close

Your next adventure starts here

About Us

Welcome to our Awards

Book now Plan your trip
£25 Deposit* Click here to book now T&C's apply

Who we are

Where we are and what we do.
Find out more about us and our partners.

Kielder Water & Forest Park is unique. The fourth largest place in the world with Dark Sky Status, Northern Europe’s largest man-made lake and England’s largest working forest. It’s the best place for an escape to the great outdoors.

As well as our location, our people are what makes us who we are. Many employees within our onsite teams have lived in the area for years and know everything there is to know about what you can do and see and the history. Their knowledge is unrivalled and proves invaluable to visitors.

Kielder Waterside sits within the larger Kielder Water & Forest Park. The Park is ran by a number of stakeholders and partners. Our aim is to give you the visitor the most special and unique trip you can have.


about_us_image

Accreditations

About Us

-->

Kielder Aerial Video

A birds eye view of the stunning Kielder Water.

watch the video

History of Kielder

From a small village to the largest man-made lake in northern Europe.

A brief overview of how Kielder and the park became what it is today.

The initial plans for Kielder started in the late 60’s and were approved by parliament in 1974. The scheme originally happened to help with the unexpected rise in demand for water to support the booming industrial economy. The reservoir is owned by Northumbrian Water and holds 200 billion litres of water.

To build the reservoir the Kielder Valley had to be flooded which meant the loss of a school railway and numerous farms and homes. The reservoir was officially opened by the Queen in 1982 and took a further two years to fill with water. The scheme wasn’t without controversy and Northumbrian Water made a commitment to make the local economy sustainable which is what led to what is now know as the Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust.

Tower Knowe has an interactive exhibition where you can view the area as it was developed and learn in more detail about the full project and what has happened since.

book now while you are here
Email

How to find us

Always follow the brown signs

Coming from Jedburgh/the north east of Scotland take the A68 heading south then the B6320 from Otterburn to Bellingham. Follow the brown signs to Kielder Water & Forest Park.

Those travelling from the north west of Scotland should follow the A7. Leave the road at Canonbie to join the B6357 to Newcastleton and Kielder Water & Forest Park is signposted from there.

From Newcastle or Carlisle follow the A69 to Hexham then follow the B6320 to Bellingham (brown – signed Kielder Water & Forest Park) and then the C200 to Kielder Water & Forest Park.

In all instances always follow the brown signs for Kielder Water & Forest Park; Landal Kielder Waterside is within the park.

view location in maps

What our customers have to say

  • "We had a wonderful holiday in these truly beautiful surroundings, trying lots of outdoors activities and enjoying the peace and quiet."

  • "Relaxing away from the stresses of life and work, in beautiful surroundings. Plenty of walks for our dog."

  • "Beautiful scenery, peaceful surroundings. Very quiet location. Good cycle/walking routes, (a few steep hills). Activities were good. Bird of Prey centre was excellent."

Latest News

Upcoming events and activities

Winter Updates

After a busy year Tower Knowe Visitor Centre and The Street Diner at K...

Find out more

Pleasure boat hire

Pleasure boats are back on Kielder Water! One hour pleasure ...

Find out more

Urgent appeal for visitors to stay out of reservoirs

We are highly concerned that a tragedy could occur if visitors conti...

Find out more

Christmas & New Year lodge breaks

🌟 Christmas and New Year lodge breaks are now available to boo...

Find out more
#kielder
Sign up for our latest news and updates
X