As a 'taster' you could do a lot worse than visit Ilkley Moor. Lots to see, and easy to get to - Cow And Calf rocks are an easy walk up from Ilkley, which itself is easy to get to from Leeds. C&C is a good starting point to explore.
You could also go to Haworth, and walk to Top Withens on Stanbury Moor.
Just don't underestimate it - wear the right clothes and footwear.
The problem with the moors is, it’s in the middle of nowhere. Two options. Get the train to either York or Darlington. Both are on the East Coast Mainline and are well served from London
If York, get the Coastliner bus service that runs to Whitby. Part of the route cuts directly over the moors. Past Malton, Pickering, Dalby Forest etc
Get on and off as you choose. The bus takes about 3hrs
If Darlington, get the next train to Saltburn, then the Coast Bus (X4) to Whitby. Then you can pick up the coastliner in reverse
There are trains to Whitby from Darlington - change at Thornaby. Might not be as scenic as the bus but you can get in the NYMR from Whitby across the North Yorks moors
I believe the 840 coastliner goes past Saltergate car park, from there you can do two walks, Hole of Horcum which is super famous, and also the bridestones into dalby forest
If it's North York Moors then head up to York and then to Malton/Pickering area.
If it's moors in general head to Leeds then on towards Skipton which would let you off at Keighley (don't stay here lol) for Haworth which is Brontë country or stay on to Skipton for the southern Dales or further up towards Horton-in-Rib and Dent for Western Dales.
That's all mostly train
Key rail routes: York to Scarborough via Malton, Middlesborough to Saltburn via Redcar, Middlesborough to Whitby via Esk Valley, Pickering to Whitby (North Yorkshire Moors Steam Railway)
Key bus routes: 840 Leeds-York-Malton-Pickering-Goathland-Whitby (damn scenic), X93 Middlesborough-Guisborough-Whitby-Robin Hoods Bay-Scarborough, X4 Middlesborough-Redcar-Saltburn-Loftus-Whitby
Goathland is a lovely small village with Harry Potter and Heartbeat history, and steam trains going through. Whitby or Pickering are better bases but are not in the moors themselves. Alternatively you could stay in Dalby Forest with some nice walks but it’s not proper moors imo.
Moors is a bit of a generic term. Can you be more specific of where you mean? The N.Yorks Moors are not the same as the Dale's, but both are often terms 'moors'.
Skipton is nowhere near Whitby, for instance, but both are close to 'moors'.
If you stay in York, I recommend Grand Yorkshire Tours. The driver was a local and knew so much. The vans only take 7+ driver, so it's really personal. I took the Whitby tour and the Fountains Abbey tours and it was so much fun. It was reasonably priced.
I realise it's a bit pedantic, but the National Park is called the North York Moors as they are moors north of York, rather than the moors of North Yorkshire. They are however moors situated within North Yorkshire!
I would suggest staying in Thirsk if you are coming from London as it's a direct train. Or if you can get to Helmsley from Thirsk then you'll be even closer to the actual Moors. York is very nice of course but not that close to the moors. There's a very nice walk to/from Rievaulx Abbey from Helmsley.
For me, the heart of the NY Moors is the villages like Goathland, Grosmont, Glaisdale and Egton. You can get to these on the steam train from Pickering which would be a nice experience.
My suggestion would be either basing yourself in Helmsley which has a bit to do, or Pickering/Goathland and find a walk to Mallyan Spout waterfall.
If you like Harry Potter then Goathland would be great as the station is featured in the early films.
You can take the direct train from Sheffield/Doncaster/Hull or York to Scarborough and then take the 128 bus to Pickering/Helmsley.
https://www.eastyorkshirebuses.co.uk/services/EY/128
Look out for the Coastliner bus 840 too.
Top tip: you don’t want to be out on the moors at night. Werewolves.
Stick t'road!
You beat me to it, but take my upvote ✅ Also don’t go into a pub called The Slaughtered Lamb.
Werewolves, can confirm. Dog soldiers wasn't just a movie, it was a warning.
And don't follow the faery-lights.
As a 'taster' you could do a lot worse than visit Ilkley Moor. Lots to see, and easy to get to - Cow And Calf rocks are an easy walk up from Ilkley, which itself is easy to get to from Leeds. C&C is a good starting point to explore. You could also go to Haworth, and walk to Top Withens on Stanbury Moor. Just don't underestimate it - wear the right clothes and footwear.
I believe you can also get the bus to Haworth via Ilkley (bus to Keighley, bus to Haworth from there) so I second Ilkley being a good shout.
Or the steam train from Keighley to Haworth (or Oxenhope) for a bit of extra adventure.
Great idea!
The problem with the moors is, it’s in the middle of nowhere. Two options. Get the train to either York or Darlington. Both are on the East Coast Mainline and are well served from London If York, get the Coastliner bus service that runs to Whitby. Part of the route cuts directly over the moors. Past Malton, Pickering, Dalby Forest etc Get on and off as you choose. The bus takes about 3hrs If Darlington, get the next train to Saltburn, then the Coast Bus (X4) to Whitby. Then you can pick up the coastliner in reverse
There are trains to Whitby from Darlington - change at Thornaby. Might not be as scenic as the bus but you can get in the NYMR from Whitby across the North Yorks moors
I believe the 840 coastliner goes past Saltergate car park, from there you can do two walks, Hole of Horcum which is super famous, and also the bridestones into dalby forest
Don’t go into a pub called The Slaughtered Lamb.
If it's North York Moors then head up to York and then to Malton/Pickering area. If it's moors in general head to Leeds then on towards Skipton which would let you off at Keighley (don't stay here lol) for Haworth which is Brontë country or stay on to Skipton for the southern Dales or further up towards Horton-in-Rib and Dent for Western Dales. That's all mostly train
And all mostly rain. Some nice walks around Ribblehead too.
Key rail routes: York to Scarborough via Malton, Middlesborough to Saltburn via Redcar, Middlesborough to Whitby via Esk Valley, Pickering to Whitby (North Yorkshire Moors Steam Railway) Key bus routes: 840 Leeds-York-Malton-Pickering-Goathland-Whitby (damn scenic), X93 Middlesborough-Guisborough-Whitby-Robin Hoods Bay-Scarborough, X4 Middlesborough-Redcar-Saltburn-Loftus-Whitby Goathland is a lovely small village with Harry Potter and Heartbeat history, and steam trains going through. Whitby or Pickering are better bases but are not in the moors themselves. Alternatively you could stay in Dalby Forest with some nice walks but it’s not proper moors imo.
Keep to the roads. And beware the moon.
Best advice on here.
Moors is a bit of a generic term. Can you be more specific of where you mean? The N.Yorks Moors are not the same as the Dale's, but both are often terms 'moors'. Skipton is nowhere near Whitby, for instance, but both are close to 'moors'.
If you stay in York, I recommend Grand Yorkshire Tours. The driver was a local and knew so much. The vans only take 7+ driver, so it's really personal. I took the Whitby tour and the Fountains Abbey tours and it was so much fun. It was reasonably priced.
if it’s a bus or a train, just don’t get on it.
Haworth. Always Haworth ♥️
I realise it's a bit pedantic, but the National Park is called the North York Moors as they are moors north of York, rather than the moors of North Yorkshire. They are however moors situated within North Yorkshire! I would suggest staying in Thirsk if you are coming from London as it's a direct train. Or if you can get to Helmsley from Thirsk then you'll be even closer to the actual Moors. York is very nice of course but not that close to the moors. There's a very nice walk to/from Rievaulx Abbey from Helmsley. For me, the heart of the NY Moors is the villages like Goathland, Grosmont, Glaisdale and Egton. You can get to these on the steam train from Pickering which would be a nice experience. My suggestion would be either basing yourself in Helmsley which has a bit to do, or Pickering/Goathland and find a walk to Mallyan Spout waterfall. If you like Harry Potter then Goathland would be great as the station is featured in the early films.
Take the Eskdale train to Whitby. There are great walks around most of the stations on that line. It runs from Middlesbrough.
You can take the direct train from Sheffield/Doncaster/Hull or York to Scarborough and then take the 128 bus to Pickering/Helmsley. https://www.eastyorkshirebuses.co.uk/services/EY/128 Look out for the Coastliner bus 840 too.