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Andrew Montgomery

Yorkshire

With a population as big as Scotland's and an area half the size of Belgium, Yorkshire is almost a country in itself. It has its own flag, its own dialect and its own celebration, Yorkshire Day (1 August).

People have long been drawn to this region for walking and cycling, framed by some of Britain's finest scenery – brooding moors and green dales rolling down to a dramatic coastline. Then there's the sheer breadth of history, from Roman times to the 21st century. Medieval York is the heart-throb of the north, but there are countless other atmospheric towns and villages to explore, via abbey ruins, craggy castles and classical gardens.

But Yorkshire refuses to fade into the past and one of its greatest charms lies in the ways innovative locals are driving its cities and towns forward. Once-derelict urban areas are seeing regeneration, and modern Britishness is being fused with Yorkshire heritage in cafes, pubs and restaurants.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Yorkshire.

  • See

    Whitby Abbey

    Why you should go There are ruined abbeys, and there are picturesque ruined abbeys. And then there's Whitby Abbey, dominating the skyline above the East Cliff like a great Gothic tombstone silhouetted against the sky. Looking as though it was built as an atmospheric film set rather than a monastic establishment, it is hardly surprising that this medieval hulk inspired the Victorian novelist Bram Stoker to make it the setting for Count Dracula's dramatic landfall. Dracula when holidaying in Whitby, setting much of the story in the town © Radek Sturgolewski / Shutterstock" data-embed-button="images" data-entity-embed-display="media_image" data-entity-embed-display-settings="{"image_style":"","image_link":""}" data-entity-type="media" data-entity-uuid="816e79c1-312d-4af4-bb7b-ccb2cd580399" data-langcode="en" title="Whitby Abbey at night"> Dracula at Whitby The famous story of Dracula, inspiration for a thousand lurid horror movies, was written by Bram Stoker while holidaying in Whitby in 1897 (a blue plaque at 6 Royal Crescent marks the hotel where he stayed). Although most Hollywood versions of the tale concentrate on deepest, darkest Transylvania, a large part of the original book was set in Whitby, and many of the sites can still be seen today. Modern-day Dracula hunts invariably start or end at St Mary's Church beside Whitby Abbey, which is where the book describes the vampire's ship making landfall. The church has received so many fans looking for Dracula's grave that it had to put a sign on the door informing the public that, alas, it's not there… because he's not real. During Whitby's two Goth Weekends, a steady stream of loyal devotees can usually be seen making their pilgrimage up to Bram Stoker's Memorial Seat on the East Cliff's Khyber Pass. History The stately mansion beside the abbey ruins was built by the Cholmley family, who leased the Whitby estate from Henry VIII after the dissolution of England's monasteries in the 1530s. Following a £1.5 million revamp in 2019, the abbey has dramatically improved its museum, added a small coffee shop with outdoor seating in the abbey grounds, and replaced its free audio guide with a more family-friendly ‘ammonite quest’ to explore the site with. Tickets and other practicalities The site is managed by English Heritage and all visitors (including EH Members) must book tickets in advance online to help control visitor numbers. From the end of Church St, the 199 steps of Church Stairs will lead you steeply up to Whitby Abbey. By car, you have to approach from the A171 Scarborough road to the east side of the bridge over the River Esk.

  • See

    York Minster

    York Minster is the largest medieval cathedral in northern Europe, and one of the world's most beautiful Gothic buildings. Seat of the archbishop of York, primate of England, it is second in importance only to Canterbury, seat of the primate of all England – the separate titles were created to settle a debate over the true centre of the English Church. Note that the quire, east end and undercroft close in preparation for evening service around the time of last admission.

  • See

    Castle Howard

    Stately homes may be two a penny in England, but you'll have to try pretty damn hard to find one as breathtakingly stately as Castle Howard, a work of theatrical grandeur and audacity set in the rolling Howardian Hills. This is one of the world's most beautiful buildings, instantly recognisable from its starring role in the 1980s TV series Brideshead Revisited and in the 2008 film of the same name (both based on Evelyn Waugh's 1945 novel of nostalgia for the English aristocracy).

  • See

    Yorkshire Sculpture Park

    One of England's most impressive collections of sculpture is scattered across the formidable 18th-century estate of Bretton Park, 200-odd hectares of lawns, fields and trees. A bit like the art world's equivalent of a safari park, the Yorkshire Sculpture Park showcases the work of dozens of sculptors both national and international. The park is partly a homage to local heroes Barbara Hepworth (1903−75), who was born in Wakefield, and Henry Moore (1898−1986), though more of their works are on display at the Hepworth Wakefield.

  • See

    Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal

    The alluring and strangely obsessive water gardens of the Studley Royal estate were built in the 18th century to enhance the picturesque ruins of 12th-century Fountains Abbey. Together, they present a breathtaking picture of pastoral elegance and tranquillity that have made them a Unesco World Heritage site and the most visited of all the National Trust's pay-to-enter properties.

  • See

    National Railway Museum

    York's National Railway Museum – the biggest in the world, with more than 100 locomotives – is well presented and crammed with fascinating stuff. It is laid out on a vast scale and is housed in a series of giant railway sheds – allow at least two hours to do it justice. The museum also now includes a high-tech simulator experience of riding on the Mallard (£4), which set the world speed record for a steam locomotive in 1938 (126mph).

  • See

    Jorvik Viking Centre

    Interactive multimedia exhibits aimed at bringing history to life often achieve exactly the opposite, but the much-hyped Jorvik manages to pull it off with aplomb. It's a smells-and-all reconstruction of the Viking settlement unearthed here during excavations in the late 1970s, experienced via a 'time-car' monorail that transports you through 9th-century Jorvik (the Viking name for York). You can reduce time waiting in line by booking timed-entry tickets online; there is almost always a queue to get in.

  • See

    National Coal Mining Museum for England

    For close to three centuries, West and South Yorkshire were synonymous with coal production. The collieries shaped and scarred the landscape and entire villages grew up around the pits. The industry came to a shuddering halt in the 1980s, but the imprint of coal is still very much in evidence, even if there's only a handful of collieries left. One of these, the former Caphouse Colliery, is now this fascinating museum, a superb testament to the inner workings of a coal mine.

  • See

    Rievaulx Abbey

    In the secluded valley of the River Rye about 3 miles west of Helmsley, amid fields and woods loud with birdsong, stand the magnificent ruins of Rievaulx Abbey ( ree -voh). The extensive remains give a wonderful sense of the size and complexity of the community that once lived here, and their story is fleshed out in a series of fascinating exhibits in a new museum. There's also a cafe with floor-to-ceiling windows and outdoor terrace from which to gawp at the ruins.

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