Along the coast, Robin Hood's Bay, Runswick Bay, Sandsend and Staithes each have their own character, but all share a jumble of cottages clinging to steep cliffs, seemingly on the brink of tumbling into the sea. Inland, Dalby Forest's 8,000 acres of woodland turn spectacular shades of gold and russet, making it a fine place for walking, cycling and stargazing beneath some of the darkest skies in the country.
There's plenty of history, too. Explorer James Cook learned his trade in Whitby before navigating the South Seas, Bram Stoker found inspiration for Dracula in the town's churchyard, and the Victorian plein air artists flocked to Staithes to paint its fishing community. The landscape still inspires, whether you come for the views, the history or the food.
Where to eat
From a pioneering Yorkshire restaurant to an understated village kitchen, these are the places worth planning a trip around.
The Star Inn at Harome
In 1996, Andrew Pern took an ailing village pub and turned it into a destination restaurant, helping change the face of eating out in Yorkshire. The ancient, thatched inn remains wonderfully atmospheric, with polished oak, old settles and a fire in the bar. Eat casually here or settle into the dining room for a tasting menu or à la carte. Pern's signature black pudding and foie gras, pairing the humble with the luxurious, is a reminder of why the Star has endured.
Homestead Kitchen at Goathland
Goathland, where sheep graze on the village green, is home to Peter Neville and Cecily Fearnley's modest restaurant, whose unassuming setting belies the quality of the cooking. Neville's menus are rooted in Yorkshire produce: Whitby fish, grouse from the moors, bread made with organic flour grown and milled nearby, and fruit and vegetables from the kitchen garden. Creel-caught langoustine with local Thirkleby duck, damson ketchup and garden vegetables might be followed by caramelised fig-leaf custard and plum compote. Thoughtful, restrained and quietly accomplished.
Pizza West at Whitby
High on Whitby's breezy West Cliff, this low-slung, whitewashed building with voguish steel-framed windows looks out towards the sea. Take a table or sit at the counter to watch your pizza disappear into the wood-fired oven. Alongside the Margherita, there's a short pasta list, including spaghetti with chilli, garlic and prawns, and small plates such as grilled pear with blue cheese and walnuts, sardines with salsa verde and wood-fired lamb chops with tzatziki. A relaxed, contemporary addition to the town's food scene.
Pubs
For a proper Yorkshire welcome, these inns combine characterful interiors with food that gives you a reason to linger.
The Abbey Inn at Byland
Tommy Banks added this 19th-century inn, opposite Byland Abbey and a mile from his flagship Black Swan, to his portfolio in 2023. The menu elevates pub classics, such as the 'Smash Burger Special' made with the inn's own Dexter beef, fermented chilli sauce and pickles served with pork-fat fries topped with Douglas fir chips. There are mushroom burgers, grills, pies and charcuterie too, plus an outstanding Sunday roast. A useful bonus: it opens on Mondays.
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Fylingdales Inn at Fylingthorpe
Robin Hood's Bay has its much-loved Laurel and Dolphin, but for food it's worth heading to neighbouring Fylingthorpe and this refurbished inn. George Husband's concise menu might begin with Lindisfarne oysters and a frozen Bloody Mary, followed by Whitby crab on toast, fish chowder or steak with excellent chips. Save room for the bread and butter pudding, a slim slice with a crisp brûléed top that's worth the journey alone.
Birch Hall Inn at Beckhole
This 17th-century whitewashed inn is a local treasure, with the Big Bar (just 10 feet square), an even smaller Small Bar and an old-fashioned sweetshop. Three cask ales include the specially brewed Beckwatter, while the food is deliberately simple: pork pie and pickle or a Beckhole Butty of ham in a stottie cake, followed by Beckhole Beer Cake. Bring cash; it's closed on Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays.
Cafés and tearooms
Generous lunchtime sandwiches? Home-made cakes with a view? We've got you covered.
Mannion & Co Kitchen at Helmsley
Helmsley has plenty of tea rooms, but Mannion & Co is a cut above. Blackboard menus range from hearty sandwiches, perhaps filled with belly pork and harissa mayonnaise, to a full English and more considered dishes such as vadouvan-roasted carrots with pickled fennel, yoghurt, poached eggs and toasted pitta. Scones and cakes carry you through the afternoon, alongside proper tea and excellent coffee.
Mary's Sandwich Shop at Sandsend
Come hungry to Mary's, where the lunchtime sandwiches are anything but modest. Home-made bread is packed with combinations such as spiced rolled pork belly, peanut sauce, pickled carrot and daikon, cucumber, chilli, coriander, roast garlic mayonnaise and hot honey. Smashburgers appear on Friday and Saturday evenings.
Dale Head Farm Tea Garden at Rosedale East
On a working farm, part of Rosedale Abbey in the heart of the National Park, Maggie Barraclough's tea garden has a cosy hut for colder days and spectacular views across the dale. Stop for sandwiches, proper leaf tea and home-made cakes, ideally after a walk along the disused railway track past Rosedale's old ironstone kilns. In winter, it opens Friday to Sunday.
What to see and do
Explore the moors on foot or by bike, discover the area's maritime past, and stay out after dark for some of England's finest stargazing.
Danby Lodge National Park Centre is a good starting point for maps and advice. For autumn colour, head to Dalby Forest, with miles of woodland trails for walkers and cyclists. Both host events during October's Dark Skies Festival, as the North York Moors is an International Dark Sky Reserve.
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway runs 24 miles between Pickering and Whitby, with steam and diesel services. Combine it with the Rail Trail, returning along three miles of old railway bed.
Walkers can tackle the Cleveland Way's clifftop path between Staithes and Runswick Bay, while cyclists can follow the Cinder Track from Robin Hood's Bay towards Ravenscar. Yorkshire Coast Rocks or Runswick Fossil Forage offer guided fossil outings.
Staithes is best explored at a leisurely pace. Boat trips with Real Staithes and Three Sisters offer angling and wildlife watching, while the free museum recalls the young James Cook, who worked briefly in a local grocer's shop. Nearby, Skinningrove's quiet sweep of sand makes a peaceful beach walk.
In Whitby, Whitby Wellbeing offers wild swimming, saunas and sound baths. Whitby Museum is an eccentric cabinet of curiosities, with world-class fossils and a pickled hand, while the Captain Cook Memorial Museum occupies the Georgian house where Cook was an apprentice.
Above the harbour, the ruins of Whitby Abbey overlook St Mary's Church, with its box pews and three-tiered pulpit. The churchyard inspired Dracula, and at Halloween Whitby Goth Weekend fills the streets with Victorian finery.
Make time to visit Rievaulx and Fountains Abbey, two breathtaking 12th-century Cistercian abbeys within striking distance.
Where to shop
From Whitby jet and local art to smoked fish, farmhouse meat and proper Yorkshire kippers, there's plenty to take home.
Whitby jet, the region's distinctive black gemstone, is sold by jewellers along Church Street; buy from a reputable specialist and check its provenance. In Staithes, the Staithes Gallery and Staithes Studio showcase work by local and visiting artists, while Berties of Bay in Robin Hood's Bay and Sandsend sells traditional fishermen's ganseys (sweaters).
Self-caterers will find excellent butchers at Radford's in Sleights and Jackson's in Ruswarp. New Sheepfold Farm and Wild Slack Farm sell their meat directly from vending machines on the farms, while Whitby Catch and Sandgate Seafoods are good sources of fresh fish and seafood. For traditional kippers, visit Fortune's smokehouse in Whitby.
Staithes' Betsy and Bo combines a sweetshop with an upmarket deli selling bread, pies, cheeses and owner Luke's favourite chilli sauces. Darren Hanson, the village's last commercial fisherman, lands crab and lobster when conditions allow; look for his catch at Matthew Asquith's Whitby Seafish beside Staithes car park.
Getting there
The Coastliner 840 links Leeds and York with Whitby, while the Esk Valley Railway connects Whitby with Middlesbrough and the wider rail network. Both journeys offer lovely views, but a car is the most practical way to explore the scattered villages, moorland and coastline at your own pace.
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Where to stay
Planning a getaway to North Yorkshire? Good Food Guide has teamed up with National Trust Holidays to uncover some characterful places to stay.
Cockayne Cottage, Bransdale, North Yorkshire
This rustic farmhouse, tucked away in the secluded farming valley of Bransdale in the North York Moors, sleeps five across three bedrooms and has sweeping views across the dale to the moors beyond. Inside, low ceilings, exposed beams and old ledge-and-brace doors give it plenty of character, with a woodburner set into a large stone fireplace making the sitting room a cosy spot to retreat to after a day outdoors. The large enclosed garden looks across to the church and valley, while walkers and cyclists can head straight out onto the many routes crisscrossing the dale, including the Cleveland Way and Bransdale Loop. Kirkbymoorside is 10 miles away for pubs, cafés and shops, with Helmsley, Rievaulx Terrace and Nunnington Hall all within easy reach, while two dogs are welcome to join you.
High Peak, Ravenscar, North Yorkshire
This spacious coastal cottage on the edge of the North York Moors sleeps eight across four bedrooms, with two en-suite rooms and a further double and twin. The large kitchen and separate dining and sitting rooms make it well suited to family or group stays, while a woodburner adds a cosy note after a day outside. There are two enclosed outdoor spaces, including a rear patio looking towards Robin Hood's Bay, and two dogs are welcome. From the door, follow the cliff-top route to Robin Hood's Bay, an eight-mile round trip, or join the Cinder Track towards Whitby and Scarborough by bike. The beaches and wildlife of the Yorkshire coast are close at hand, with grey seals often spotted at Ravenscar in the colder months, while the North York Moors offers miles of heather-covered hills and wooded valleys to explore.
Proctor, Fountains Abbey, North Yorkshire
This elegant third-floor apartment occupies part of 16th-century Fountains Hall, built from stone taken from the nearby abbey, and sleeps three across a double and a separate single bedroom. Inside, the open-plan living space combines period character with interiors inspired by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, while a four-poster bed adds a suitably grand touch. Step outside and you can wander through the Elizabethan walled gardens and relax in the summerhouse, or explore Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Water Garden after the day visitors have left. The River Skell runs below the Hall, with walks through the estate starting right from the door, while the Yorkshire Dales and medieval streets of York are within easy reach.
WIN £500 to spend with National Trust Holidays
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Whether it's a fisherman's cottage tucked into a Cornish cove, a lighthouse keeper's cottage on the North East coast, or a countryside retreat with its own private garden, the pick is entirely yours. Anywhere in the National Trust's portfolio, at a time that suits you.
It's the kind of prize that doesn't come round often, and entering takes seconds. Don't miss your shot at the ultimate quiet escape – enter now.
