Some of England’s most breathtaking sights are found along the coast.
And now those landscapes are even easier to access as a brand-new coastal path, 2,700 miles long and circling the English coastline, has officially opened to the public.
The route was included in Which? Travels’ top picks for holidaymakers in 2026 – and for good reason. The path, which has been formally named the King Charles III England Coast Path, includes hundreds of miles of new pathways connecting coastal towns, cities and ports across the country. It also included new infrastructure to improve accessibility, including new boardwalks and bridges.
Which? Travel members’ favourite coastal landscapes and beach walks feature along the new path, including the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall, Bamburgh in Northumberland (voted the UK’s best seaside town) and Seven Sisters in East Sussex, which was also declared one of the UK’s National Nature Reserves (NNR) recently.
The route will connect many coastal landscapes across the country, for example, from Holy Island to Bamburgh in the North East and onwards to the mudflats of Lindisfarne NNR.
If you’re planning to make the most of the path, along with investing in a decent pair of walking boots, shoes and walking poles, you should also check that the area you’d like to visit is open to the public, as the path is still opening in sections and parts are yet to be completed. For example, some parts of the Jurassic Coast, and other routes in Cumbria and Norfolk are incomplete.
You can check which sections of the King Charles III England Coast Path are currently open via the National Trails website. There, you can select the part of the English coast you plan to visit, and check the interactive map to see whether you may encounter diversions or closures.
New routes along the path will eventually reach 1,000 miles, once final sections of the trail are completed and opened. Natural England expects that 90% of the works will have been completed by summer 2026.
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Natural England, which manages the route, has confirmed that dogs are generally welcome on the path, but must be kept on a lead or within sight if off-lead (in areas where this is allowed, for example, away from livestock).
It has been confirmed that additional rules may be in place on a case-by-case basis where necessary to protect natural habitats and wildlife. Do look out for signage with instructions in these cases.
Only in official campsites, as wild camping isn’t legal in England or Wales. You can find campsites in each area’s interactive map on the National Trails website.
Read our guide to the UK’s best walks for 2026.
