Coast to Coast vs Pennine Way, Hadrian's Wall, West Highland Way

People choosing a first or second British long-distance walk usually end up weighing the same four names: Wainwright's Coast to Coast, the Pennine Way, Hadrian's Wall Path and the West Highland Way. They are not alike. This guide puts them side by side on the things that actually decide a trip — length, days, how the climbing is distributed, how much you have to navigate, how many beds there are and how you get to the ends.

The Coast to Coast figures are the ones used across this site: the GPX-measured stage pages and the itineraries. The figures for the other three trails come from the National Trails site and, for the West Highland Way, from Scotland's Great Trails and the route's official site; they are linked under sources.

At a glance

Length and days

The Coast to Coast is traditionally quoted at 190 miles (306 km); the 16 stage lines on this site sum to 186.9 miles, and the exact figure depends on which variants you walk. Most people take 12 to 16 days: 16 days walks one stage a day with no day over 18 miles, 14 is the common choice, and 12 needs three days past 18 miles. The itineraries page sets out all three.

The Pennine Way is a different order of commitment. The National Trail gives it as 268 miles (431 km) from Edale in Derbyshire to Kirk Yetholm in the Scottish Borders, and shows 19 days. It suggests rest days at Hebden Bridge, Skipton, Hawes, Appleby and the Hadrian's Wall area, which tells you how long the middle is.

Hadrian's Wall Path is 84 miles (135 km) from Wallsend to Bowness-on-Solway and the National Trail shows 7 days. It describes the walking as relatively easy for reasonably fit walkers, with the 23-mile section between Chollerford and Birdoswald the hardest part.

The West Highland Way is 96 miles from Milngavie, on the edge of Glasgow, to Fort William. Scotland's Great Trails lists it at 154 km with 3,155 m of ascent and 5 to 8 days, and suggests at least 7 or 8 walking days first time round: even a 6-day schedule involves two days of 18.5 and 20.5 miles.

So on time alone: a week for the Wall or the Way, a fortnight for the Coast to Coast, nearly three weeks for the Pennine Way.

How the climbing is distributed

The Coast to Coast's climbing is front-loaded. Of the roughly 8,813 m across all 16 stages, 3,879 m comes in the five Lake District stages at the start, and the single biggest day, Patterdale to Shap, climbs 1,128 m. The route then eases across Westmorland, the Dales and the flat Vale of Mowbray before the North York Moors bring it back with a switchback day of 898 m on Osmotherley to Clay Bank Top and a surprising 784 m on the last day to the sea. You are fittest for the Moors and freshest for the Lakes, which is the argument for walking west to east.

The Pennine Way's climbing is spread along the whole spine of England. The National Trail calls it hilly and often remote, with a combined ascent that exceeds the height of Everest, and notes that the terrain ranges from smooth, firm paths at Malham Cove and High Force to narrow, uneven, wet and boggy ground elsewhere. There is no easy half.

Hadrian's Wall Path is the gentle one. Most of it is on a natural grass surface, with tarmac on Tyneside; the only sustained climbing is the central switchback along the crags, which the National Trail compares to walking along a coast.

The West Highland Way's 3,155 m over 154 km is roughly half the climbing per mile of the Coast to Coast. Scotland's Great Trails notes that it is walked south to north because the southern stages are shorter with lesser ascents, and that the Loch Lomond shore is easy to underestimate, with broken ground and tree roots.

Waymarking and navigation

This is where the Coast to Coast stands apart, and not in its favour. It became a National Trail on 26 March 2026, so it is the newest of the three English trails to carry the acorn, and the FAQ is candid that the route is not yet waymarked as a single continuous path. Stage 8 over Nine Standards Rigg is open moor where the stage notes say the ability to take and follow a compass bearing is essential in mist, and the Lakeland passes are cairned fell paths rather than signed trails. Carry paper maps — the maps and GPX guide lists which sheets — and expect to use them.

The Pennine Way and Hadrian's Wall Path are signed with the acorn symbol on stiles, gates and signposts throughout, as all English and Welsh National Trails are. The Pennine Way still has remote, boggy stretches where the acorns are far apart; the Wall does not.

The West Highland Way is, in Scotland's Great Trails' words, well waymarked, so map-and-compass skills, although always desirable, are not essential to follow the route. It is the only one of the four where that is true from end to end.

Accommodation density

The Coast to Coast was laid out village to village and almost every stage end has a bed, but the villages are small and the season is short. The accommodation guide explains why booking the whole route before you leave is normal here, and why Keld, Blakey Ridge and Clay Bank Top are the nights to book first. Camping is sparse.

The Pennine Way and Hadrian's Wall Path both have what the National Trail calls a good choice of accommodation close to the trail, shown on their interactive maps, with the same advice to book ahead: the Pennine Way page notes limited availability in some areas, and the Wall's says accommodation close to the trail fills up quickly, particularly in July and August.

The West Highland Way is the best supplied. Scotland's Great Trails describes villages with B&Bs, bunkhouses, pods and wigwams, many camping options both commercial and free, and a legal right to wild camp responsibly under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code — though between 1 March and 30 September the Loch Lomond National Park byelaws restrict camping to designated zones that must be booked. It is also, by the same source, the busiest long-distance route in Scotland, and advance booking is essential in season.

Getting there and back

The Coast to Coast starts at St Bees, which has its own station on the Cumbrian Coast Line, and finishes at Robin Hood's Bay, which has no station: the X93 bus runs to Whitby and Scarborough. Between the ends, Kirkby Stephen is on the Settle–Carlisle line and Glaisdale, Egton and Grosmont are on the Esk Valley Line; everything else is a community bus or a taxi. The getting-there guide has the detail for every stage end.

The Pennine Way's ends are both reachable by public transport — Edale by train, Kirk Yetholm by taxi or bus to Berwick-upon-Tweed — and many points along it are served. Hadrian's Wall Path is the easiest of all: the seasonal AD122 bus runs daily along the Wall, the Tyne Valley line stops at Corbridge, Hexham and Haltwhistle, and the start at Wallsend is ten minutes from Newcastle station by Metro. The West Highland Way starts at Milngavie, a short train ride from Glasgow Queen Street, and finishes at Fort William on the West Highland railway line, with Citylink buses as the alternative.

Which one is for you

• You want a first long-distance walk with a safety net. Hadrian's Wall Path or the West Highland Way. Waymarked throughout, a week long, transport never far away.
• You want the finest scenery in England in two weeks. The Coast to Coast. Three national parks, the sea at both ends, and a real fell crossing in the first week. Take 14 to 16 days, book early, and learn to navigate before you go — the training plan covers both.
• You want the hardest thing on this list. The Pennine Way. Longer, higher in total, more remote and boggier than the Coast to Coast, and nearly three weeks of it.
• You have already done one of them. The Coast to Coast and the Pennine Way cross at Keld in upper Swaledale; walkers who have finished one often take the other next, and Keld is where they compare notes.