There are a couple of guidebooks available, but none seem to be particularly up-to-date. A quick online search will find listings, however ...
Lincolnshire County Council have a section of their website dedicated to The Viking Way which provides all the necessary route information - including bespoke maps - for each of the 13 official stages plus a link route to Market Rasen (an essential diversion for accommodation which is very limited on the route itself). Each stage is self-contained and can be downloaded as a .pdf file.
We found the information provided was perfectly adequate - in fact better than some expensive 'comprehensive' guides for some other walks. It is always a good idea, however, to have the appropriate Ordnance Survey maps to refer to - particularly in this instance as the maps provided with the guide are very much restricted to the path and it's (very) immediate environs.
I have invested in electronic versions of both 1:50000 and 1:25000 maps for the whole country over the years that are downloaded onto my smartphone, but I also print out an A4 page(or several if necessary) to carry with us on any given day - just as a back-up.
In preparing for the walk, I created a Memory Map tracklog for each day and converted them to standard ".GPX" files.
I also recorded our actual route using newly a discovered app View Ranger which I have found to be much more intuitive to use than Memory Map while 'out-and-about' ... and a whole lot more stable. The whole experience feels much more customer focussed - and as a bonus Ordnance Survey mapping is also considerably cheaper. (Incidentally I have just discovered that £8 of Tesco Clubcard vouchers can be exchanged for a 12-month subscription to OS Maps Online. Now that has to be a bargain!)
You are welcome to download zip files of the tracklogs, our daily routes or both (Right click on the title, and select 'Save Target As...').
On our first leg We chose to travel by train to the start and end(s) of the walk. There are stations at both Lincoln and Oakham, and both are easliy reached from Peterborough.
For our second leg we took the train to Scunthorpe and enjoyed Mum & D H's hospitality and taxi service to get to the starting point, and caught a train back home from Lincoln.
Online Booking
We have always found the Traveline journey planner to be very useful. It allows you to check a given route for train or bus options in addition to the more traditional depart and arrival times. Great for deciding how best to get to your destination, but unfortunately contains timetabling information only.
In previous years I have used the National Rail or Stagecoach websites to find the cost of tickets, however, I was recently alerted to the Cheap Train Tickets article on Martin Lewis' Money Saving Expert website. This suggests lots of ways to reduce the cost of rail travel, but just booking early (12 weeks seems to be optimum, but any time before you travel will likely bring a saving), and using the Virgin East Coast or TaketheTrain websites (which not only show the train times for your journey, but also find the cheapest tickets available and let you book online with no booking fee) will likely save you pounds.
We have also invested in a Two Together railcard which costs £30 per year, but gives us a third off the price of rail tickets ... including those already discounted by booking ahead. Better still you can also purchase the Two Together card with £15 of Tesco Clubcard vouchers, so you can effectively get the card for free.
Using a combination of booking early, online booking and railcards can result in some staggering savings. It's a no-brainer - use these options to their full potential !!
Tring Station to Dulligham, September 2018
The Old Palace Lodge HotelChurch StreetDunstable LU5 4RTtel. 01582 662201WebsiteNGR: TL 02229 21963(1 mile off-route)
Chequers PH171 Sharpenhoe RoadStreatleyBedfordshireLU33PStel. 01582 882072WebsiteNGR: TL 07050 28667(On route)
The George at Baldock2 Hitchin StBaldockHertsSG7 6ALtel. 01462 490500WebsiteNGR: TL 24491 33895 (On route)
The Old Bull Inn56 High Street RoystonHertsSG8 9AWtel. : 01763 242003WebsiteNGR: TL 35657 40523(200 yards off-route)
The Crown InnHigh StreetLintonCambridgeCB21 4HStel. 01223 891759 WebsiteNGR: TL 56071 46660(On route)
ICKNIELD WAY (1) PAGES Photo Album Recommendations
Icknield Way Home Page Day 1 - Tring Station to Dunstable Day 2 - Dunstable to Streatley Day 3 - Streatley to Baldock
Day 4 - Baldock to Royston Day 5 - Royston to Linton Day 6 - Linton to Dullingham