Overview - Geology - Exploring - Places To Visit - Resources - Dales Cottages

Places to visit and see in The Yorkshire Dales

Welcome to TheYorkshireDales.org and our Yorkshire Dales information, useful online links, local villages sections and holiday cottage sites for a relaxing stay in this wonderful part of the north of England. In this section we take a look at some of the fantastic places to visit in the region.

The Dales have so much to offer visitors that it's almost difficult to know where to start. There are sites of historical interest, ruined Abbeys, Stately Homes, churches both big and small, geological features both above and below ground, villages, castles, canal and steam railway, and that's before you even start to think of the views to be enjoyed. Some of the most interesting places to visit in the Dales are just outside the Dales National park but it would be a shame to miss some of them from your itinerary.

Ripon, with its impressive cathedral, is to the east of Nidderdale, as is Fountains Abbey and nature's sculptural handiwork on the millstone grit of Brimham Rocks. Just further south is Ripley Castle. At Knaresborough the River Nidd has carved a deep and impressive gorge through the limestone. Wharfedale is one of the better known dales names and its around this area that you'll find Grassington, Ilkley, Skipton (with its ruined castle), Kettlewell, Whernside and Kilnsey Crag. A trip to Wharfedale wouldn't be complete without a visit to see the ruins of Bolton Priory, alongside the River Wharfe, on the Bolton Abbey estate. Just on the fringes of the National Park is the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway.

Buildings in much of the Ribblesdale area and in the Craven villages are characterised by the beauty and durability of the stone itself. Many buildings date back 300 years and have an architectural charm all their own. The village of Giggleswick is particularly appealing and has an old and interesting parish church, of St. Alkelda. Much of the church dates back over 500 years but there is evidence to suggest that it stands on the site of a much earlier church. Close by is Settle, an old market town famous as one end of the Settle - Carlisle steam railway. Horton-in-Ribblesdale is a centre popular with both walker, climbers and cavers (potholers or speleologists). Alum, Churn, Hull and Gingle Pots are nearby as are Long Churn and Gaping Gill potholes. For walkers the peaks of Ingleborough, Pen-y-Ghent and Whernside beckon invitingly and, if feeling energetic, the 'Three Peaks' challenge of all three in one day can be taken up.

The northerly Swaledale is possibly one of the prettiest of the dales and, running from this, is Arkengarthdale. It's in this Dale that you'll find the Tan Hill Inn, famed as the highest pub in England. It stands, isolated, on the lonely tops with a 360 degree panorama of the surrounding region, stretching as far as the eye can see. Not the easiest spot to reach, and frequently snowed in for days at a time in winter, the effort to reach it is worth it. Richmond, just outside the Yorkshire Dales National Park, owes its existence to its 12th century Norman castle. The Castle Keep dominates the little market town with its cobbled marketplace, Georgian architecture and the swift flowing River Swale.

Buttertubs Pass, the high mountain road between Thwaite in Swaledale and Hawes in Wenselydale gives you magnificent views and, near the summit, you'll find the strangely shaped limestone potholes, which break the surface with giant pillars rising from the depths. These are known as 'The Buttertubs' and can be as deep as 60feet. Further east are the beautiful Aysgarth Falls in Wensleydale. Visit the area around Malham and you will see the impressively beautiful curving rock face of Malham Cove towering over the valley and, above it, a fine limestone pavement. Nearby is the highest lake in England, Malham Tarn, a well known and popular beauty spot and wetland haven for birds and animals. Not far away is the truly fantastic Gordale Scar, a ssgorge on a huge scale and with a waterfall.

Bolton Castle, in Wensleydale, is a spectacular medieval fortress, with a history reaching back over 600 years. Still intact, the castle is familiar to many as a location for filming and seen in several films and TV series. Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned here for a time, and it was besieged by Parliamentarian forces during the 17th century Civl War. Still in Wensleydale is the ruined Jervaulx Abbey; founded in 1156 it was a Cistercian Abbey and is, again, just on the fringe of the National Park.

So much to see, enjoy and discover in the Yorkshire Dales, the foregoing locations only scrape the surface of what the Yorkshire Dales has to offer to any visitor, either for a day, a week or a lifetime of visits.