Coast along at leisure to enjoy delightful day out

● Stunning seaside walks give chance to work up appetite for area’ s food and drink offering

From dramatic cliffs, enchanting coves and sandy beaches to charming towns and marvellous wildlife, Aberdeenshire’s shoreline has wide-ranging appeal. With 165 miles of coast, stretching from Sandend to Aberdeen and down to St Cyrus, there is plenty to explore.

As part of VisitAberdeenshire’s Rediscover Your Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire campaign, we’ve rounded up a selection of stunning coastal walks, as well as nearby food and drink suggestions.

The campaign – involving The Press and Journal, Evening Express, Society and Original 106 – also has its own dedicated section on the VisitAberdeenshire website, where people can explore blogs with ideas for things to do.

Among the beautiful beaches is Banff, which offers visitors spectacular views across the River Deveron and towards the neighbouring harbour town of Macduff. It makes for a scenic walk and there are plenty of restaurants and cafes to fuel up in afterwards.

Food and drink suggestions include: the Kelpie Cafe in Castle Street, Baird’s Bistro in Castle Street and Home Bakery in High Street, all Banff; the Galley Whitehills in Harbour Place and the Rockfish Cafe and Chip Shop, both Whitehills; and Cornerstone Restaurant, Macduff.

Then there is Collieston, a sheltered beach between Cruden Bay and Newburgh.

It is perfect for families and children and the old harbour makes it a picturesque spot.

For refreshments, try the Barn Restaurant and Coffee Shop, Westfield, Foveran; Smugglers Cone, Collieston Harbour; and Newburgh Inn, Main Street, Newburgh.

Forvie Nature Reserve is close by and boasts one of Scotland’s most dramatic stretches of coastline, with some of the largest sand dunes in Britain.

A short, easy access trail with wheelchairaccessible picnic tables leads on to the reserve from the Forvie Centre, which has a classroom for educational use.

There is also a bird hide at Waulkmill, cycle racks at the main car parks and a story trail to follow at the site of Forvie village.

Waymarked paths varying in length from two to four miles can also be found at the reserve.

Just a mile from Forvie is the wonderfully sandy Newburgh Beach, now famous for its colony of seals.

After working up an appetite, visitors could head to the View Restaurant, Bar and Lounge at Newburgh-on-Ythan Golf Club; or the Kirk Centre in Station Road, the Buchan Hotel in Bridge Street or the Coffee Apothecary in the Square, all Ellon; or towards Tarves to the Murly Tuck or Formartine’s.

Heading towards Aberdeen there is Balmedie Country Park, which has a long stretch of beautiful sandy beach and dunes great and small to explore.

A boardwalk aids visitor access through the dunes.

The park is part of a dune system that stretches 14 miles from Aberdeen, to just north of the mouth of the River Ythan at Newburgh.

Food and drink suggestions include: Beachside Coffee Shop in Eigie Road, Balmedie Fish and Chip Shop, the Cock and Bull in Ellon Road and the Bengal Tiger in Birch Way, all Balmedie; or Parkhill Garden Centre, Parkhill, Dyce.

South of Aberdeen is Stonehaven, one of the largest of the recreational harbours in Aberdeenshire. It has three basins extending to 18,200sq m and 550m of berthing space on the quays.

The harbour makes for a stunning walk on a summer’s day, with the opportunity to get a decent vantage point from the Bervie Braes.

There are a number of bustling restaurants and cafes in the town, including the Tolbooth Seafood Restaurant, the Ship Inn, the Belvedere Hotel, the Bay Fish and Chips and Tandoori Haven.

For more information on the walks listed, visit yourabdn.com