From birdwatching and beach cleans to wild swimming, yoga and learning new skills: great ways to start your New Year by the coast
1. Swim in the sea for the RNLI
Abersoch, Gwynedd | 1 January
Take a New Year’s Day dip from Abersoch Main Beach at noon – it’s a great way to raise funds and support the local RNLI Lifeboat crew in its mission to save lives at sea. Pre-registration is required (rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/abersoch-lifeboat-station).
2. Clean the beach
Highcliffe, Dorset | 11 January
Join the Highcliffe Beach Clean Team for an hour or two of blitzing litter left on the sands. Come along at any time between 10:30am–12:30pm to help keep this beautiful beach clean and tidy. Litter pickers, hi-vis vests, gloves, bags and hoops are provided (highcliffebeachcleanteam.org.uk).
3. Swim for wellbeing
Kingston, Dorset | 9-11 January
Wild swimming can be a great way to maintain physical and mental health – and The Wild Swimming Co.’s Luxury Sauna & Dip Retreat is just the tonic for a weekend of coastal wellbeing (thewildswimming.co.uk).
4. Learn printmaking
Boscastle, Cornwall | 9-12 January
Get creative at a printmaking workshop at Half Acre Studios. First, enjoy a drawing session around historic Boscastle Harbour, then return to
the studio to turn your sketches into collagraph and drypoint plates for printing (halfacrestudios.co.uk).
5. Ramble on coastal marshes
Cley next the Sea, Norfolk | 13 January
Join the Norfolk Wildlife Trust for its Iron Road Ramble in the Cley and Salthouse Marshes Nature Reserve. Expect to see beach, bird and marine life as you explore the range of wild habitats in some of the less-visited areas to the east of the reserve (norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk).
6. Watch the birdies for Conservation
In your Garden | 23-25 January
The Big Garden Birdwatch is back! Register online, then look out for wild birds from your balcony or garden, or in any local green space, for an hour over the weekend. Submit a record of what you see to contribute to the RSPB’s annual survey (rspb.org.uk).
7. Rock away in Bognor
Bognor Regis, West Sussex | 2-5 January
Rockaway Beach, winter’s biggest alternative music weekend, features iconic live performances, emerging acts, film screenings, talks and games. The festival is sure to keep you entertained for all three days and nights (rockawaybeach.co.uk).
8. Rewild with yoga
Torcross, South Devon | 8-11 and 15-18 January
Escape the hustle with Yoga, Field & Sea – you’ll enjoy four days of clean dining on fresh produce, workshops, cold plunges and immersion in nature. Plus, you’ll get to swim in the sea and hike along the beautiful south-west coast of Devon during this rewarding retreat (yogafieldandsea.co.uk).
9. Race to spot birdlife
Multiple locations | 28-30 January
Join wildlife holiday and tour company Naturetrek for the Great British Bird Race through some of Britain’s most popular birding counties. From the tidal flats of Northumberland to the coastal paths of Cornwall, or the sea cliffs of Dorset to the Scottish Highlands, this friendly competition sees participants trying to record as many bird species as possible in 48 hours (naturetrek.co.uk).
10. Bring in the light
Skipness, Argyll and Bute | 31 January – 8 February
Enjoy an illuminating community art exhibition on the beach. Skipness Festival of Light celebrates the Kintyre Peninsula through art, stories and song, with community-crafted, solar-powered ‘ships’ lighting up the beach each evening (lightness.uk).
