The UK’s most beautiful walk has been named in a new analysis, and it is not in England. In fact, no English walking route made the top five list. The study, which was conducted by CEWE, examined and ranked different walks across the UK based on desk research and Google review data. They came up with final rankings based on star reviews, the number of reviews each walk has, and the number of times words like ‘beautiful’, ‘stunning’, ‘amazing’ and ‘lovely’ appeared in reviews.
The top-rated walk in the UK, based on these criteria, is Mount Stewart in Northern Ireland. This walk is located around Strangford Lough in County Down, and received 259 ‘beautiful’ reviews. It is located on a 19th-century estate and has a 4.7-star rating, 22,200 Instagram hashtags, 253 TikTok views and 3,221 reviews. On the grounds, there is a grand mansion with a collection of paintings, landscaped gardens and a total of 10 miles of walking trails that take visitors through woodland and farmland. It beats walks in Scotland, Wales and England for the top spot on the list.
In second place is Powis Castle and Garden in Welshpool, Powys in Wales. This spot received a score of 4.7 and shared second place with Dunnottar Castle in Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire in Scotland. Dunnotar Castle received the most online reviews out of any of the walks in the top ten, with an impressive total of 11,721.
This is followed by Whitesands Bay in Pembrokeshire, St Davids, Wales. The other top five spot went to Dunseverick Falls in Bushmills, County Antrim, Northern Ireland.
The ten most beautiful walks in the UK, according to this study, are:
1. Mount Stewart, Northern Ireland
=2. Powis Castle and Garden, Wales
=2. Dunnotar Castle Scotland
4. Whitesands Bay, Wales
5. Dunseverick Falls, Northern Ireland
6. Lizard Point, England
7. Glenariff Forest Park, Northern Ireland
8. Aber Falls, Wales
9. Belfast Castle, Northern Ireland
10. Bedruthan Steps, England
Reviewers have praised Mount Stewart for its immense beauty and lovely visitor experiences. One Tripadvisor user said: “The Rose garden had an amazing scent and the smaller gardens near the house were full of amazing plants. Well cared for, I would recommend it. Obviously, it is a bug space and has some uneven terrain, so good shoes were a must.”
Another wrote: “This is a fantastic National Trust property. It was a spur of the moment visit as we were travelling back home later in the day but we were so pleased we visited. The house and gardens (and cafe) were wonderful. The staff were amazing at this property, friendly and very knowledgeable. They are a credit to the property. This is a must visit place.”
A third shared: “The formal gardens are magnificent. We had a great time wandering around. The dodo walk was great. The temple of the winds is a must-see. It is a very easy walk, and the views are spectacular.”