You’re probably so full of Christmas cheer, chocolate and roast dinner by now, all you want to do is curl up, watch It’s A Wonderful Life and eat yet more cheese. But a brisk stroll in the countryside is a classic Boxing Day activity worth peeling yourself off the couch for. But what are the best Boxing Day walks to tackle this year?
We’re not promising miracles here when it comes to actually burning off calories from Christmas day. The average British person eats 6,000 calories on Christmas Day alone, according to a study last year, and you’d have to walk for 24 hours straight to burn that off. So go for some fresh air and scenery instead.
The good news is that all are accessible, and many are National Trust Boxing Day walks, so you’ll get to view some incredible scenary.
And almost without fail, we’re glad that we did. The air is brisk, the exercise much needed, and the atmosphere suffused with the last remains of festive cheer. So without further ado, let’s take a wander through the Boxing Day walks that will vindicate your effort in leaving the house…
Read the Wise Living guide to 6 amazing health benefits of walking.
Here are 15 of the best Boxing Day walks to blow away the Christmas cobwebs.
15 best Boxing Day walks
1. Gullane Bay, East Lothian
This walk takes in one of the finest beaches in East Lothian. Starting from Gullane Bents car park, head down to the sand dunes, then onto the beach. You can walk along to North Berwick via Yellowcraigs beach if your Christmas pudding hasn’t weighed you down too much. There are some suburb golf courses in the area and the beaches near the village of Gullane are popular with windsurfers. Other nearby attractions include the village of Dirleton, with its ruined castle and Museum of Flight.
2. The Buttermere Circuit, Cumbria
The Lake District has been repeatedly voted the most beautiful region in the UK, and Lake Buttermere is arguably its most beautiful lake. Rugged yet accessible, this relatively easy circuit balances wild, Instagrammable mountain views with a steady trickle of pubs, and even an ice cream parlour.
Circumnavigating the lake takes about two hours, but bring sturdy footwear, and pray for a clear day. With Fleetwith Pike to the south, Grasmoor to the north, and the High Stile range to the west, the sights are nothing short of magnificent.
3. Blenheim Palace Christmas Trail, Oxfordshire
The Christmas Trail at Blenheim Palace is open until January, transforming the gardens landscaped by the famous Capability Brown into a magical illuminated wonderland. The hour-long trail includes Christmas trees that sing, a swaying lawn of fibre optic colour and sparkling hedgerows. The Great Lake will be aglow with brightly-lit bobbing boats and don’t miss the ‘cascade of fire’ dancing in time with Christmas classics.
4. The North Antrim Cliff Path, Co. Antrim
Don’t be fooled by its innocuous name, this five-mile stroll along the Northern Irish coast is all about one thing: Giant’s Causeway. Beginning at the weather-beaten ruins of Dunseverick Castle, the path wends its way westward between plunging cliffs and pristine farmland, and reaches the causeway after roughly a two hour ramble.
Not many Boxing Day walks have UNESCO World Heritage Sites at the end, so leave another half hour at least to explore the causeway’s thousands of interlocking basalt columns.
5. The Waterford Greenway, Munster
This 46km off-road cycling and walking trail, the Waterford Greenway, is along an old railway line between Waterford and Dungarvan in the south of Ireland. It runs along a route that’s rich in Irish heritage, and passes through the famous Ballyvoyle tunnel and Kilmacthomas Workhouse built in 1850.
6. The Great Trossachs Path, Stirling
Clocking in at just under 30 miles long, the Great Trossachs Path is just as mammoth as its name suggests – and one of our longest Boxing Day walks. Unless you fancy the hiking equivalent of an Ironman triathlon we recommend the eastern front – between Trossachs Pier and Callander – a comfortable drive from Glasgow or Stirling.
Surely one of the most verdant walks in the UK, the route carries you across dipping valleys and undulating hillsides, incorporating shrubland, farmland and woodland. Somehow, the path is pretty flat throughout.
7. Castle Fraser Estate, Aberdeenshire
We couldn’t not include a Scottish castle. There are two great walking trails around the Castle Fraser Estate – the Alton Brae Trail and Miss Bristow’s Trail. The castle itself is closed from late October to March but don’t let that stop you from exploring the beautiful grounds.
8. Burnham Overy Staithe, Norfolk
A hidden gem on the North Norfolk coast, Burnham Overy is a mishmash of coastal geography crammed into a mile-and-a-half of family-friendly rambling. Your route is marked out by a winding sea wall separating swampy salt marshes from reed-covered meadows, leading to a network of sand dunes interspersed with shrubland. Cresting the dunes reveals a vast expanse of flat, featureless sand that disappears into the distance, and a stretch of swimmable, if bitingly brisk English sea.
Sandals are advised; a picnic is essential. Unfairly overshadowed by the windswept beaches of Holkham a few miles down the coast, Burnham Overy possesses that rare quality – it is genuinely fun for all the family.
9. Holkham Beach, Norfolk
Invigorate the senses on Boxing Day on one of the broadest and most unspoilt beaches in the UK. Holkham Beach is part of a huge nature reserve and in winter it’s chock full of migrant birds. Soak up stormy seas and share the scenery with larks, finches and pink-footed geese. Holkham featured in Shakespeare In Love – Gwyneth Paltrow walked across the sand at low tide during the closing scenes, and it was once named the best beach in the UK.
10. Beachy Head, East Sussex
A colossal chalk headland in East Sussex, Beachy Head emerges as a close competitor with Dover for most scenic white cliffs in the UK and offers spectaular Boxing Day walks. Towering 162 metres above the sea, the clifftop paths offer panoramic views out over the ocean and bracing sea breezes to banish your post-Christmas blues.
For full aesthetic value we recommend the Seven Sisters trail: Starting from East Dean the path cuts south to Birling Gap, hugs the zigzagging cliffs past the much-photographed Beachy Head Lighthouse, and finally curves back inland past the suburbs of Eastbourne.
11. Holy Island circuit, Lindisfarne, Northumberland
If you’re local to the area, you could burn off those Christmas calories with a six-mile walk along the Northumberland coast. Holy Island is both an island and a picturesque village, with a wealth of rich Viking history in its tidal walls. There’s a 16th-century castle and Edwardian mansion with views of the Northumberland coastline. The winter wildlife on Lindisfarne’s National Nature Reserve is guaranteed to provide some good sightings, with thousands of migrating birds and, if you’re lucky, grey seals, porpoises and dolphins.
12. Kenwood, London
For Londoners whose Christmas dinner has left them with limited room for manoeuvre, Kenwood is your one-stop shop for remaining inside the M25 and is one of the best London Boxing Day walks. Conjoined with Hampstead Heath – itself a larger, wilder destination than many realise – Kenwood’s subtly landscaped gardens provide a refreshing, rural oasis in the heart of the urban jungle.
Round off your sojourn with a trip to Kenwood House – the 17th century manor now home to one of the finest private art collections in Britain. The permanent display includes Rembrandt, Gainsborough, van Dyck and Constable, whose clear blue skies and flowing landscapes are only marginally more picturesque than those outside the window.
13. The Giant’s Causeway clifftop walk, County Antrim
This new five-mile route starts at the picturesque ruin of Dunseverick Castle and leads you along the clifftop path to the UNESCO world heritage site Giant’s Causeway, with the dramatic nine Glens of Antrim as a backdrop. The clifftop experience guided walk departs daily from the Giant’s Causeway Visitor Centre at 10:15am, when the bus heads off to Dunseverick Castle.
14. Blorenge, Monmouthshire
It may sound like one of your grandmother’s custard desserts, but Blorenge boasts one of the prettiest and most accessible trails in the Brecon Beacons. 15 minutes by car from Abergavenny, 60 from Cardiff and 75 from Bristol, the unappealingly-named peak provides a family-friendly, figure-of-eight route replete with heather, water features, and spectacular views out over the Usk Valley and beyond.
15. Dunham Massey After Dark Illuminated Trail, Cheshire
The seven-acre winter garden at Dunham Massey is the largest of its kind in England with over 700 different plant species and 1,600 shrubs, trees and evergreens. Until the end of December, visitors can experience the mile-long illuminated winter trail after dark, making it one of the best National Trust Boxing day walks. The sparkling path winds through the historic woodland, complete with Christmas decorations, a scented ‘fire garden’, singing trees and a canopy of over 100,000 fairy lights. Warm up afterwards with toasted marshmallows around a fire pit, a drink and roasted chestnuts.
