The clear, clean waters around St Abbs form part of St Abbs & Eyemouth Voluntary Marine Reserve, one of the best cold-water diving sites in Europe. The reserve is home to a variety of marine life, including grey seals and porpoises. Visibility is about 7m to 8m but has been recorded at up to 24m. Beds of brown kelp form a hypnotically undulating forest on the seabed.
St Abbs & Eyemouth Voluntary Marine Reserve
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
9.58 MILES
Paxton House, 6 miles west of Berwick-upon-Tweed, is beside the River Tweed and surrounded by parkland and gardens. It was built in 1758 by Patrick Home…
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Northumberland's most dramatic castle was built around a powerful 11th-century Norman keep by Henry II. The castle played a key role in the border wars of…
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Standing proud and four-square across the harbour, this elegant 18th-century John Adam mansion was built on the profits of smuggling: Eyemouth was an…
24.26 MILES
Grandiose Floors Castle is Scotland's largest inhabited mansion, home to the Duke of Roxburghe, and overlooks the Tweed about a mile west of Kelso. Built…
24.59 MILES
Finished in 1778, this is considered to be Scotland's finest Robert Adam–designed mansion. It is huge and famous for its classic elegance, ornate…
27.22 MILES
Steeped in history, warfare, torture and ghosts, 13th-century Chillingham is said to be one of the country's most haunted places, with spectres from a…
26.77 MILES
During breeding season (roughly May to July), you can see feeding chicks of 20 seabird species (including puffin, kittiwake, Arctic tern, eider duck,…
Nearby attractions
0.34 MILES
This modern exhibition in St Abbs has interesting interactive displays on the often stormy history of this harbour village. Spoken reminiscences from…
0.65 MILES
This small exhibition will prepare you for the birdlife of the nearby St Abb’s Head National Nature Reserve.
1.53 MILES
Little remains of what was once one of the region's most powerful monasteries before the Black Death then Oliver Cromwell reduced it to ruins. The current…
2.35 MILES
Set in a church, the town museum has intriguing local history displays, particularly relating to the town's fishing heritage. Its centrepiece is the…
2.43 MILES
Standing proud and four-square across the harbour, this elegant 18th-century John Adam mansion was built on the profits of smuggling: Eyemouth was an…
9.58 MILES
Paxton House, 6 miles west of Berwick-upon-Tweed, is beside the River Tweed and surrounded by parkland and gardens. It was built in 1758 by Patrick Home…
9.93 MILES
You can walk almost the entire length of Berwick's hefty Elizabethan walls, begun in 1558 to reinforce an earlier set built during the reign of Edward II…
10.09 MILES
Designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor, Britain's oldest purpose-built barracks (1717) now house an assortment of museums and art galleries, covering a history of…