Things to Do
Steam trains, forest trails, some of the darkest skies in England and a coastline of fossils and fishing villages. The best things to do in North Yorkshire are packed into one small national park, here's what's genuinely worth your day.
The North York Moors packs an unusual variety into a small area. In a single day you can ride behind steam from Pickering, walk a moorland edge, and eat chips on a harbour wall at Whitby. Distances look small on the map but the roads are slow and beautiful, so plan around two or three anchors a day rather than six.
The most reliable all-weather days out are the North Yorkshire Moors Railway and Dalby Forest. The most memorable are the ones the weather has to co-operate with: a clear night under the Dark Sky Reserve, or the heather in flower in late August.
Basing yourself in the south of the park, around Thornton-le-Dale, Pickering or Allerston, puts the forest, the railway and the coast all within easy reach.
Our curated pillar guide to every major attraction in the park, from the steam railway to the fossil coast.
Our pick of the ten best places in the North York Moors, and how to see them.
Pickering to Whitby by steam, via Levisham, Goathland and Grosmont.
8,000 acres of woodland. The Forest Drive toll road, 13 waymarked walks, world-class mountain biking, Go Ape and dark skies.
Treetop Challenge and family Treetop Adventure high-ropes courses, zip lines, age limits and how to book.
The International Dark Sky Reserve, the February Dark Skies Festival, where to go and what to take.
Visiting the Thornton-le-Dale classic car auction house from the TV series.
Moorland pubs, Whitby fish and seafood, Helmsley's food scene, farm shops and tea rooms.
Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay, Staithes, Runswick Bay and the Cleveland Way clifftops.
The Yorkshire TT, the high moor roads, where riders meet and how to ride safely.
Forest singletrack, quiet moorland lanes and the Cinder Track to the coast.
Ammonites, belemnites and Whitby jet on the Jurassic beaches of the Dinosaur Coast.
Mallyan Spout, Falling Foss and the hidden falls of the moors' wooded ravines.
Rievaulx, Whitby and Byland abbeys, Mount Grace Priory and the market-town castles.
Sandsend, Runswick Bay, Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay and Saltburn: parking, tides and dog rules.
Tickets, the clifftop car park or the 199 steps, dogs and the real Dracula connection.
England's first great Cistercian abbey, founded in 1132 in a wooded valley near Helmsley.
Open-air museum of rescued moorland buildings at Hutton-le-Hole, a proper half-day out.
The 'finest view in England', the White Horse of Kilburn, Lake Gormire, gliders and the National Park Centre.
Heartbeat's Aidensfield, Harry Potter's Hogsmeade, Dracula's Whitby and Castle Howard.
Steam trains, forest adventures, fossils and beaches. The best family days out.
Quick, straight answers to the questions visitors ask most. Each one links through to the fuller guide.
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 →Yes, many highlights (Sutton Bank, the Hole of Horcum viewpoint, Thornton-le-Dale, the steam railway, coastal esplanades) can be enjoyed with little or no walking, and there are level, accessible trails and plenty of tearooms.
Things to do →Yes, Dalby Forest is the region's mountain-biking hub with graded trails and bike hire, and quiet lanes, forest tracks and the Moor to Sea network suit road and gravel riders.
Things to do →Moorland birds including red grouse, curlew, golden plover and the merlin (Britain's smallest bird of prey), deer, and on the coast seals and seabirds, with occasional whales and dolphins offshore. Spring brings lambs and daffodils.
Things to do →Very, the steam railway, Dalby Forest (play trails, cycling, Go Ape), beaches and rock-pooling, the Farndale daffodil walk and easy moor-top strolls all suit families.
Things to do →Dalby Forest is a large Forestry England woodland near Pickering with mountain-bike trails, walking and cycling routes, Go Ape, play areas and a visitor centre. Excellent for families and cyclists. There's a toll for the Forest Drive, so check current charges.
Things to do →