Start from 36 curated places around Newcastle upon Tyne, GB, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
House of Tides
A Michelin-starred kitchen set inside a restored 16th-century merchant's townhouse a block back from the Quayside. The draw is refined, seasonal modern-British cooking in a room with exposed beams and real history. This is the special-occasion Quayside dinner.
Cook House
A black-brick restaurant in the middle of Ouseburn's creative quarter, built on a short, daily-changing menu of seasonal small and large plates. There's a deli and a terrace, and the whole thing feels personal rather than corporate. Best for a relaxed long lunch.
Trails & outdoors
Quayside Circular Walk
The flat riverside loop that takes in both banks of the Tyne, crossing the Millennium Bridge one way and a higher bridge back, past the bars, BALTIC and the Glasshouse. It's the single best orientation walk in the city. Easy enough for anyone, any time of day.
Town Moor Circular
A loop across the Town Moor, a huge open common bigger than several London parks combined, where freemen still graze cattle minutes from the city centre. It's flat, open and bracing rather than scenic-pretty, the place locals run and clear their heads. Good for a quick green escape.
Things to do
BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art
A converted Baltic flour mill on the Gateshead riverside turned into a free contemporary art gallery with a constantly changing exhibition programme. There's no permanent collection, so it's always different, and the top-floor viewing box gives a free river-and-city panorama. A reliable rainy-day and family option.
The Glasshouse International Centre for Music
The curving glass music centre on the Gateshead bank, home to the Royal Northern Sinfonia and a programme spanning classical, folk, jazz, pop and rock. The acoustics in the main halls are the regional standard for live sound. The place to catch a gig or concert in the evening.
Landmarks & sights
Tyne Bridge
The green steel arch that is shorthand for Newcastle itself, spanning the Tyne between the city and Gateshead. You can walk across the footways, but the best views are from below on the Quayside looking up at it framed against the other bridges. The anchor shot of any visit.
Gateshead Millennium Bridge
The pedestrian 'Blinking Eye,' the world's first tilting bridge, curving across the Tyne between the Quayside bars and BALTIC. Walking it links the two riverbanks and gives you the best angle on the Tyne Bridge. It periodically tilts to let boats through, which is the thing to catch.