Best Picnic Spots Along the British Coast Path

Why the Coast Path Makes the Best Picnic Table in Britain

There's a particular pleasure in eating outdoors within sight of the sea. The British coast path — that long, stitch-like ribbon of footpath that traces so much of our shoreline — offers more picnic spots per mile than almost anywhere else in the country. You don't need a booking, a car park fee or a reservation. You need a flask, a rucksack, a decent pair of boots and a willingness to walk twenty minutes further than the crowds.

The best spots are rarely the ones with the biggest car park. They're the ones tucked behind a gorse bush, halfway down a cliff staircase, or at the end of a bench that somebody's grandparents donated in 1987. This guide is about finding them — and eating well once you have.

What to Pack for a Coastal Picnic

Coastal weather changes faster than inland weather, and wind is the enemy of a happy picnic. Build your kit around that reality.

• A wide-based flask — soup or tea, depending on the season. A flask that rolls over on grass is a flask that leaks.
• Something weighted — a heavy bottomed bag or a stone you place on the corner of the blanket. Paper napkins will otherwise make a bid for the sea.
• Local cheese and bread — buy it that morning from a village shop or deli near the trailhead. A wedge of crumbly cheese, a bag of pickle and a crusty loaf beats any pre-packed sandwich, and it survives a rucksack better too.
• A waterproof sit mat — foam mats weigh almost nothing and save you from damp grass, cold rock and sheep-mown ground.
• Water and a bin bag — take everything home. Coastal bins overflow in summer and gulls are relentless.

Pack light. If the walk involves more than one steep climb, you'll resent every extra gram by the second mile.

Finding a Sheltered Cove

Coves are the gold standard of coastal picnicking, because a cove gives you three sides of shelter and one side of view. The trick is timing the tide. Most small coves along the south-west and Welsh coasts are fully covered at high water, so check a tide table before you set out — a local harbour office, a village shop noticeboard or a tide table posted at the slipway will all tell you. Aim to arrive two hours either side of low water and you'll have sand, rock pools and plenty of room.

Look for coves that require a descent: a flight of steps, a rope handrail, a rocky scramble. These filter out the picnic blankets and the portable barbecues. If you're carrying a cool bag, check the path is actually manageable — some cliff staircases are fine going down and miserable coming up.

West-facing coves are warmer in the afternoon; east-facing ones catch the morning sun and are often quieter. If the wind is coming from the south-west, as it usually is, a north-facing cove will feel calm when everywhere else is blustery.

Clifftop Benches and Wide Sea Views

Not every good picnic spot is down at sea level. Some of the finest are on the clifftop, where a bench faces out across open water and the gulls work the updraught below you. These spots are drier, easier to reach and infinitely better in shoulder season, when the coves are cold and shadowed.

Look for memorial benches, often set at a bend in the path or at the top of a rise. They're usually positioned by someone who knew the view well. Sit with your back to the land, feet on the grass, and let the wind come off the sea rather than across it. If there's no bench, find a drystone wall with a flat top — but never sit on a wall that's holding up a field of livestock, and never climb one.

Clifftop picnics need a firm grip on your kit. Anything light will go over the edge, and anything over the edge is gone. Weigh down napkins under the flask, and keep the wrapper of your sandwich in your hand rather than on the grass.

Practicalities: Tides, Wind, Livestock and Access

A few hard-won rules make the difference between a memorable lunch and a soggy retreat.

• Never picnic on a beach cut off by the tide. If you can see a headland between you and the way back, check the tide again.
• Respect livestock. Close gates behind you, keep dogs on leads around sheep and cattle, and don't eat in the middle of a field of bullocks.
• Watch for cliff edge erosion. Stay well back from the lip, particularly on soft cliffs in Norfolk, Yorkshire and parts of the south coast. Cracks in the ground are a warning.
• Check footpath diversions. Coastal erosion closes sections of path every year; a short inland detour usually exists, often marked with a waymarker disc.
• Take a windproof layer even in July. Sea breezes can drop the temperature several degrees once you stop moving.

When to Go and Where to Aim

Late spring and early autumn are the sweet spots. In May the gorse is out, the paths are firm and the sandwiches aren't yet competing with wasps. In September the sea is at its warmest, the crowds have thinned and the light is long and golden. High summer is perfectly possible, but start early and aim for a spot a good half hour's walk from the nearest car park.

Wherever you settle — a Cornish cove, a Pembrokeshire headland, a Northumberland dune, a Norfolk saltmarsh edge — the same principle applies. Walk a little further, sit a little lower, and face the water. Pack the flask, buy the local cheese, and leave nothing behind but a flattened patch of grass.