8 notable places within an hour's drive.
photogenic
Staithes
Former fishing village of red-roofed cottages stacked into a cleft in the North Yorkshire cliffs, where Captain Cook worked as a grocer's boy. Park at the top and walk down: the harbour view from Cowbar Nab is the classic shot.
11 km · about 20 min drive
national park
North York Moors National Park
Vast expanse of heather moorland turning purple in August, with deep valleys, a dramatic coastline and the historic North Yorkshire Moors Railway.
19 km · about 20 min drive
famous road
Rosedale Chimney Bank
One of England's steepest roads, hitting 1-in-3 (33%) as it climbs from Rosedale Abbey onto the North York Moors past old ironstone kilns. A rite of passage for drivers and cyclists; caravans are banned.
22 km · about 25 min drive
ancient ruins
Whitby Abbey
Haunting Gothic ruins crowning the East Cliff above Whitby harbour, inspiring Bram Stoker's Dracula and reached by 199 stone steps.
23 km · about 25 min drive
restaurant
Magpie Café
Whitby's harbourside fish-and-chip institution in a black-and-white 1750s merchant's house, serving fish landed yards away since 1939. The queue down Pier Road is part of the ritual.
23 km · about 25 min drive
landmark
Robin Hood's Bay
Enchanting fishing village tumbling down steep cliffs to a rocky shore, famous as the endpoint of Wainwright's Coast to Coast Walk.
30 km · about 35 min drive
racetrack
Croft Circuit
A former World War II airfield in North Yorkshire that hosts BTCC and is known for its mix of fast straights and tight chicanes.
40 km · about 45 min drive
castle
Castle Howard
A stately home in North Yorkshire, not a true castle but one of England's grandest Baroque residences, famous from Brideshead Revisited.
47 km · about 55 min drive