When travelling on the East Coast mainline, if there's one stretch to stop what you're doing and look out the window, it's between Newcastle and Berwick.
To one side of the track, you have endless fields swaying in the wind, while on the other the waves of the North Sea crash into the Northumberland coast. At one point, you'll notice the spire of a church rising out of a group of buildings on the banks of a river dotted with rowing boats.
That spire is the St John the Baptist Parish Church in Alnmouth, a village named as one of the 20 most beautiful in the UK and Ireland by Conde Nast Traveller.
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The former port has been in the spotlight a lot recently, featuring in TV shows Villages by the Sea, Kate Humble's Coastal Britain, Along for the Ride with comedian David O'Doherty and Michael Portillo's Great Coastal Railway Journeys.
Known for its beautiful beach, golf courses, and five cosy pubs (which is a lot considering its size), it's a popular destination amongst UK holiday-makers and day trippers alike. There are a couple of quirky attractions too, with possibly the smallest museum in the UK and a hotel voted the most haunted in the UK twice.
Patrick Norris, Chair of the Northumberland Coast AONB, said: "I always think when you're on the train up from Newcastle and you look across as you approach Alnmouth it looks stunning. It's one of the best views!
"The foreground of the houses painted in their bright colours always draw my eye first. Then the old harbour, the marsh, the wetland - it all just fits together perfectly. It's a stunning place really.
"It's a bit cut off, and as you cross over the Duchess Bridge, you feel like you're arriving into somewhere really special."
The article by Madeleine Silver read: "A violent storm on Christmas Day in 1806 changed the course of the River Aln and marked the decline of Alnmouth as a busy port. Today, the estuary weaves around the quiet village on the edge of the North Sea.
"And striding out across the vast expanse of golden sand that surrounds it when the tide is out, with kite surfers dotted in the distance, you’ll wonder if you’ve landed it all to yourself. Head west to Alnwick on the 1.5-mile Aln Valley Cycle Path and join the Harry Potter fans on their pilgrimage to Alnwick Castle, where the first two of JK Rowling’s books were filmed."
To read the full list of the 20 most beautiful villages in the UK and Ireland, click here.
