great North Museum → Leazes Park → Discovery Museum
North EastRowlands Gill (Gateshead)
A free green day on Gateshead's western edge: a flat old railway path along the Derwent for scooters and buggies, a picnic deep in a big Forestry England wood, then the ruins of a medieval castle above the Tyne at Prudhoe. Good for families who want fresh air without paying entry fees.
Derwent Walk Country Park → Chopwell Wood → Prudhoe Castle
North EastWallsend / North Shields
Three free stops with free or cheap parking: a big country park on reclaimed colliery land with a community farm and sand-and-water play, a wooded Victorian dene with a pump track, and a little sheltered beach to finish. Pack a picnic or use the park cafes.
Rising Sun Country Park → Northumberland Park → Cullercoats Bay
