Yorkshire Moors

Spotlight · Week of 19 October

Halloween and half-term on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway

By Jon Cosson · Updated 11 October 2026

Half-term on the railway brings a full fortnight of Halloween events. The railway lists Sir Nigel Gresley running from Pickering on Monday 19 and Tuesday 20 October, a ghost train for ages 14 and over runs on two more evenings, the station shops give a free chocolate treat to trick-or-treaters in costume while stocks last, and the school holiday fare applies from 24 October.

Steam locomotive on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway

The facts

Mad Alice's Ghost Train
Sunday 25 October and Sunday 1 November 2026 (it also ran on 18 October), two runs each evening, 6.15pm to 7.15pm and 8pm to 9pm. Ages 14 and over. Adult with York Gin £40, adult with a soft drink £35, aged 14 to 17 £35. Seats allocated.
Station Trick or Treat
24 to 28 October and 31 October to 1 November, at the shops at Pickering, Goathland and Grosmont stations. Free, no booking, fancy dress encouraged.
Holiday fares
The School Holiday Savings Rate applies on running days from 24 October to 1 November, and one child travels free with each fare-paying adult on standard services.
For the little ones
Spooky Tiny Engine Tuesday, 27 October, 10am to noon at Pickering, ages 1 to 10; Spooky Station Stay and Play, 28 October, 9.30am to 11am at Pickering, under 5s.
Sir Nigel Gresley, the LNER A4 locomotive
Listed by the railway as running from Pickering from 17 to 20 October, so on Monday 19 and Tuesday 20 October in Spotlight week.
Roads
The railway listed the Egton to Grosmont road as closed from 7 September to 9 November; check before travelling.

Which to pick

Families with young children want a Trick or Treat day, with the train to Goathland and back on the holiday fare. Teenagers and adults who like a fright want the ghost train, which sells allocated seats, so book. The toddler sessions at Pickering suit a morning that does not need a train at all.

Sources: North Yorkshire Moors Railway, Mad Alice's Ghost Train, Station Trick or Treat and October half-term pages and its home page listings. Checked 11 October 2026.

Spotlight features are chosen by the editor. Nobody pays to be featured.

Where to stay in the North York Moors

Self-catering cottages, village inns and farmhouse boltholes right across the moors, from the southern villages to the coast.

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Top answers for the Yorkshire Moors

All questions in the full FAQ hub →

Quick, straight answers to the questions visitors ask most. Each one links through to the fuller guide.

Is the North Yorkshire Moors Railway open all year?

It runs a full daily timetable through the main season from spring to early autumn, then a reduced programme of special services. Half-term trains, Wartime Weekend, Santa specials and winter events. Always check the current timetable before setting off.

North Yorkshire Moors Railway →

How do you get from York to Whitby?

By car it's roughly 45 miles and about an hour and a half via Malton and Pickering. There's no direct train: rail travellers change at Middlesbrough for the Esk Valley line, and there are also direct coach services. Many visitors drive to Pickering and take the steam railway in.

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What is there to do in the North York Moors in winter?

Stargazing (it's an International Dark Sky Reserve), bracing coastal and moorland walks, cosy country pubs, and the North Yorkshire Moors Railway's festive steam services. The moors are atmospheric and empty in winter.

What's on →

What are the top things to do in the North York Moors?

Ride the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, walk the heather moors and the Cleveland Way, explore Rievaulx and Whitby abbeys, see the Hole of Horcum and Sutton Bank, visit Goathland and Thornton-le-Dale, and spend a day on the coast at Whitby or Robin Hood's Bay.

Things to do →

What can you do in the North York Moors when it rains?

Ride the steam railway, visit museums (Beck Isle Museum in Pickering, the Ryedale Folk Museum at Hutton-le-Hole, Whitby's museums), explore abbey visitor centres, or browse the shops and tearooms of Helmsley and Whitby.

Pickering guide →

What do I need to know about driving in the North York Moors?

Moor roads are scenic but narrow, with blind summits, cattle grids and sheep. Sometimes free-roaming through villages like Goathland, on unfenced roads, so drive slowly and use passing places. High routes such as Blakey Ridge can be bleak or closed in snow.

Driving routes →