North Yorkshire Scenic Drives: Five Routes Worth Leaving the A1 For

From the North York Moors' heather plateaus to Wensleydale's waterfalls and the quiet Holderness coast, here's where to point the car — and where to stay while you do it.

The Moors Run: Pickering to Whitby over the A169

Start in Pickering, where the castle and the steam railway terminus sit ten minutes from the A169, and climb through Newton-on-Rawcliffe onto the moor. The stretch past Hole of Horcum is the one people photograph: a mile-wide amphitheatre of heather that turns purple from mid-August to early September. Continue to RAF Fylingdales' golf balls, then drop through Sleights into Whitby, roughly 40 minutes from the moor top. Fuel up in Pickering or Malton first — there's no petrol between the two.

Book dinner and a bed in Whitby itself if you want the abbey at sunset, but expect summer weekend rates in the £140–200 band for a decent double. Cheaper and quieter: Pickering, where the same standard runs £90–140 and you're 30 minutes from both the moor and the coast. I'd base in Pickering for two nights and drive the coast as a day trip rather than moving hotels twice.

Wensleydale and Buttertubs: Hawes to Reeth

From Hawes, take the B6255 north over Buttertubs Pass toward Thwaite. The limestone gorge at the summit has no barriers and single-track sections, so it's a daytime drive only — ice and low cloud make it genuinely hazardous from November through March. Better months are May, June and September, when the dales are green and the waterfalls at Hardraw Force (a short walk behind the Green Dragon) run strongly after rain. Allow 45 minutes Hawes to Reeth without stops.

Base yourself in Hawes or Leyburn rather than Richmond if you want the dales at dawn. Hawes has the Wensleydale Creamery, three or four good pubs and parking that doesn't fight you; doubles sit around £85–130. Leyburn is handier for the A684 and Richmond Castle, about 25 minutes east. Skip Aysgarth Falls on a bank-holiday Sunday — the car park fills by 10.30am and the lower falls get genuinely crowded.

The Dales' Quiet Side: Nidderdale and Pateley Bridge

Nidderdale gets a fraction of the Dales' traffic and is 30 minutes from Harrogate, which makes it the best half-day drive if you're already staying in the spa town. Take the B6165 from Ripley through Summerbridge to Pateley Bridge, then the B6265 up past Gouthwaite Reservoir to Lofthouse and Middlesmoor. The road above the reservoir is one of the best-value viewpoints in Yorkshire and rarely has more than a couple of cars on it. Scar House Reservoir at the head of the valley is a further 15 minutes on single track.

Stay in Harrogate (£110–180 for a decent double, plus the Turkish Baths and Bettys) or Pateley Bridge (£80–120, quieter, better for walkers). Harrogate works if you want restaurants and a station — Leeds is 35 minutes by train, York 40. Pateley works if you want to be on the moors by 8am. For a two-night trip combining this with the Moors route, Harrogate is the better single base.

Coast and Wolds: Filey, Flamborough and the B1249

The B1249 from Driffield to Flamborough cuts across the Yorkshire Wolds and is the most underrated drive in the county — rolling chalk farmland, few villages, almost no traffic. Link it to the coast at Bridlington or Filey, then run north past Bempton Cliffs, where 250,000 seabirds nest between March and August and the RSPB reserve car park costs a few pounds. Flamborough Head itself is best at low tide; the chalk arch at Selwicks Bay is only reachable then.

Filey is the sensible base: a proper town with a seafront, a railway station on the Scarborough line and doubles at £70–120, well below Whitby prices. Bridlington is cheaper still but busier and less pretty. Skip Scarborough's South Bay in August if you want space; North Bay and the castle headland are calmer. From Filey, York is 50 minutes by car and Scarborough 20 minutes by train.

Questions, answered

When is the best time to drive the North York Moors?

Late August to mid-September for the heather, which peaks purple for about three weeks. May and June are quieter and greener. Avoid December to February on high moor roads like the Buttertubs and Blakey Ridge, where ice and fog close routes without warning.

Do I need a car for these routes, or can I use trains?

You need a car for Nidderdale, Buttertubs and the Wolds. The Moors route works partly by train — the Esk Valley line runs Middlesbrough to Whitby via Grosmont — and Whitby, Filey and Harrogate all have stations. Pickering is on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, not the national network.

Where should I stay for a three-night North Yorkshire driving trip?

Two bases work best. Pickering or Helmsley for the Moors and coast, then Hawes or Leyburn for the Dales, at roughly £85–140 a night. One base in York or Harrogate means long drives each day — Harrogate to Whitby is about 90 minutes.

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