Best things to do in Whitby, England

Best things to do in Whitby, England

Saltwick Bay 

The top item on our Whitby to-do list? Taking Pepper to the beach! And what better than this absolute beauty of a bay?

Saltwick Bay is a six-minute drive from Whitby or an easy 1.5km walk, or there’s paid parking at the abbey from where you can take a short, picturesque stroll down to the bay.

A few things to look out for while visiting Saltwick Bay:

• A shipwreck from the 1970s – the reason for the Admiral Van Tromp straying off course remains a mystery, and you can walk right up to its remains on the beach at low tide; its skeleton is still clearly in the form of a ship despite the passage of time. A second shipwreck from 1914, the SS Rohilla, also met its watery end along the bay, though this one rests below the water.
  

More Whitby beaches:

Beaches are obviously one of the easiest free things to do in Whitby with kids and adults alike, so here are a few more:

• West Cliff Beach – also known as Whitby Sands Beach, this is a lovely sandy beach decorated with colourful beach huts, popular with families staying nearby due to all the kid-friendly, seaside resort-style activities about.
• Robin Hood’s Bay – a six-mile walk or very short drive, this exceptionally pretty town is every bit as photogenic as Whitby.
• Sandsend Beach – a little quieter than the West Cliff Beach, but still popular with families, especially those who prefer quieter activities like exploring rock pools and paddling – this would have been more my vibe when I was a kid!

Whitby Brewery 

As we only had 2 nights in Whitby during my last Night Yorkshire trip, we decided to each pick our top place to visit (a non-negotiable activity, if you will) to make sure no one missed out. And Whitby Brewery was Becky’s.

And, honestly, what a great pick! You don’t have to be into beer to enjoy this great spot with that superb view of Whitby Abbey, as they have plenty of other drinks available, as well as some food options. Here I am joining in with my low-alcohol beer! 

Whitby Harbour and Piers

Cross the Swing Bridge and explore the harbour! Mind you, I don’t recommend eating any of the yummy seaside snacks sold here before ducking under cover, unless you’re prepared to dodge the seagulls within an inch of your life.

You’ll also see the winding (and windy!) East and West Whity Piers while exploring the harbour.

Dracula Experience 

Best £7 I spent in Whitby. And if you like slightly naff (but very funny) jump scares that feel like they’re straight from the nineties, you’ll love the Dracula Experience too.

The attraction only takes about 15 minutes (including a short documentary that feels kinda homemade, but I mean that in a good way – there’s nothing stuffy about the Dracula Experience. But that’s more than enough time to get a few screams in. And don’t judge us, but there was definitely a point when Sophie and I were both asking the other one to go first so we could avoid the biggest jump. Ha! We loved it.

It’s probably changed a lot since then, but I came here as a kid, and it TERRIFIED me. It’s pretty much the only memory of Whitby that’s burned into my skull after that first trip, ha! I was the kid sister to two older brothers, so obviously I had to try and keep my cool and pretend it wasn’t too frightening.

It’s a memory I’ve laughed about for years, assuming I was completely daft to have nightmares from it, but after visiting this time… I bet my older brothers were only pretending they weren’t scared back then too!

199 steps 

After a restless night, I crept out in the early hours of the morning, seeking coffee and a view to soothe my mind.

Wandering up the 199 steps to the historic abbey and St Mary’s Church took barely ten minutes from my b&b, and in the post-sunrise glow, the steps were hardly as sinister as when I’d first encountered them when reading Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The ‘ghost tour’ signs dotted around Church Street seemed amusing in the soft morning light.

No vampiric dogs were to be found bounding up Whitby’s famous steps that morning. There was barely a soul around at all. 

St Mary’s Church

Following in the footsteps of Dracula, who took this path while disguised as a dog with glowing red eyes (a tale which gave me nightmares after I first visited Whitby as a kid!), you’ll reach St Mary’s Church.

Naming a graveyard as one of the best spooky places to visit in Whitby seems a little off to me, but I agree that St Mary’s literary heritage and scenic view across the harbour make this one something special. My friends warned me they got chills here after making a grave mistake visiting at dusk, but it was perfectly peaceful during my early-morning walk!

Whitby Abbey 

The centuries-old remains of the Gothic Whitby Abbey are certainly, to paraphrase Bram Stoker in Dracula, a ruin most noble, romantic, and beautiful. Its striking clifftop position easily establishes the abbey as one of the best places to visit in Whitby for picturesque views, but the history is fascinating.

Founded in 600, it stood for centuries before Henry VIII dissolved all England’s monasteries in a power move (a common story you’ll hear about many of the Medieval ruins across England – damn our petty Gout King).

Still, despite Henry’s best efforts, the abbey is still inspiring a sense of peace, serenity, and hay fever in thousands of visitors to this day.

Paid tickets needed for entry unless you have an English Heritage pass… or enjoy this free view over the wall.

Captain Cook Memorial Museum 

Did you know that the famous Captain James Cook, who went on to lead pivotal expeditions to Australasia, began learning his history-changing skills on a seaman apprenticeship here in Whitby?

Now one of Whitby on Grape Lane, it’s believed that Cook lodged in the attic of this 17th-century house after Captain John Walker took him on as an apprentice around 1746. Under candlelight, it’s here where Cook would have learned vital maritime skills such as navigation, mathematics, and geometry.

Having lived in Aotearoa (New Zealand), I’ve already heard stories of Cook’s arrival at the area now known as Fiordland on the country’s South Island from the Māori perspective, alongside the domino effect that Cook’s arrival in Botany Bay (now in Sydney), Australia, would have on Aboriginal people. While a courageous journey sparked by scientific curiosity, the bloodshed it caused is often sanctified in British history books, and the legacy of this is undoubtedly one of devastation to Indigenous peoples and (often violent) colonisation.

A more fun way to explore the town’s maritime history is simply to take one of the many boat rides from the harbour. This historic fishing port is famous to this day for its fish and chips and the view of the abbey through the Whale Bone arch, and a guide boat tour is a fun, accessible way to see it from the water.

Arcades and ghost tours

Amusement arcades are an important part of quintessential British seaside fun, alongside fish and chips, dipping your toes into freezing cold water, and clairvoyant seagulls. 

Meanwhile, a ghost tour has got to be one of the top spooky things to do in Whitby at night, right? This is the home of one of England’s most famous scary stories, after all. 

While I didn’t have time for a walking tour on my latest Whitby trip, this is totally the sort of goofy fun I’d enjoy.

Plus, the reviews are actually pretty great, with the most popular both easily in five-star territory. Whitby Ghost Tours (a fun, spooky tour filled with strange and supernatural tales) and Red Hat Ghost Tours (a wheelchair-accessible tour by a local who tells generational ghost stories that are light-hearted, fun, but of course a little spooky).

Made it to the end? Here’s a bonus spot-the-difference round!
Thanks for dropping by, and I hope you have an amazing time in Whitby! x