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PilgrimPhil

My partner has been accepted for the Great North Run in September. We have just booked a CL at Stannington and would like to find a suitable parking place on the west side of Newcastle convenient for the start at Haymarket.

Having spoken to the City Council Parking Dept. they do not appear to have any specific Park & Ride locations suitable for motorhomes. Callerton Parkway was suggested as the most suitable (close to the airport) although care would be needed (i.e. parking "sensibly"!) and special dispensation would be required from the wardens.

Does anyone have any experience of motorhome parking in this area?

Thanks in anticipation

PilgrimPhil

RichardnGill

You would be better of parking at the South Shields end as you can park on the grass near the beach all the way along but you might have to get there early (08:00ish) you can then get a bus to Newcastle they run all morning every few mins. That way when you get to the end you could alway have a rest in the M/H on the coast and watch the slower runners finishing as where you would be parked is in the last mile or so of the run.

Richard...

brisey

Hi Pilgrim Phil

I have run the GNR several times, have never used the van, but from my experience of the event you will not get anywhere near the start in a car let alone a motorhome. There is a campsite on the coast road at South Shields, details below. My advice would be to stay there overnight and travel in on the Metro on Sunday morning. The site itself is just a few hundred yards from the finish line.

Sandhaven Caravan Park
Sea Road
South Shields
Tyne and Wear
NE33 2LD
Tel: 0191 454 5594

Good luck to your partner in the run, it is a great occasion, one she will remember for the rest of her life. The Geordies will cheer her on every step of the way from Town Moor to the seafront at South Shields.

clayton9

i can second that its a fantastic site right neer the beech....

Rapide561

Hi

For Newcastle, although possibly not really suitable for you, I would park at the Metro Centre and get the train/Metro into Newcastle City.

Russell

PilgrimPhil

Thanks for those responses.

I suppose my concern about parking/being based at the South Shields end would be trying to get away from the area after the race. I thought it would be easier to jump on the Metro back to the Start where it would be "quieter".

We have plenty of time to sort this out and will probably do a "dummy run" on the Saturday before the Sunday race

Thanks again

PilgrimPhil

sharbul

PilgrimPhil,

You have a PM

Vince

PilgrimPhil

Hi Sharbul/Vince

Just responded to your PM - thanks

RichardnGill

PilgrimPhil

Just a short postscript to this thread.

Kim, my partner, completed the Great North Run on Sunday in a time of 2 hrs 31 mins 29 secs. She has raised just under £200 for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. She throughly enjoyed it, and, as has been remarked upon in this thread, the Geordie crowd were superb in their encouragement etc.

A special thanks to Vince & Julie (aka Sharbul) for their very generous hospitality in inviting us to park up for two nights on their property and for ferrying us to & from Heworth Metro station.

Our plan of using the Metro to get to the start at Haymarket and coming back from South Shields worked well, although there were the inevitable queues at South Shields.

In a lapse of judgement (fuelled by a pint and being surrounded by successful runners/walkers) I may have just agreed to participate next year!! So watch this space!

PilgrimPhil