Many people will have walked the streets of Newcastle without ever knowing what lies a few feet beneath them...

The Victoria tunnel is a wagon way that runs for three miles underneath Newcastle city centre. Dug out in 1842 to carry coal from the Town Moor colliery at Spittal Tongues to the keelboats on the Tyne, it then lay unused from 1860 to 1940, when it served as an air raid shelter and pedestrian subway.

Volunteer guides now run guided walks for small groups(choice of half hour or two hours) and bring its history alive with infectious enthusiasm.

The tunnel entrance is in Ouseburn. For more information and to book a tour visit www.ouseburntrust.org

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Go up to the top on the roof and take your camera. It's great for views of the Tyne Bridges, over the station, over the river and out of the city.

Nearest station - Central Station.
Near the quayside
museums.ncl.ac.uk/keep/

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Wander around and look up to enjoy the combination of some of the finest neo-classical and contemporary architecture in the country. The gorgeous golden sandstone in the Grainger Town area and the cutting edge developments on Gateshead Quays will finally put pay to any of your southern preconceptions that it's grim up north!

Classical: Grainger Town, Grey Street, Grainger Street, Monument area.
Contemporary: Gateshead Quays

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Open to the public, this is the largest independent library outside of London and a real gem.

Housed in a magnificent Grade II listed building, just how a library should be with balconies, clanking radiators, statues and spiral staircases.

Best of all it offers the perfect sanctuary to escape from the hustle of the city to while away a few hours poking around the book shelves stuffed full of fascinating reads, drinking coffee or catching recitals.

The Lit & Phil
23 Westgate Road
Newcastle upon Tyne
www.litandphil.org.uk
Tel 0191 232 0192

Nearest Rail & Metro Stations: Central Station

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Beamish Open Air Museum, located between Newcastle and Durham, is a fantastic attraction – a full day out for families of all ages. Step back in time as you discover what life was like 100 or 200 years ago.

Restored trams and period double-decker buses take you around this vast site as you hop on and off to visit the different attractions. There is an early 20th century Town Street, complete with shops, pub, bank, houses, a Masonic Hall and even a sweet factory. Elsewhere there is a Colliery Village with a drift mine you can take a tour into. There is also the fantastic Pockerly Waggonway - where you can ride along behind replicas of three of the world’s most famous steam engines - Puffing Billy, Steam Elephant and George Stephenson's Locomotion 1.

Other attractions on site include Home Farm - a working farm with animals and Pockerley Manor a grand Georgian manor house set in beautiful Gardens. There is also a range of events that take place throughout the year which are included in the admission price.

Beamish Open Air Museum, County Durham, DH9 0RG
tel: 0191 370 4000;
www.beamish.org.uk

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