My wife and I will be traveling to England (our first time) from May 19th-May 27th. We will be in York from May 24-26 and we would really like to travel to North York Moors Nationals Park and Whitby. What would be the best way to travel there? I’ve heard we can take the train. Also how long would the trip take?
Posted by
Camano Island, WA, usa
1446 posts
You can take Virgin East Train to Scarborough then bus it to Whitby. Trip is 4 plus hours. Same train continues to York.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
16187 posts
The train is faster than bus.
We went from York to Whitby by train, spent two nights, and then went back to York. We loved Whitby.
There are three trains a day with a single change in Middlesbrough, taking between 2 hours 44 minutes and 3 hours 21 minutes. The cost is £16.70. We were traveling in late April and there were daffodils blooming along the tracks in one section.
You can see the train times and buy tickets on the U.K. National Rail website.
We stayed at the Seaview Guesthouse which was lovely and served a very nice breakfast. It is an uphill walk from the train station.
Posted by
Royaume-Uni nul points, pas plus
2501 posts
Bus and train links from York to Whitby aren’t particularly great.
You can take bus 840 direct from York to Whitby http://www.yorkbus.co.uk/times
You can use http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ to plan a train journey via Middlesbrough
Or for something a bit different take the 840 bus mentioned above to Pickering then take the North York Moors Railway to Whitby
Posted by
Tunbridge Wells
6113 posts
Trying to squeeze the North York Moors and Whitby into a single day cries out for a one day car hire, which would make more sense than covering this by public transport. Both are fantastic places to visit.
Posted by
Yorkshire
1277 posts
I would second the idea of taking the North Yorks Moors railway to Whitby from Pickering. In an ideal world you'd have a car to drive from York to Pickering, but it can be done by bus. A car though would give you greater flexibility and you could explore a bit on the way back if the journey by train through the moors has piqued your interest. The N Y Moors are big and very empty in the main (which may explain why Rick Steves isn't particularly a fan) and the rail trip might show you all you want to see, although largely the train sticks to the less wild valleys. It possible on some days to take a steam hauled train - the line from Pickering to Grosmont and Goathland is privately owned - I think you may need to change trains for the final stretch into Whitby. (Goathland station, with much CGI added, is the station in the Harry Potter movies). Whitby can take a full day to explore, but the main points of interest are the cobbled streets leading to the '199 steps' that lead to the cliff top Abbey ruins and interesting nearby church.
Have a great trip!
Ian
Posted by
7642 posts
We visited York, Castle Howard, Pickering, the Yorkshire Moors and Whitby last October using a rental car.
At first, we planned to take the North Yorks Moors railway to Whitby and return then head up to Durham. Because we decided to visit Castle Howard in route to Pickering, our schedule options for taking the train were not good. We overnighted in Pickering at the White Swan Inn. It was an old inn and wonderful restaurant. We drove over the Moors, which are very scenic. Not sure the scenery is as good on the train. Whitby is a great place to visit as well. Don't miss going to the top of the hill, all the steps to see the abbey.