Newcastle Tour Company · Independent local experiences

Newcastle Shore Excursions from Port of Tyne

Discover Newcastle, Northumberland and North East England with local experts. Our private shore excursions and guided experiences offer cruise passengers a personal way to explore beyond the usual cruise-line coach tours.

From Newcastle’s historic streets to Hadrian’s Wall, Durham and the castles of Northumberland, we’ll help you make the most of your time ashore.

Explore Shore Excursions Enquire About a Private Tour

Why book with Newcastle Tour Company?

Guides who know the region

Explore with knowledgeable local guides, from Newcastle and Durham to the Roman frontier and Northumberland’s coast.

Your interests, your company

Choose a private experience for family and friends, or join an existing small-group tour where its departure fits your visit. Private itineraries can be flexible where the chosen tour allows.

Plan around your port call

Tell us your ship and timings. Where a shore excursion is explicitly arranged, we’ll agree the itinerary, collection and return arrangements with you before you travel.

Choose your day ashore

Find the experience that suits you. Private vehicle excursions and city walking tours have different meeting arrangements: check the details below and tell us that you are arriving by cruise ship.

Shared or private walking tour

Newcastle Highlights & Private Walking Tour

90–120 minutes walking

Get to know Newcastle through its historic streets, Grainger Town, castle quarter and Quayside. Choose a public departure that fits your visit, or a private walk shaped around your interests.

Meeting & transport: Public tours meet inside Tickets Bar, Neville Street. Private meeting points are arranged in advance. Cruise transfers must be selected and confirmed separately.

Public tour: £25 per person. Private tours and transfers priced separately.

View Newcastle walking tours

Hadrian’s Wall in the Northumberland countryside

Private chauffeured tour

Half-Day Hadrian’s Wall Tour

Approximately 4 hours

Head into Roman Britain with a local guide, exploring stretches of Hadrian’s Wall and the Northumberland countryside, with a Roman fort visit included.

Meeting & transport: Cruise-terminal collection and return are available when booked as a shore excursion. Confirm the total port-to-port timing before booking.

See the booking options for your party’s price.

View Hadrian’s Wall tour

Private walking tour · transfers optional

Private Durham Walking Tour

1.5 hours walking, plus transfers

Discover Durham’s medieval lanes, Market Place and cathedral setting with your own guide. A cathedral interior tour is an optional addition.

Meeting & transport: Meet in Durham city centre, or add transfers from Newcastle Cruise Terminal at checkout. Allow additional time for travel and any cathedral visit.

From £225 per party for the walking tour; transfers and optional extras are additional.

View private Durham tour

Private chauffeured tour

Alnwick Castle: A Wizard’s Tale

Approximately 4 hours

Visit Alnwick Castle, explore its state rooms at your own pace and hear about its film connections. The route also takes in the Northumberland coast and Warkworth.

Meeting & transport: Cruise-terminal collection and return are available with the shore excursion option. Check your date, castle opening and ship timings before booking.

See the booking options for your party’s price.

View Alnwick Castle tour

Bamburgh Castle on the Northumberland coast

Private chauffeured tour · longer port calls

Castles & Coast: Bamburgh & Holy Island

8 hours

Explore Northumberland’s coastline, Bamburgh and the Holy Island of Lindisfarne on our Bamburgh & Holy Island tour. Allow a full day ashore for this itinerary.

Meeting & transport: Request cruise-terminal collection when booking as a shore excursion. Holy Island access depends on safe causeway crossing times as well as your ship’s schedule.

View Castles & Coast itinerary

Roman frontier landscape on the Hadrian’s Wall experience

Private chauffeured tour · longer port calls

Hadrian’s Wall & Durham Dales

8 hours

Spend a fuller day exploring the Roman frontier, Vindolanda and the landscapes of the North Pennines and Durham Dales. This itinerary visits the Dales rather than Durham city.

Meeting & transport: Cruise-terminal collection is available with the shore excursion option. Contact us first to check that the full itinerary fits your time ashore.

View full-day Hadrian’s Wall tour

Before you book: published tour durations are a starting point, not confirmation that a tour fits your cruise call. Check total time including transfers, disembarkation and a return margin before your ship’s all-aboard time. Date availability, final prices and any extras are shown in the booking process or confirmed with your quotation.

Prefer something more personal?

Our Create Your Own Tour service is the place to start for a private day built around your interests, pace and time in port. Tell us what you would most like to see and we’ll check what is practical.

Explore bespoke shore excursions

A different taste of Newcastle

For local food and character, explore the Newcastle Street Food Tour or Howay Man! Geordie Culture Tour. These city experiences may suit your visit if the departure and transfer arrangements work with your ship.

Ask us about private arrangements before booking. A public city-tour ticket does not automatically include transport from the port.

Visiting Newcastle on a Cruise?

Cruise ships generally use the Port of Tyne’s International Passenger Terminal in North Shields. It is outside Newcastle city centre: the Port of Tyne describes the city centre as approximately nine miles away.

A central Newcastle walking-tour meeting point is therefore not a walk-off-the-ship meeting point. Arrange your transfer or ask about a private shore excursion with collection.

Port information: Port of Tyne passenger information. Follow your cruise line’s instructions for your specific call.

Have these details ready

Your ship’s name and the date of your visit.
Scheduled arrival, departure and confirmed all-aboard time.
Number of guests, interests and preferred tour.
Any mobility needs, walking limitations or child-seat requirements.
Whether you need collection and return at the cruise terminal.

We’ll use these details to check suitability. Please confirm your all-aboard time with the ship before booking.

Newcastle cruise port tours: your questions

Where do cruise ships dock in Newcastle?

Cruise calls generally use the Port of Tyne’s International Passenger Terminal at North Shields, on the north bank of the River Tyne. Check your cruise line’s arrival information for the arrangements for your ship and follow the meeting instructions on your tour confirmation.

How far is Newcastle city centre from the cruise terminal?

The Port of Tyne gives the distance as approximately nine miles. You will need onward transport for a city-centre walking tour. Allow for disembarkation, traffic and reaching the meeting point; do not treat the tour’s walking duration as the total time away from your ship.

Can I book an independent shore excursion?

Yes. You can book directly with Newcastle Tour Company. Choose a suitable tour or ask us to arrange a private day. Tell us that you are a cruise passenger, and have the booking specifically confirmed as a shore excursion if you need those arrangements. Public tour departures run to their advertised schedule.

Can you collect us from the Port of Tyne?

Selected private tours offer cruise-terminal collection and return when booked with the shore excursion option. Some walking tours offer transfers as an addition. Collection is not included with every ticket: select the relevant option or contact us, and check the agreed meeting point and transport on your confirmation.

Can we visit Hadrian’s Wall or Durham during our cruise stop?

These can be suitable choices, depending on the length of your call. We offer a half-day Hadrian’s Wall tour and a private Durham walking tour with optional cruise-terminal transfers. Send us your ship’s timings so we can check the total journey. Eight-hour excursions need a longer call and should be checked with us first.

What happens if our ship changes its itinerary?

Contact us as soon as you know. The arrangements depend on your tour and booking conditions. Special cruise provisions apply only when the booking includes the Cruise Shore Excursion option or has been confirmed as a shore excursion in writing. Missed-port refunds can exclude booking charges and non-refundable costs. Please read the booking terms, including the shore excursion conditions, before booking.

How do we make sure we return to the ship on time?

Give us your confirmed all-aboard time and agree a suitable itinerary and return arrangement before booking. Follow your guide’s instructions and allow a sensible margin. If you arrange your own transport, you are responsible for your return journey. Our return-to-ship scheme has conditions and limits and does not apply where return transport is not included; see the full booking terms and ask us to confirm what applies to your booking.

Let’s plan your time ashore

Send us your ship, visit date, party size and all-aboard time, together with the places you would love to explore. We’ll help you choose a suitable private shore excursion from Port of Tyne.

Enquire About a Private Tour