Trail builders across the UK put in some serious graft in 2023. They made new trails, reworked some of our old favourites, and even opened up a few new bike parks and jump lines. 

So for the new year we’ve rounded up some of the best looking new trails and places to ride so you can get your diaries booked up and plan your mountain biking year. Want more inspiration? Check out our guide to 21 of the best mountain bike routes.

The new Castle Black trail is a work of art, 90 seconds of berms, tabletops and G-force

1. Smells Like Tweed Spirit at Glentress & all four new Master Plan trails

Glentress in Scotland has had four new trails built as part of its Master Plan. The red route, Smells Like Tweed Spirit is a super flowy track with tight turns and a couple of jumps to keep you on your toes.

It’s 700m in length and builds on the centre’s ‘Spooky Wood’ style so it’s never boring. If you don’t find it challenging enough there’s the new black route, Castle Black which runs down the west side of Castle Hill.

The taster trails are more than just an amuse-bouche, they’re run in their own right and worthy of sessioning

It’s full of big jumps and lets you ramp up plenty of speed and airtime. And the pace looks pretty frenetic, it lets you carry your speed from corner to corner like a pro.

For the riders with a family, they’ll enjoy the new Apple Peel aka green route as a gentle introduction to mountain biking. And finally, the new blue trail, Turn and Burn, with progressive berms and easier jumps.

Burlish Bike Park is a triumph of dedication and hard work… how good do those take-off’s look?

2. Burlish Bike Park

Formerly home to Burlish Dirt Jumps, it’s now a fully fledged bike park in Worcestershire. It’s operated and owned by a local charity called Open Trail, which offers cycle coaching and outdoor activities for children. That’s not to say that the bike park is just for kids, however…

It’s not the biggest bike park in the world but it does have plenty of features for riders of all levels to tackle, from tabletops, hip jumps and even gap jumps. They’re even split into styles of riding, for example steep features for dirt jump and BMX compared to more ‘traditional’ mountain bike jumps with a bigger gap.

Burlish has some big gaps, but there’s also a 700m family trail, and everything in between

Burlish currently offers seven main trails: one green, two Blue, two Red and two Black lines. The grading for each is pretty self explanatory. There is also a clubhouse, toilet facilities and a snack bar so you can make a full day of it.

Annual memberships start from £20 for under 18s, and families can get a discount on two adults and two children. Adult membership is £30, while non-members pay per visit, at £7 for a full day and £5 for half.

3. Revolution Bike Park…Indoors?!

If you follow Revolution Bike Park on YouTube you might have seen a recent video (we say recent, we mean November) discussing plans for the future of the park after it was forced to close last year.

And in those plans, Revs talked about building an indoor jump building as part of the grand project. Alongside this, the management is keen to expand on riding in the lower area of the park with a pump track and skills area. And for the slopestyle freaks amongst us, the quarry is also up for redevelopment as a park just for you. This will not only be open to us average Joe’s, but for events as well.

But don’t worry, the news doesn’t mean they’re giving up on the downhill trails or re-opening the park as it once was. Instead, it just means that by having a different focus they can re-open the park more quickly and thus get some revenue into the business to help get the plans back on track.

So when will Revs be back on its feet? 2025 is a likely date for everything to be ready, according to director Tim Foster. That said, races and events are likely this year, check out the Revs Youtube site for the latest updates.

The Adit opened a few years back, six miles of hand-built heaven: Endo isn’t on the same scale, but the final berms look incredible

4. Endo Trail at Forest of Dean

Last year we were treated to Adit, and now, Endo has been revamped with a completely new bottom half of the trail. It’s still labelled as black, and features plenty of fast berms and some bigger jumps. At the top it starts out a bit more flowy, crossing a few fire roads with some tight turns before you drop into the steeper stuff.

Currently, the red marked Freeminers trail is also undergoing a revamp. It has three loop options of varying lengths, with features like rooty drops and switchback climbs to keep you interested. This year, the trail will benefit from improvements and extensions – so keep your eyes peeled. You can still ride the trail, but with a small diversion to take you past the currently closed section.

5. Cairngorm Mountain Bike Park

We’re in for a treat here, with another entirely new bike park opening its doors…or trees? Anyway, this time it’s in Scotland, and it looks pretty good. There are trails for everyone from the littl’un on their first bike to the adults with more experience.

It’s not the most hardcore trail centre in the UK, with a maximum difficulty of red trails, but honestly we just want to go and ride the conveyer uplift. Prices start at £16 for an adult half day pass or £22 for a full one. There’s even bike hire available – both electric and analogue.