Hadrian’s Wall

Tickets and tours: all the options

Hadrian's Wall is not one site with one ticket. The wall itself and the national trail beside it are free and open all the time; what you pay for are the forts and museums along it, each run by its own body. English Heritage manages Chesters, Corbridge and, with the National Trust, Housesteads; the Vindolanda Trust runs Vindolanda and the Roman Army Museum; Birdoswald is also English Heritage. Members of English Heritage enter its sites free, and timed tickets can be booked online for busy summer days.

Tours on GetYourGuide include short guided walks of two hours, longer guided days from Hexham with transport between forts, private tours with pick-up, and coach day trips from Edinburgh that combine the wall with the Scottish Borders. There are also simple entry tickets for Housesteads, Chesters and Birdoswald, and multi-day tours from Edinburgh that add York and the Lake District. Day trips include transport and a guide; fort tickets are often extra.

For most visitors, a guided day from Hexham, or a self-drive day with one fort and a crag walk, is the best way to see the wall in a single visit.

A short history

Emperor Hadrian ordered the wall after visiting Britain in AD 122, and soldiers from three legions built most of it within about six years. It ran 80 Roman miles, with forts at intervals, a small milecastle every Roman mile and two turrets between them, plus a deep ditch and the earthwork known as the Vallum behind. Antoninus Pius moved the frontier north to the Antonine Wall in 142, but within about twenty years the troops returned. The wall was manned until the end of Roman rule around 410, then robbed for stone. John Clayton bought and protected much of the central section in the 19th century, and UNESCO listed it in 1987.

Getting there

The Tyne Valley railway from Newcastle to Carlisle runs parallel to the wall, with stations at Hexham, Haydon Bridge, Bardon Mill and Haltwhistle; from Newcastle to Hexham takes about 35 minutes. From late spring to autumn the AD122 Hadrian's Wall Country Bus links these towns with Housesteads, Vindolanda, the Roman Army Museum and other sites, but it runs only a few times a day, so check the timetable. A car gives much more flexibility; the forts have pay-and-display car parks, and the B6318 follows the line of the wall. Newcastle airport is about 45 minutes from Hexham by car, Edinburgh about 2.5 hours.

Rules and what to bring

Walk beside the wall, not on top of it: the masonry is fragile and walking on it is discouraged everywhere. In winter, when the ground is wet, keep to hard paths and avoid creating new tracks in the grass. Keep dogs on leads near sheep and cattle, and close gates behind you. The weather on the crags changes quickly, so bring waterproofs, warm layers, boots and water. Cafes and toilets are at the main visitor centres; there is little between them.

When to go

The best months are May to September, when the AD122 bus runs, days are long and the forts keep summer hours. June and July are the busiest, especially at weekends and during school holidays, when the car parks at Housesteads and Steel Rigg fill by mid-morning. Arrive at opening or come after 3 pm for a quieter crag walk.

April and October are often bright and quieter, though cold and windy on the ridge. In winter some forts close or open only at weekends, the bus does not run, and short days limit walking time, but snow on the crags can be very beautiful. Vindolanda's excavation season usually runs from spring to autumn, and watching the diggers is a highlight. Allow a full day to see two forts and walk a stretch of the wall, and several days if you want to walk the 135 km national trail.