Barter Books a short drive from our Bamburgh Holdiay Cottages

Close to Bamburgh in the market town of Alnwick only 20 minutes drive from both The Haven and Sandham, our holiday cottages, is Barter Books, a second-hand bookshop with a difference. It has over 200,000 visitors a year, and is one of the largest second-hand bookstores in Europe.It has been described as "the British Libarary of second-hand bookshops." The bookshop is located within the Victorian station designed by William Bell and opened in 1887.Customers can exchange their books for credit against future purchases. Standard cash purchases are also available.Keep Calm and Carry On poster (1939)Barter Books hit the headlines when the owner discovered a second world war poster from 1939, introduced in case the Nazis ever succeeded in invading Great Britain. The slogan, "Keep Calm and Carry On", and the simple design has turned it into an international phenomenon, and is currently on the walls at places as diverse as Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing Street.