Whitby Voyage Tips and guide

Whitby is a picturesque town on the coast of North Yorkshire. It was the home of Captain Cook, but is more famous as the place where Bram Stoker's Dracula landed in England. It had a population of 12,600 in 2021. On fine summer weekends it's thronged with visitors, and on moonlit nights during the Goth Festivals it hosts an imponderable number of the Undead.

The Anglo-Saxons called this place Streoneshalh, meaning "Streon's nook of land", and made it a major religious centre, with a monastery for men and women founded in 657 AD. That was destroyed by Vikings towards 870 and the area abandoned except for one Norse farmer called Hvíta, so Hvítabýr it became. The Normans re-established the town and monastery, and from Tudor times Whitby had a herring fishing fleet. In early modern times this expanded into whaling, ship-building, and export of alum and coal. A Victorian side-line was jewellery made from jet, as this was black and could adorn mourning outfits.

By the late 19th century cargo vessels had outgrown the harbour, but fishing continues from small craft and there's a leisure marina.

Tourist information is based at Langborne Rd, on the west river bank near the station. It's open daily 9AM-4PM. Whitby Town Council post info on local services.

54°29′24″N 0°38′6″W

Map of Whitby

Five trains wind through the moors daily from Middlesbrough, taking 90 min via Nunthorpe, Great Ayton, Castleton Moor and Grosmont. Some start from Newcastle or Carlisle.

54.4849-0.61551 Whitby railway station is central in town. There's a staffed ticket office and machines; no toilets or waiting room. There is step-free access to both platforms.

North Yorkshire Moors Railway run summer steam trains from Pickering via Levisham, Newtondale and Goathland to Grosmont, where most terminate; a couple per day continue into Whitby. These may be shown on the National Rail website but that info is not definitive, check with NYMR.

Coastliner 840 runs twice a day from Malton, taking 80 min via Pickering and Goathland. From Leeds or York take the hourly 843 heading for Scarborough, and change at Malton.

Arriva Bus X93 / X94 runs every 30 min along the coast from Scarborough, taking one hour to Whitby. The X94 continues inland via Guisborough to Middlesbrough.

Arriva Bus X4 runs every 30 min from Middlesbrough along the coast via Redcar, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Loftus, Staithes, Runswick Bay and Sandsend to Whitby, taking two hours.

Whitby bus station is next to the railway station.

From Scarborough and East Yorkshire, follow A171 along the coast. From Teesside and the North East, either take A171 or the slower coastal A174.

The roads to Whitby across the moors are scenic, but have sharp bends and steep gradients. In winter they are treacherous and may be closed. One popular route from the south is A64 past York to Malton then A169 north through Pickering and over the North York Moors. There's a 25% (1 in 4) plummet down into the village of Sleights just before reaching Whitby.

In summer all routes are congested and parking in town is impossible. Day-trippers should use the 54.4798-0.65362 Park and Ride on Guisborough Road. This is open Apr-Oct daily from 8AM to dusk. Your bus ticket covers the parking fee.

For traffic and travel reports listen to This is the Coast on 213.360 MHz.

Whitby is compact, and despite the hills is easy and rewarding to walk around. You can reach the Abbey via Green Lane if you don't care for the steps.

Buses (above) follow the main road, which is a mile or so inland from the coast for the most part. So they can get you to Sandsend and Robin Hood's Bay, but there's limited coast access otherwise.

Over a dozen taxi firms serve the town.

• 54.4854-0.62171 Whitby Museum, Pannett Park YO21 1RE, ☏ +44 1947 602908. Feb-mid Dec Tu-Su 10AM-4:30PM. Museum of mostly Victorian curios: natural history, local shipping and so on. It incorporates an art gallery. Adult £8.50, child free. (updated Sep 2025)

• The 199 Steps lead from the head of Church Street, with views over the harbour rooftops, to emerge onto the plateau by St Mary's Church and the Abbey.
• St Mary's Church is the Anglican church at the head of the steps. The oldest parts are 12th century, but most of what you see is late 18th. The cliff edge is becoming so eroded that the church is at risk, and (in a suitably gothic touch) human remains from the graveyard are tumbling onto the properties below.
• 54.4887-0.60862 Whitby Abbey, Abbey Lane YO22 4JT, ☏ +44 370 333 1181. Daily 10AM-5PM. The first abbey was founded in 657 AD, one of its monks being Caedmon, England's earliest known poet. In 664 the Synod of Whitby codified many religious practices such as the date of Easter, bringing Celtic Christianity in line with Rome. The abbey was wrecked by Viking raids but revived and rebuilt from the 13th century, becoming a great Benedictine centre. It fell again in the Dissolution under Henry VIII; the ruin became government-owned in 1920. It's still an imposing shell, visited by Dracula (according to Bram Stoker) in the guise of a large black dog. In 1914 it was further damaged by shelling from two German battlecruisers. Adult £13 child £8, conc £11.50. (updated Sep 2025)

• St Ninian's at 21 Baxtergate was built from 1776 as a "Chapel of Ease" meaning people could attend here rather than lumping up all those steps to St Marys. In 1994 it fell out with the Anglican church over the ordination of women clergy; but its repairs were unaffordable as a splinter church and it closed in 2019. It's occasionally opened by volunteers.
• 54.4867-0.61183 Captain Cook Museum, Grape Lane YO22 4BA, ☏ +44 1947 601900. Daily Feb Mar 10:30AM-3PM, Apr-Oct 10AM-5PM. Captain James Cook was born in 1728 at Marton, now part of Middlesbrough. In 1747/8 he came to Whitby and met the local ship-owners whose house is now this museum. He learnt his seafaring on coastal merchant ships then joined the Royal Navy in the run-up to the Seven Years' War; his shore life thereafter was in London. In 1779 he was killed in a brawl with the native inhabitants of Hawaii. Adult £11, child free. (updated Sep 2025)
• Whitby Lifeboat Museum, Pier Road YO21 3PU, ☏ +44 1947 602001. Daily 11AM-4PM. Display of the local lifeboat service, which used this double boathouse 1895–1957. The modern lifeboat station is on the opposite river bank on Church St, and can also be visited M-F. Free. (updated Sep 2025)
• The two lighthouses on east and west pier are really just harbour lights. The proper "Whitby High Lighthouse" is on the clifftop two miles east beyond Saltwick Bay and nowadays a private dwelling. This used to be the south light, which when lined up with the north light (now demolished) indicated the position of the hazardous Whitby Rock.
• Whitby Beach is mostly west of the river. It's sand and shingle, and stretches for a couple of miles to the aptly named Sandsend, where the cliffs resume and the highway leaves the coast. The busiest sections are at each end, where dogs are prohibited May-Sep; they may always use the middle section known as Upgang Whitby, and the Tate Hill beach east of the river. There's sometimes surf. Swim if you can brave the cold, but watch out for the brisk shoreline current. There are donkey rides in summer near town when the tide is out, but when it's in, the beach is covered.
• 54.4945-0.70554 Mulgrave Castle has three incarnations. The ancient castle may go back to 6th century AD, then it was replaced by the Norman old castle, demolished in 1647 after the Civil War. The third is a mansion of circa 1700; it's private property but you're permitted to stroll the woodlands.

• 54.436-0.7255 Grosmont is the junction between the Middlesbrough - Whitby line and the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. The NYMR steam trains from Pickering usually terminate here, with only one or two a day continuing into Whitby. You can see the trains and old station free without buying a ticket.
• 54.435-0.5346 Robin Hood's Bay is a scenic little fishing village five miles south of Whitby. Park at the edge of the village, don't take a vehicle down the narrow 1-in-3 lane to the harbour. There's a small museum open daily noon-4PM in summer, plus cafes and a bistro.
• 54.4-0.4927 Ravenscar is the resort that never was. Just north of it is the remains of a factory for alum, KAl(SO₄)₂·12H₂O, used as a mordant or fixative for fabric dyes. The factory closed in 1871 when synthetic dyes and fixatives were developed. But never say dye, they decided to turn the area into a beach resort: roads, sewers, and railway station all appeared. Plus a few houses and amenities, while it slowly dawned on the developers that the lack of a beach was a bit of a handicap: it's quite a trek to a rocky shore, and there's no stretch of sand. So Ravenscar is mostly unbuilt, though the hotel is still open, see Sleep. Just south is a World War II radar station, preserved by the National Trust; you're free to explore the site, which may be muddy.

• Ghost walks start from the whalebone arch opposite the Royal Oak at 7:30PM, adult £7, child £4, no large black dogs permitted.
• Dracula Experience is a guided walk with street theatre and storytelling.
• Mary Ann Hepworth was the local lifeboat, in service 1938-74 and saving 201 lives. After retirement around the Broads and River Trent she was restored in 1989 and returned to Whitby. The boat sails from the bridge Apr-Oct daily 10AM to dusk on 30-min trips round the bay.
• HM Bark Endeavour is a 40%-sized replica of the Endeavour used by Cook on his first expedition of 1768-71. In summer they potter round the bay for 30 min.
• Whale-watching trips sail in late summer when whales follow the mackerel and herring along the coast. Trips are 4-8 hours, no children under 12 or dogs.
• North Yorkshire Moors Railway run steam trains from Pickering to Grosmont and Whitby, see Get in.
• Walk: The Cleveland Way follows a loop from Helmsley round the rim of the North York Moors through Osmotherley, Guisborough, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Whitby, Scarborough and Filey. So the sections near Whitby all follow the clifftops and are obvious: northeast via Sandsend, Runswick Bay, Staithes and Loftus into Saltburn, southwest via Robin Hood's Bay, Ravenscar and Scalby into Scarborough. The whole trail is 110 miles.
• The Cinder Track is the old railway between Whitby and Scarborough. It's suitable for walking, cycling and horse-riding. It winds along the contours a mile or two inland so it has limited sea views but is level going.
• Whitby Golf Club is a mile northeast, overlooking the Upgang beach. The yellow tee course is 6106 yards, par 71.
• Whitby Goth Weekend is a music festival with much black lipstick held on Halloween and late April each year.
• Robin Hoods Bay Folk Weekend is in June, and the Victorian Weekend is early December.
• Whitby Traction Engine Rally is probably next held 31 July - 2 Aug 2026, tbc.

• Coop Food by the railway station is open M-Sa 7AM-10PM, Su 11AM-5PM.
• The main retail park is south edge of town on A171. There's an Aldi, and a Sainsbury's with a filling station.

The main strip is west bank of the river (Pier Road / Haggersgate), with half-a-dozen fish and chip shops.

• Quayside, 7 Pier Road YO21 3PU, ☏ +44 7827 388222. Su-Th 11AM-7:30PM, F Sa 11AM-8:30PM. Great views, great decor and reliably good food. (updated Sep 2025)
• Fisherman's Wife, Khyber Pass YO21 3PZ, ☏ +44 1947 603500. Daily 11:30AM-8PM. Popular spot for seafood, you may have to wait. (updated Sep 2025)

There's another strip east bank of the river towards the pier.

• Duke of York, 124 Church Street YO22 4DE (foot of abbey steps), ☏ +44 1947 660430. Daily 8AM-midnight. Pub, good food and accommodation. (updated Sep 2025)
• Humble Pie 'n' Mash, 163 Church Street YO22 4AS (east end of bridge), ☏ +44 1947 606444. Daily 11AM-8PM. Long-standing traditional pie shop, three tables to eat in, most folk take away. (updated Sep 2025)

• Kipppers are a Whitby specialty. You can see the smokery at Fortune's, past the abbey steps on Henrietta Street.

A third cluster is round the railway and bus stations: Star Inn, Pizza Figaro, Passage to India.

• Sandside Cafe is northwest near the end of the beach. They do good light bites, open daily 9AM-4PM.
• Fish Cottage is 100 yards further on. Dogs welcome in the outdoor area. It's open M-Sa noon-10PM, Su noon-7PM.

• 54.4188-0.63271 Falling Foss Tea Garden, Midge Hall, Sneaton Forest YO22 5JD, ☏ +44 7723 477929. Apr–Aug, weather dependent. Outdoor café in the woods beside a waterfall. Serves homemade cakes, scones, and drinks. Picnic seating, kid-friendly. (updated Sep 2025)

• The main strip of pubs (many with rooms) is on the west river bank: The Angel (JD Wetherspoon), Black Swan, Golden Lion, Star Inn, Ship Inn and Pier Inn.
• A short block back from the river is another strip, with The Granby, Arch and Abbey, Elsinore, Little Angel, and Whitby Way.
• Those east bank of the river are White Horse & Griffin, Middle Earth Tavern, The Endeavour, Dolphin Hotel, Black Horse Inn and Abbey Wharf.
• Whitby Brewery makes beer and Whitby Distillery makes gin.

• 54.4819-0.60731 Folly Gardens Campsite, Green Lane YO22 4EN, ☏ +44 1947 601364. Open Mar-Oct, this is the only campsite near town: the several other caravan sites have no camping. Tent or campervan £35. (updated Sep 2025)
• YHA Whitby, Abbey House, East Cliff YO22 4JT, ☏ +44 345 371 9049. Hostel in a splendid mansion next to the Abbey, with dorms and private rooms. Dorm £21. (updated Sep 2025)
• B&Bs are mostly along the street south from Pannett Park. They include Autumn Leaves, Rylstone Mere, Dillons, The Willows, Arundel House, Overdale, [https://hillcrestwhitby.co.uk/ Hill Crest, Manor View and Heathfield.
• 54.4727-0.60332 Penny Hedge, Stainsacre Lane YO22 4NL, ☏ +44 1947 661548. Marston's Inn with rooms south edge of town. B&B double £140. (updated Sep 2025)
• Self-catering: lots. The many offerings include Berry Banks Cottage and Rowan Cottage in Sleights. Shoreline Cottages, Original Cottages and River Esk Apartments all manage a portfolio.
• Marine Hotel, 13 Marine Parade, Whitby YO21 3PR, ☏ +44 1947 605022. Charming small hotel with 4 rooms on riverside. The sea food gets great reviews. B&B double £170. (updated Sep 2025)
• Grand Villa Heights, Ravenscar YO13 0ET, ☏ +44 1723 870353. This was built as a mansion in 1774, and converted into a hotel during the 1890s attempt to transmute Ravenscar into a beach resort, see above. It's now a mid-price place with indoor pool, tennis courts, fitness suite and 9-hole golf course. It's focussed on the wedding trade and does that well, but other visitors are less impressed. B&B double £150. (updated Sep 2025)
• 54.437-0.77413 Broom House, Broom House Lane, Egton Bridge YO21 1XD, ☏ +44 1947 895279. Delightful B&B up the Esk valley in North York Moors. Open Jan-Nov, no dogs. B&B double £130. (updated Sep 2025)
• 54.4582-0.55434 Northcliffe & Seaview Holiday Parks, Bottoms Lane, High Hawsker YO22 4LL, ☏ +44 1947 880477. Holiday park with static caravans and glamping pods for holiday hire, with views across the coast. No tourers or camping. Caravan £90. (updated Sep 2025)
• Hotel Victoria, Station Rd, Robin Hood's Bay YO22 4RL, ☏ +44 1947 880205. Clean comfy small hotel at the top of harbour hill. B&B double £160. (updated Sep 2025)

As of Sep 2025, Whitby and its approach roads have 4G from Three and Vodafone, and 5G from EE and O2.

• Inland are the North York Moors. Take the steam train to Pickering for a well-preserved Norman castle, and medieval church wall paintings that scandalised the vicar.
• North the moors reach the coast as cliffs up to Saltburn-by-the-Sea, then the terrain becomes low-lying and industrial around Redcar.
• South the cliffs stretch to Scarborough. The last great headland is Flamborough Head between Filey and Bridlington.