Cake Trails: Monasticism and Sacred Landscapes at Tynemouth Priory

Faith in Nature on the Rugged North-East Coast

In the final walking tour of our summer series, we guide you through the stunning ruins, coastal walks, and rock pools of Tynemouth Priory and its surrounds. Established in the seventh-century as a shrine for the remains for St. Oswine, by the 1070s this complex was home to the Benedictine Order. Depending heavily on the North Sea's fish and other creatures for their survival, the monks also harnessed the broader landscape, building mills and becoming amongst the first groups to mine coal. Our expert led tour traces the impact of monastic life on this coastal environment, including its legacy of historic buildings, and looks at early religious philosophies of humble living, sustainability, and a profound respect for the natural world which shaped the Prior's activities there, providing early blueprints for modern conservation efforts in the North-East.

Cake Trails

Step into history with our trained archaeologists and historians this summer, as they guide you through the region’s most fascinating historic sites, events, and people on our new series of walking tours, from ruthless royals to the women persecuted as witches in the chaos of the English Civil War.

Let them eat cake!

With a maximum of ten tickets available per event and complimentary cake and a hot beverage at a local tearoom with your guide concluding each two-hour walk, this is a fantastic event for those wanting to discover history within a more informal, conversational atmosphere.

Booking Information & FAQs

Tour Start: Tours start at 11.30am and finish at approximately 2.00pm, before moving to a nearby tearoom.

Meeting Point: Your guide will meet you at Tynemouth Metro Station, with more information to follow on booking.

Duration: The tour is approximately 2 1/2 hours in length followed by cake and a hot beverage.

Inclusions: Access to key sites and tearoom refreshments are included in the ticket price. 

Access: The tour covers a mixture of sandy beaches, flat concrete, and grassy terrains, with some step access in areas.

Refund Policy: Due to the nature of the tour, 100% refunds of the ticket price will be given for bookings cancelled 7 or more days before the event. 50% refunds will be given for bookings cancellations made more than 2 days and less than 7 days before the event.

About Iles Tours

Iles Tours is a five-star historic tour group specialising in small-group, guided visits to historic sites in the North East of England and Southern Scotland. Founded by archaeologist and historian Alex Iles, our guides are experts in their fields with formal training in historical and archaeological research, and our tours are consistently rated five-stars on TripAdvisor and Google Reviews. For more, see ilestours.co.uk.