Spotlight · Week of 26 October
Whitby at Halloween: Goth Weekend and the Illuminated Abbey
Goth Weekend, the free Bizarre Bazaar and the abbey lit up after dark.
Things to Do
Things to do in the North York Moors
By Jon Cosson · Updated 29 October 2026
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.
Start here
The North York Moors packs an unusual variety into a small area: a mainline-length steam railway, two of England's great abbey ruins, an ancient forest with its own Forest Drive, a Jurassic coast full of fossils, and skies dark enough to see the Milky Way. 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. Riders are covered too, in our guide to horse riding in the North York Moors.
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.
Stay in the middle of it
Self-catering cottages, village inns and farmhouse boltholes right across the moors, from the southern villages to the coast.
Browse places to stayThe village and classic-car sister sites linked here are also written by the author of this guide.
The attractions, one by one
A list compiled from official and operator information, with a link to the full guide for each place.
1.The North Yorkshire Moors Railway
The single attraction most visitors build a day around. Steam hauls you out of Pickering through the wooded gorge of Newtondale, over the moor to Goathland and Grosmont, and on down the Esk Valley to Whitby. Book ahead in summer and on gala weekends, and treat it as a half day rather than a quick ride.
2.Whitby and Whitby Abbey
Whitby sits just outside the National Park boundary, with the moors running right up to the edge of town. A gaunt clifftop ruin that gave Bram Stoker his Dracula setting, reached either by the 199 steps from the harbour or by the car park behind it, a working harbour full of fishing boats, shops selling black Whitby jet, and what many people insist is the country's finest fish and chips. Pair the abbey with the rest of Whitby for a full day on the coast.
3.Rievaulx Abbey
Founded in 1132 in a wooded valley near Helmsley, and often called England's most complete and majestic abbey ruin. Soaring arches, a hush in the air, a setting that has drawn painters and poets for two centuries, and a museum that makes sense of what you are looking at. The best of the western moors.
4.Dalby Forest
Eight thousand acres of woodland with a scenic Forest Drive running through it, waymarked walks for every ability, world-class mountain-bike trails, gentle family cycle routes, Go Ape in the treetops, a Gruffalo trail for small legs and a visitor centre. It is also one of the best and easiest places in the park for dark-sky stargazing.
5.Sutton Bank and the Kilburn White Horse
The escarpment James Herriot called “the finest view in England”, looking west over the Vale of York, with a national park centre at the top, the huge hillside White Horse below, the natural Lake Gormire beneath the cliff and gliders working the ridge lift overhead. The Lake Gormire circuit is the walk to do from here.
6.The Hole of Horcum
A vast natural amphitheatre scooped out of the moor beside the A169, ablaze with purple heather in late summer and one of the most photographed landscapes in the park. The circular walk from the Saltergate car park is the classic introduction to moorland walking here.
7.Roseberry Topping
“Yorkshire's Matterhorn”, the half-collapsed cone at the northern edge of the park: short, steep and out of all proportion to its height, rewarded with a view over Teesside, the Cleveland Hills and the sea.
8.Mathewsons of Thornton-le-Dale
The classic-car auction house behind Bangers & Cash, in one of the prettiest villages in the park. Combine it with a wander round Thornton-le-Dale and the thatched cottage by the beck.
9.Ryedale Folk Museum
An open-air museum of rescued moorland buildings at Hutton-le-Hole, from a cruck-framed longhouse to a village shop. The most rewarding indoor-ish attraction in the park and a proper half day.
10.Goathland
Aidensfield in Heartbeat, Hogsmeade in Harry Potter, and a real moorland village with sheep on the greens, a steam station at the bottom of the hill and Mallyan Spout in the woods below.
11.Robin Hood's Bay
A smugglers' village of red pantile roofs and hidden passages tipping down a ravine to a rocky shore. Park at the top, walk down, and look for fossils on the scars at low tide before facing the climb back.
12.The waterfalls
Mallyan Spout near Goathland and Falling Foss in the woods above Whitby are the two to aim for, both best after rain and both reached on short, often slippery walks.
13.The Dark Sky Reserve
The moors hold International Dark Sky Reserve status, and on a clear moonless night from Dalby, Sutton Bank or the high moor roads the Milky Way is plainly visible. Go between autumn and early spring, and take more layers than you think you need.
14.The fossil coast
Ammonites, belemnites and Whitby jet wash out of the Jurassic cliffs between Staithes, Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay. Hunt the loose material on the beach on a falling tide, and never dig at the cliff face.
15.Pickering: castle, museum and market
The southern gateway town: a Norman motte-and-bailey castle, the Beck Isle Museum of rural life, rare medieval wall paintings in the parish church and the steam railway terminus, all within a few minutes' walk.
16.Helmsley
The handsome market town that anchors the western moors: a dramatic castle, a beautiful walled garden, the parkland of Duncombe Park and the gateway walk out to Rievaulx.
Also worth your time
Keldy and Cropton Forest: walks, cycle loops and Cawthorn Roman Camps.
Sixteen is never enough. Make room if you can for the picture-postcard village of Thornton-le-Dale and the cliff-clinging fishing village of Staithes. Drivers should not miss the great run over Blakey Ridge and through Rosedale; walkers should seek out the moors' waterfalls; and in spring, Farndale's wild daffodils are worth timing a trip around.
How to string them together
Two or three attractions a day is the honest maximum. A common and very good first visit runs: railway and Pickering on day one, Whitby and the abbey on day two, and Dalby Forest or a moorland walk on day three. You can see the highlights in a long weekend, but three to five days lets you go at a relaxed pace. Our weekend itinerary sets that out in detail, Plan My Day will filter attractions and pubs by what you actually need, dog friendly, step free, parking, food, and when to come covers the seasons.
If you are choosing a base, the best base villages comparison weighs up Pickering, Helmsley, Whitby and the smaller moorland villages against how far you want to drive each morning.
Houses and gardens
Coast and woodland
High moors
Attractions by interest
- With children: the moors with kids, steam trains, forest adventure and beaches.
- With a dog: dog-friendly days out and walks.
- On foot: walks across the moors and coast.
- With limited mobility: accessible days out in the North York Moors, with the Miles without Stiles gradings explained.
- Villages: villages and places to visit, from Thornton-le-Dale to Staithes.
- Eating and drinking: food, pubs, real ale and wine.
- Film and TV: film and TV locations.
Guides to each day out
Eden Camp
Modern history in original prisoner of war huts on the edge of Malton. Allow three to four hours; check before you travel.
North Yorkshire Moors Railway
Pickering to Whitby by steam, via Levisham, Goathland and Grosmont.
Dalby Forest
8,000 acres of woodland. The Forest Drive, 13 waymarked walks, world-class mountain biking, Go Ape and dark skies.
Go Ape Dalby Forest
Treetop Challenge and family Treetop Adventure high-ropes courses, zip lines, age limits and how to book.
Dark skies and stargazing
The International Dark Sky Reserve, the February Dark Skies Festival, where to go and what to take.
Bangers & Cash and Mathewsons
Mathewsons and Bangers & Cash: our full independent guide, with the auction dates, the saleroom, the museum and every episode, is on our Thornton-le-Dale site.
Food & drink
Moorland pubs, Whitby fish and seafood, Helmsley's food scene, real ale, farm shops and tea rooms.
The coast
Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay, Staithes, Runswick Bay and the Cleveland Way clifftops.
Motorcycling
The Yorkshire TT, the high moor roads, where riders meet and how to ride safely.
Cycling
Forest singletrack, quiet moorland lanes and the Cinder Track to the coast.
Fossil hunting
Ammonites, belemnites and Whitby jet on the Jurassic beaches of the Dinosaur Coast.
Waterfalls
Mallyan Spout, Falling Foss and the hidden falls of the moors' wooded ravines.
Abbeys & castles
Rievaulx, Whitby and Byland abbeys, Mount Grace Priory and the market-town castles.
Beaches
Sandsend, Runswick Bay, Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay and Saltburn: parking, tides and dog rules.
Whitby Abbey
Tickets, the clifftop car park or the 199 steps, dogs and the real Dracula connection.
Rievaulx Abbey
England's first great Cistercian abbey, founded in 1132 in a wooded valley near Helmsley.
Ryedale Folk Museum
Open-air museum of rescued moorland buildings at Hutton-le-Hole, a proper half-day out.
Byland Abbey
Free daylight entry, the rose window, medieval floor tiles, dogs and visitor practicalities.
Mount Grace Priory
The reconstructed monk's cell, Arts and Crafts manor house, gardens and winter opening.
Kirkham Priory
Free daylight entry, the heraldic gatehouse and the priory's D-Day rehearsal history.
Helmsley Castle
The shattered east tower, Tudor mansion exhibition, tickets and winter opening.
Helmsley Walled Garden
Five acres below the castle walls, restored glasshouses and the Vine House Café.
Sutton Bank
The 'finest view in England', the White Horse of Kilburn, Lake Gormire, gliders and the National Park Centre.
Film & TV locations
Heartbeat's Aidensfield, Harry Potter's Hogsmeade, Dracula's Whitby and Castle Howard.
The moors with kids
Steam trains, forest adventures, fossils and beaches. The best family days out.
Things to do in the North York Moors: frequently asked questions
What are the main attractions in the Yorkshire Moors?
The best-known attractions are the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, Whitby Abbey, Rievaulx Abbey, Dalby Forest, Sutton Bank and the Kilburn White Horse, the Hole of Horcum, Roseberry Topping, the Ryedale Folk Museum at Hutton-le-Hole and the coastal villages of Robin Hood's Bay and Staithes.
What is the best place to visit in the North York Moors?
Whitby, on the coast, is the single most popular destination. Its clifftop abbey, harbour and fish and chips draw visitors year-round, but Rievaulx Abbey, Goathland and Sutton Bank are close behind.
What is the Yorkshire Moors best known for?
Heather moorland that flowers purple in late summer, a Jurassic coastline of fossils and fishing villages, steam trains, ruined medieval abbeys and film and TV locations including Heartbeat's Aidensfield and the Hogsmeade station scenes from Harry Potter.
Are there free attractions in the North York Moors?
Plenty. The moorland and coastal walks, the Hole of Horcum, Roseberry Topping, the villages, the beaches and stargazing in the Dark Sky Reserve all cost nothing beyond parking. Paid attractions tend to be the railway, the English Heritage abbeys and castles, and the museums.
What is the best attraction for a rainy day?
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway and the indoor museums are the most reliable wet-weather days out, along with Whitby's shops, aquarium-and-harbour wander and the covered parts of the Ryedale Folk Museum. Forest trails at Dalby also shelter well under the trees.
How many attractions can you see in a day?
Two or three. Roads across the moors are slow and scenic rather than fast, so plan a couple of anchors. Say the railway in the morning and Whitby in the afternoon, rather than trying to tick off a long list.
How many days do you need in the North York Moors?
You can see the highlights in a long weekend, but three to five days lets you combine the coast, the moors, a steam-train ride and a few villages at a relaxed pace.
What is the prettiest village in the North York Moors?
Thornton-le-Dale and Hutton-le-Hole are often called the prettiest, with Goathland and Robin Hood's Bay close behind.
Which attractions are dog friendly?
Most of the outdoor attractions welcome dogs on leads, including the moorland walks, Dalby Forest and much of the coast, and dogs are carried on the steam railway. Check individual sites for restrictions, and note seasonal dog bans on some beaches.
Where should I stay to be near the attractions?
Pickering, Thornton-le-Dale and Allerston sit on the southern edge of the park, putting the railway, Dalby Forest and the coast within easy reach, while Helmsley suits the western abbeys and Whitby suits a coast-first trip.
What are the best places to go in North Yorkshire?
In and around the North York Moors, the most popular days out include the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, Whitby and its abbey, Rievaulx Abbey, Dalby Forest, Sutton Bank, the Hole of Horcum and Robin Hood's Bay. York, Castle Howard and Scarborough are all within easy reach of the park's southern edge.