Nicholas Craig column

Jan 14 2005 By Nicholas Craig, The Journal

A simple walk in Northumberland over Christmas, visiting Craster and Bamburgh's coastline and countryside, brought home the immense luck we have in being able to enjoy the simple things in this region.

I had the luck to choose a beautiful day - wall-to-wall blue sky, sunshine, a flat calm sea and beaches straight from a Mediterranean postcard.

The miles of empty sands and grassy dunes are rightly trumpeted as a still unspoilt national treasure.

But the harbour villages also put a spring in the step.

Craster's whitewashed and brown stone houses are a honeypot for tourists, who are drawn to the unmistakable whiff of fish from Robson's smokehouse, where herrings are kippered and salmon smoked over oak chip fires.

With Dunstanburgh Castle on its volcanic knoll one way, and Bamburgh's fine castle and coast to the other, it is an extraordinary, dramatic stretch of superb landscape.

If the temperature were 10 degrees warmer, our coasts would be Europe's playground, with the risk of being developed to destruction. As it was, I was wrapped up against the wind and delighted to have much of the day more or less to myself.

With the news that Britain's biggest and best tree house opened this week at Alnwick Garden, and the gathering credibility of proposals for a £150m million indoor ski-slope leisure attraction at Stobswood, Northumberland is slowly creating distinctive tourist destinations which will bring a much-needed boost to the local economy.

Ideally, this will help us welcome new visitors while ensuring that our beaches, walks and countryside do not become too crowded.

The county has to create a `chicane' of visitor hotspots to encourage and manage large numbers of people. They will extend the length of time tourists spend in the region, and help to keep our relatively private treasures protected.

The World Heritage site of Hadrian's Wall has successfully managed to keep its identity while cultivating tourist numbers, and Durham's `perfect little city' tempts many thousands to visit each year.

Our good fortune in having the best things in life right on the doorstep is one we should cherish.

With a carefully managed tourism strategy we will be able to share our glorious location and still relish relatively private days out ourselves.

Nicholas Craig is a partner at Watson Burton LLP