We will be ending our nearly three week England itinerary in the northeast. Our current plans are to leave the area around Seahouses (Northumberland coast) in the early morning traveling to York. We would like to stop and visit Durham Cathedral and Fountains Abbey enroute before turning in our car in York late that afternoon. While the distances aren't great, is that too much to include in that day?
We will be taking an evening train to Manchester airport the following day for a flight home.
Posted by
Long Beach, California, USA
3391 posts
If you get an early start you can do both. I left the Lake District early morning, saw Fountains Abbey in the morning, and toured the major sights of York in the afternoon. If you leave early, you should have enough time to drive an hour or so to Durham in the morning and Fountains Abbey in the afternoon before ending in York before the car rental agency closes. It's only about 1 1/2 hours form Durham to York, and Fountains Abbey isn't far off the main road in between the two.
Posted by
Gateshead, UK
223 posts
Yeah, it’s possible if you have the energy to last a long day.
Posted by
Yorkshire
1279 posts
Hi Jeffery -
It will be possible to take in both Durham Cathedral and Fountains Abbey in a single day from Seahouses but it will mean an early start from there - hopefully you'll have covered Bamburgh, Dunstanburgh and Alnwick castles and environs beforehand. However, traffic permitting, you should be able to squeeze in a couple of hours in both Durham and Fountains, although the options at Fountains alone are enough to fill an entire day.
I assume you will be travelling in spring/summer of 2019. If travelling before end of March check the opening hours for National Trust sites as some close between end of October to beginning of March. Fountains, if memory serves, is open all year, it being predominantly outdoors. Certainly when I was there earlier this year it was snowing!
If you are travelling to a hotel at Manchester Airport to overnight before your flight, as you exit the station onto the street there is a courtesy telephone to summon a courtesy bus to your hotel (we only discovered this recently - it's easy to miss! - and had previously walked to nearby hotels - I can attest that this is no fun!). If in doubt station staff should be able to help you locate it.
Have a great trip!
Ian
Posted by
7662 posts
We did a 4 week drive tour of S. Wales and England that included 3 nights in York, on a Pickering to see the Yorkshire Moors and Whitby, then on to Durham for two nights. We then spent another night at Haltwhistle to see Hadrian's Wall and the Roman Museums there before spending three nights in the Lake District.
The Lake District was beautiful, but we were there in late October, when it became cold, so we didn't enjoy the outdoors that much.
York, the Yorkshire Moors, Whitby, Durham and Hadrian's Wall were great. We love the people in the North of England.
Both cathedrals in York and Durham are awesome and take hours to visit.
Also, loved walking the walls in York and the Railway Museum.
You need to spend two full days to take in York. We spent three hours in the York Minster (cathedral).