Ten Boxing Day walks in North Somerset, from Brean Down to Poets' Walk and Tyntesfield, with parking and what is open on the day. Updated November 2026.
North Somerset has ten Boxing Day walks worth getting out of the house for in 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with distances, parking and what is open on the day. Most people head for Brean Down, the National Trust headland across the River Axe from Uphill, or the cliff path of Poets’ Walk in Clevedon. For a cafe at the end, Tyntesfield is open on Boxing Day with the estate open from 10am. Every opening time was checked against the owner’s own site on 12 November 2026.
Boxing Day 2026 is a Saturday, and the bank holiday moves to Monday 28 December. A few things to know before setting out:
- Light. The sun sets just after 4pm, so start the longer walks by 1pm.
- Trains. Most operators run nothing on 26 December. Our Christmas train times page has the rest of the holiday.
- Clevedon roads. The Clevedon Boxing Day Race starts at 11am, with rolling road closures from 9am to 12.30pm around Elton Road and the seafront. Walk Poets’ Walk in the afternoon, or walk in.
- Tides and mud. Brean Down and Sand Point both sit above the Severn Estuary’s mudflats. The National Trust warns that the mud can be dangerous at low tide; stay on the paths.
Weston-super-Mare and the coast
1. Brean Down
Somerset’s “greatest natural pier”, in the National Trust’s words: a limestone headland 97 metres high running a mile and a half out into the Bristol Channel, with views to South Wales and over the Somerset Levels. At the far end is the ruin of a Victorian fort, and on the Down is the site of a Roman temple.
The Trust’s 3-mile coastal walk climbs steeply from the car park, then runs along the spine. Its calendar has the Down open from dawn to dusk on Boxing Day and the car park from 5am to 7pm.
The Cove Cafe at the bottom is closed, the Trust says, so bring a flask. Brean Down is in Somerset, 8 miles from junction 22 of the M5 by road, though it looks a stone’s throw from Uphill.
Walk 3-mile National Trust coastal walk; a steep climb from the car park, then level on top
Open dawn to dusk on 25 and 26 December; car park 5am to 7pm
Parking £6.50 all day at the National Trust car park, free to members
Call National Trust 01934 844518
Address Brean Down, Brean TA8 2RS
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/somerset/brean-down
Good for big views, history, dogs on leads, sea air
2. Uphill Hill and the old church
The short walk with the best view in Weston. North Somerset Council’s Uphill walks booklet starts its first walk, 1.5 miles and about 45 minutes, at the boatyard entrance to Uphill Hill, with car parking and toilets across the road.
The path passes a limekiln into the old quarry, where the booklet says birds of prey are often seen hunting, then climbs steeply with the River Axe and Brean Down on the right, before coming back down Uphill Way past The Ship and The Dolphin. The old church of St Nicholas stands on the hilltop above the quarry.
For something flat, the booklet’s second walk is 2 miles by the Pill, the beach and the Donkey Field.
Walk 1.5 miles, about 45 minutes, steep in places; a flat 2-mile alternative by the beach
Open open access; no gates
Parking by the boatyard, Uphill Way, with public toilets
Address Uphill Way, Uphill, Weston-super-Mare
Website n-somerset.gov.uk/my-services/libraries-leisure-open-spaces/parks-countryside/parks-open-spaces
Listing Our listing
Good for views, a pub at the end, history, short legs
3. Weston Woods and Worlebury Camp
The woods on the hill above the town hide one of the largest Iron Age hillforts on this coast. North Somerset Council says Worlebury Camp covers 10 hectares and has been a scheduled monument since 1915, with seven banks and ditches on its eastern side, now heaps of tumbled dry stone.
Excavations in the 1800s found 93 stone-lined storage pits holding barley, wheat and oats; volunteers have cleared some so they can be seen again. The trees came later, planted in the 1820s.
The easiest way in is from the Weston Woods car park on Worlebury Hill Road, along an accessible path to the eastern ramparts; the council warns that the path through the fort towards Kewstoke Road is uneven with stones and roots. It is free, and the finds are in Weston Museum.
Walk an accessible path from the car park to the ramparts; rougher woodland paths beyond
Open open access; free
Parking Weston Woods car park, Worlebury Hill Road BS22 9SG
Address Worlebury Hill Road, Weston-super-Mare BS22 9SG
Website n-somerset.gov.uk/my-services/libraries-leisure-open-spaces/parks-countryside/parks-open-spaces/worlebury-camp-hillfort
Good for history, woodland, views over Weston Bay and Sand Bay, dogs
4. Sand Point and Middle Hope
Weston’s other natural pier, north of the town beyond Kewstoke. The National Trust describes Sand Point as reaching out into the Bristol Channel with views across Sand Bay, and calls the Sand Point and Middle Hope coastline one of the most interesting in North Somerset for its birdlife and the 13th-century priory on its far side; the Trust’s circular walk takes in both.
There are no toilets at the Trust’s car park, which is paid only through the JustPark app; the nearest public toilets are in the car park on Sand Road. The Trust asks walkers to check tide times before visiting.
Walk National Trust circular walk around Sand Point and Middle Hope; uneven, exposed
Parking £5 all day by the JustPark app only, free to members and Blue Badge holders
Toilets none at Sand Point; public toilets in the Sand Road car park
Call National Trust 01934 844518
Address Beach Road, Kewstoke BS22 9UD
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/somerset/sand-point
Good for big skies, birdwatching, picnics, dogs
Clevedon and Portishead
5. Poets’ Walk and Clevedon Pier
Clevedon’s cliff path, named for the poets who came here: Coleridge, Thackeray and Tennyson all spent time at the Eltons’ Clevedon Court, and North Somerset Council notes that Arthur Hallam, the friend Tennyson mourned in In Memoriam, is buried at St Andrew’s Church, which the walk passes. The council’s leaflet puts the loop at about 1.5 miles, from the seafront round Wain’s Hill and back by a zigzag woodland path to the church.
Start or finish at the pier, which Sir John Betjeman called “the most beautiful pier in England”. Its winter hours run to 4.30pm on Saturdays; it had published no Christmas hours on 12 November, so check before you go.
Walk about 1.5 miles, cliff path and woodland; some steps
Open path always open; pier Saturdays 10am to 4.30pm in winter, last entry 4pm, no Christmas hours published
Call Clevedon Pier 01275 878846
Address The Beach, Clevedon
Website clevedonpier.co.uk
Good for sea views, literary history, a pier walk, a short outing
6. The coast path from Portishead to Clevedon
The long walk, and the one with a lighthouse at each stage. From Battery Point at the end of the Lake Grounds in Portishead, the coast path follows the cliffs past Black Nore lighthouse, about two miles on, and carries on to Ladye Bay and Clevedon, about five miles in all.
The Lake Grounds, now run by Portishead Town Council, are free, and so is the 200-space seafront car park beside them. Walking one way means a lift back on Boxing Day, so most people turn round at Black Nore.
Walk about 2 miles to Black Nore lighthouse, about 5 miles to Clevedon; cliff paths, muddy in places
Open always open
Parking free seafront car park by the Lake Grounds, about 200 spaces
Address Lake Grounds, Portishead
Website portishead.gov.uk
Good for lighthouses, shipping in the channel, a long walk, dogs
Inland: Tyntesfield, the Strawberry Line and the Mendips
7. Tyntesfield, Wraxall
The one on this list with a warm cafe and a house to look round. The National Trust’s Gothic Revival house near Nailsea is closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and open on Boxing Day: the estate from 10am to 5pm, the house from 10.30am to 3.30pm, the Cow Barn Cafe from 10am to 4pm and the Pavilion Cafe from 10.30am to 3.30pm.
This year’s Christmas theme is the Nutcracker, in the house and gardens until 3 January. The Trust describes miles of woodland paths, champion trees and a kitchen garden.
Unlike the rest of this list, there is an entry charge. Our Tyntesfield at Christmas page has the full winter dates.
Open 26 December estate 10am to 5pm, house 10.30am to 3.30pm; closed 24 and 25 December
Food Cow Barn Cafe 10am to 4pm; Pavilion Cafe 10.30am to 3.30pm
Price £21 adult, £10.50 child, £52.50 family; members and under-fives free
Parking £3 a day November to March, free to members
Call 01275 461900
Address Wraxall, Bristol BS48 1PA
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/bath-bristol/tyntesfield
Good for a cafe on the day, Christmas decorations, woodland paths, families
8. The Strawberry Line from Yatton
North Somerset Council’s 10-mile path along the old Cheddar Valley Railway, from Yatton station to Cheddar, which the National Trust says was built in 1869 to carry strawberries from Cheddar. The whole path has a limestone dust surface that the council says suits wheelchairs and pushchairs, and most of it is a Local Nature Reserve; the rhynes at the Yatton end are a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
The autumn tree works near Winscombe closed sections on weekdays only and were due to finish on 13 November. At the Yatton end, the community-run Strawberry Line Cafe on the station opens 9am to 4pm on Saturdays, with dogs welcome inside; it had published no Christmas hours.
At the Winscombe end, the Sidcot Arms on the A38 serves food from 12pm to 7pm on Boxing Day.
Walk 10 miles Yatton to Cheddar, flat; walk as far as you like and back
Open always open; Strawberry Line Cafe Saturdays 9am to 4pm, no Christmas hours published
Parking Yatton station car park (charged); Winscombe Recreation Ground (free)
Call Strawberry Line Cafe 01934 835758
Address Yatton railway station, Station Approach, Yatton
Website n-somerset.gov.uk/my-services/libraries-leisure-open-spaces/parks-countryside/parks-open-spaces/strawberry-line-heritage-trail
Listing Our listing
Good for pushchairs, wheelchairs, bikes, dogs, a cafe at the start
9. Goblin Combe, Cleeve
A wooded limestone gorge off the A370 at Cleeve, and the wildest walk on this list. Avon Wildlife Trust looks after 99 hectares here: limestone grassland on top, dark woodland and scrub in the combe below, and patches of heath, all a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
The Trust is plain about the going: “very steep, with steps”, and the paths along the floor of the combe “can be very muddy and slippery”. It is open at all times and free, but parking on Cleeve Hill Road is limited, so arrive early.
Dogs must be on a lead, as animals graze the reserve.
Walk very steep with steps; muddy paths on the combe floor
Open at all times; free
Parking limited, on Cleeve Hill Road
Address 61 Cleeve Hill Road, Cleeve BS49 4PH
Website avonwildlifetrust.org.uk/node/398
Good for woodland, wildlife, a proper scramble, dogs on leads
10. Crook Peak and Wavering Down
The Mendips’ most recognisable summit, two miles west of Axbridge. The National Trust calls Crook Peak “one of Mendip’s most distinctive hills”, with limestone grassland, rocky outcrops to scramble on at the top, and views to Glastonbury Tor and Brean Down.
The ridge runs east along Wavering Down, and the West Mendip Way, which starts at Uphill, passes over both. The Trust says both are about three-quarters of a mile on foot from Winscombe and Axbridge, and lists the Mendip Hills as open from dawn to dusk on Boxing Day.
Since 2023 the slopes have been part of the Mendip Hills National Nature Reserve. The Sidcot Arms on the A38 at Winscombe is the nearest pub with Boxing Day food published.
Walk steep climb to the peak; ridge walk along Wavering Down on the West Mendip Way
Open dawn to dusk on 25 and 26 December
Call National Trust 01934 844518
Address Crook Peak, near Compton Bishop, Axbridge
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/somerset/mendip-hills
Listing Our listing
Good for big views, a summit, open grassland, dogs on leads near livestock
How we chose
These are the walks people in Weston, Clevedon, Portishead, Nailsea and the villages search for at Christmas, picked for a route that holds up in December, somewhere to park and, where there is one, a cafe or pub within reach. Opening times come from the National Trust’s own calendar, North Somerset Council’s walk and nature reserve pages, Avon Wildlife Trust, Clevedon Pier and the Strawberry Line Cafe; the Sidcot Arms’ Boxing Day hours are from its own Christmas menu. Pubs and cafes often add Christmas hours in December, and we will update this page as they do. Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@northsomersetpost.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@northsomersetpost.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.
For the rest of the season, see things to do in North Somerset, what’s on this month, Christmas dinner in North Somerset, the Christmas markets, the Christmas bin collections and our local business directory.
Frequently asked questions
Is Tyntesfield open on Boxing Day 2026?
Yes. The National Trust’s calendar has Tyntesfield closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and open on Saturday 26 December, with the estate open from 10am to 5pm, the house from 10.30am to 3.30pm and the Cow Barn Cafe from 10am to 4pm. Entry is £21 for an adult, free for members, and winter parking is £3.
Is the cafe at Brean Down open on Boxing Day?
No. The National Trust says the cafe at Brean Down is now closed. The Down itself is open from dawn to dusk on Boxing Day and the car park from 5am to 7pm, so bring a flask.
Which Boxing Day walks in North Somerset are free?
Weston Woods and Worlebury Camp, Uphill Hill, Poets’ Walk in Clevedon, the Portishead coast path, the Strawberry Line, Goblin Combe and Crook Peak are all free to walk. Brean Down and Sand Point charge for the National Trust car park, and Tyntesfield charges for entry.
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