Looking for somewhere lesser known for your 2025 staycation? Let us pitch to you Walney Island in south Cumbria. An isle just off Morecambe Bay, Walney has a huge seal population, spectacular views across the Irish Sea and Lake District mountains and is a kitesurfing hotspot. And in 2025, Walney is getting a brand new walking and cycling path to make strolling and exploring the island even easier.
The £1.5 million trail will stretch across 1.4 miles across the north of the island. It’ll include new kerbs, upgraded street lighting, additional benches and a new rain garden. Work has already started and it’s set to be all done by the spring.
The trail give locals and tourists a continuous, safe and direct route around the island, running by Walney town centre, Earnse Bay Outdoor Centre, Earnse Bay Beach and Vickerstown Park. Not far away you’ll also find the rugged North Walney Nature Reserve.
Neil Hughes, Westmorland and Furness Council’s cabinet member for transport and regulatory services, said about the trail: ‘This new route on North Walney will support our communities to ‘actively’ access the growing opportunities in Barrow-in-Furness through improved connections between neighbourhoods and key employment and education sites, making journeys by bike or on foot easier, safer and more enjoyable.’
Staycation inspiration
We’ve got plenty of guides to help you choose. These are Time Out’s best new things to do in the UK in 2025, these are the coolest extreme outdoor activity breaks, the most amazing castles that you can actually stay in, the best treehouses to book a night at and the most romantic getaways.
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