North Yorkshire Moors Railway

Few days out stir the soul quite like this. From the handsome platforms of Pickering, gleaming locomotives haul you deep into the North York Moors, past heather-clad hillsides, wooded valleys and remote halts before the line sweeps down to the harbour at Whitby. Steam drifts across the carriage windows, brass fittings gleam, and the rhythm of the rails does something to time itself. It is theatre, nostalgia and landscape rolled into one unforgettable ride — a heritage railway that consistently ranks among the very finest anywhere in Britain.

This is heritage railway at its absolute best: a spectacular moorland-to-coast journey that creates lifelong memories and comfortably justifies any drive. A rare, unhesitating Editor's Choice.

• Family Adventure
• History Lovers
• Photographers
• Weekend Escape