Accommodation
This recommended accommodation list is by no means exhaustive, as there are of course a huge range of places to stay in the region. Those featured are our author’s, with no payment having been made by the businesses concerned. They suit a range of different pockets, from basic camping to outrageous luxury; and styles – some B&B, some self-catering, some for larger groups. All, however, are ‘special’ in some way, historically, architecturally or perhaps with a particular ‘Slow’ take on things.
Transport
Trains
York is the hub of the rail network hereabouts. From York Station, you can travel north on the East Coast Main Line for Thirsk or east on the Trans-Pennine Express to Malton and Scarborough. From Scarborough the Yorkshire Coast Line, visits Filey then skirts the Wolds, with stations at Hunmanby, Bempton, Bridlington, Driffield and Beverley. A circular route can be completed back to York via Hull and Selby.
The only other ‘Network’ rail line in the region is the wonderful Esk Valley Line which runs between Middlesbrough and Whitby, calling at Great Ayton and various other locations.
Buses and coaches
A cheaper (but slower) way of getting here is by the excellent Yorkshire Coastliner bus. This service runs every day from Leeds to York (every 15 minutes) and then on to Malton (every 30 minutes). Here the service splits, with buses travelling to Scarborough (every hour), Whitby via Pickering and Goathland (three times a day) and Filey and Bridlington (three times a day).
Once you have got here, getting around by bus is not quite so simple. As is the way with bus services, the smaller and more isolated the place the poorer the service, especially in the less mainstream tourist venues. Buses around the quieter corners of the Howardian Hills and Wolds are particularly sparse.
Boat trips
The harbour towns of the North Yorkshire coast have no ferries to take you from A to B but lots of opportunities exist for trips out and back in the summer months (weather permitting). Scarborough and Whitby offer the most options. All of Scarborough’s vessels operate out of the harbour. Numerous boats advertise angling trips, usually with a sandwich board on the harbourside; just turn up and take your pick of the most reputable-looking one.
Details of the 19 sea-angling charter boats that operate from Whitby harbour can be found on whitbyseaanglers.com or through Whitby Tourist Office. As for cruises here, Whitby Coastal Cruises has three boats of various sizes (and exposures to the elements!) running trips up the coast, out to sea for whale-watching and up the river when the tide is in. The Bark Endeavour is a scale replica of Captain Cook’s famous sailing ship that also does short sea trips.
Cycling
The cycling scene in Yorkshire has seen hard times in recent years. The annual ‘Tour de Yorkshire’, which inspired so much grassroots participation in the sport, has not taken place since 2019 and plans to restart it in 2023 collapsed, but there are plans to hold a festival in 2024.
There are still far more leisure cyclists around the county than in pre-‘Grand Départ’ times so its legacy is still being felt. Most bike-hire venues and cycle shops have remained open, many taking advantage of the huge upsurge in electric bike riding. Also, other providers like B&Bs, cafes and pubs have not forgotten to be bike-friendly so the future looks bright for cycling in Yorkshire.