Local Attractions
Cranswick – 1.5 Miles
Cranswick is a brief car journey or a brisk 20 minute walk away which is handy as it houses the nearest public House, it also has a Spar shop which is open till late and a post office for those post card emergencies and the nearest train station for Hull, Scarborough and Bridlington. Also on the stretch of the A164 alongside Cranswick is a highly recommended farm shop.
www.driffield.co.uk/wolds_village_cranswick.htm
Tophill Low Nature Reserve – 1.5 miles
Tophill Low Nature Reserve is situated four miles from Watton village on the A164 Beverley to Driffield road.
Tophill Low Nature Reserve is an active Yorkshire Water Treatment Works built in 1959. It formally opened as a Nature Reserve in 1993 and features 12 hides spread across a 300 acre site that flanks the River Hull.
The two reservoirs – ‘D’ and ‘O’ dominate the reserve and have SSSI status for their massive wildfowl numbers. Around the perimeter a network of marshes, ponds, woodlands and grasslands result in an annual 160+ bird species, with over 60 readily visible even in mid winter.
Millington Wood Nature Reserve
The woodland reserve, a short drive from Highfield Farm, is part of the Millington Wood and Pastures Site of Special Scientific Interest. This beautiful ash wood occupies Lily Dale and dates back nearly 1000 years to 1086. Varied woodland and birdlife can be found including a amazing number of red kite.
Lily Dale is a typical dry valley of the Yorkshire Wolds, and has the distinctive features of a chalk karst landscape. These deeply incised and branching Dales around Millington are some of the finest examples in England that remain undisturbed from development. The wood was a commercial forestry in the 1960s when many ash trees were replaced with beech and Norway spruce. A small area of the ash woodland was left untouched, and is now one of the best ancient ash woods in the Yorkshire Wolds.
Millington Wood is special in all seasons, with scented carpets of ramsons and bluebells in spring, or leaves turning in autumn, with panoramic views across the colourful treetops. Many species are locally or nationally rare and a spring walk through the bluebell-carpeted woodland with the pungent smell of wild garlic (ransoms) is a great experience. The main ride is beautiful in summer, with the stunning bellflowers towering above the flower filled verges. Giant bellflowers can grow up to five or six feet in summer.
Open all the time
http://tophilllow.blogspot.co.uk/
Beverley – 6 Miles
Beverley is a market town with shops, banks and cafes (slightly larger than Driffield). It has a large open air market on a Saturday and a smaller market on Wednesday. It also has a race course and a golf club.
A very historic town with a minster and the famous Beverley Bar. Beverley is a market town, civil parish and the county town of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, located between the River Hull and the Westwood.
The town itself is around 1,300 years old and is noted for Beverley Minster and architecturally-significant religious buildings along New Walk and other areas, as well as the Beverley Racecourse and the market place.
As well as its Racecourse and markets, Beverley is known in the modern day for hosting various music festivals throughout the year.
Like York, Beverley saw the building of Medieval Bars to protect the town. North Bar is the sole survivor of four or possibly five gateways constructed in the 15th century. With shops famed for its merchandise and fine Medieval and Georgian architecture, Beverley is perhaps one of the most beautiful towns in Britain.
Beverley Races
The racecourse hosts right handed flat racing over 1 mile and 3 furlongs. An uphill course throughout the races, Beverley Races offers significant challenges for race horses, especially on soft ground, and favours horses with good stamina.
The highlight of the flat racing calendar at Beverley is the Hilary Needler Trophy, for two year old fillies. The Rapid Lad Handicap and Beverley Bullet Sprint Stakes are other notable races.
The racecourse is within easy walking distance of the town and is a popular local attraction as well as drawing visitors from further afield. There are three evening meetings held and these are particular popular points in the social and riding calendar.
For casual race goers, Beverley is renowned as a friendly racecourse where the scope for hospitality ranges from a fun family picnic day at Beverley Races to the finest champagne within elegant surrounds.
Tickets, or badges as they are known, can be purchased in advanced or on the day itself but for the more popular race days advance booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.
Driffield – 6 Miles
Driffield is a market town with shops, banks and cafes. It has half day closing on a Wednesday (although most places remain open). The market operates on Thursdays.
The Driffield Agricultural Show takes place at the Show Ground. http://www.driffieldshow.co.uk/
The Driffield Agricultural Society takes care of the Driffield Show, one of the biggest one-day agricultural shows in the country, and the Driffield Farmers’ Market.
The Driffield show, one of Driffield’s finest traditions, brings all that is best from East Yorkshire to the Kelleythorpe Showground, Driffield.
Visitors to the event, on the third Wednesday in July, enjoy all the traditional features of an English agricultural show with the many added attractions of quality trade stands and retail outlets.
There is something of interest for all with livestock classes, handicraft, horticultural and craft marquees with all age groups exhibiting and competing.
Driffield Show is a truly great family day out in the country.
The Agricultural Society also runs the Driffield Farmers’ Market which gives you the chance to buy the finest East Riding of Yorkshire goods direct from the producers.
You can see the products and talk to the vendors about how the goods are produced and how best to use them to enhance your value.
More information can be obtained at:
Driffield Showground
Kelleythorpe
Driffield
East Yorkshire
YO25 9DN
Tel: 01377 257494
Email: office@driffieldshow.co.uk
There is also a Steam Rally http://www.driffieldvintagerally.co.uk/
Kingston-Upon-Hull – 30 Miles
There are regular trains to Hull from nearby Cranswick station, 1 mile from the caravan site, and also a regular bus service.
Hull is a very up and coming city, with attractions such as The Deep, the KC Stadium, many museums and The Hull New Theatre and the Truck Theatre, plus two shopping centres.
Hull is the UK City of Culture 2017 and the party has arrived! We opened our year with a huge fireworks display and an emotional series of installations called “Made in Hull”. Now “Blade” has taken its place in Queen Victoria Square. This 75m long installation appeared overnight to suprise the city and will remain inplace until March. Looking ahead we have The Hypocrite at Hull Truck Theatre. A comedy written by Richard Bean and performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company The Hypocrite tells the story of actions of John Hotham to turn away King Charles I at Beverley gate. Also at Hull Truck is Shakespeare’s Richard III directed by Barrie Rutter. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra are playing John Williams film scores at Hull City Hall and the Opening of the newly refurbished Ferens Gallery.
The word is out and events are selling out fast, Hull really is the destination of the year.
https://www.hull2017.co.uk/whatson/
Hull Truck Theatre / Hull New Theatre
The Hull Truck Theatre is a theatre in Kingston upon Hull, England which presents high quality drama productions. It also tours its productions on a regular basis.
Visit the Hull Truck Theatre website:
Hull New Theatre continues to be one of the UK’s premier touring venues and features the best in musical, opera, ballet, drama, children’s shows and one night performances, with a highlight of the year being the annual spectacular Christmas pantomime.
Visits these websites about Hull New Theatre:
The Deep
The Deep, one of the most spectacular aquariums in the world is located in Hull, East Yorkshire. This award-winning visitor attraction is home to over 3,500 fish including spectacular sharks and rays – making it the perfect family day out.
Billed as ‘the world’s only submarium’, the tanks contain thousands of sea creatures (including seven species of shark), 2,500,000 litres (550,000 imp gal; 660,000 US gal) of water and 87 tonnes (96 tons) of salt housed in an iconic structure designed by Sir Terry Farrell and built as part of the UK National Lottery’s Millennium Commission project.
The dramatic building which overlooks the Humber estuary was designed by Sir Terry Farrell and is only a few minutes’ walk from Hull Marina and the museums quarter.
The Deep is operated as a charity dedicated to increasing enjoyment and understanding of the world’s oceans. The Deep is open everyday except the 24th and 25th December when it is closed.
Since opening, The Deep has welcomed over two million visitors from around the world. Buy tickets to the Deep here.
York – 40 Miles
York has more to offer than you can appreciate in a day. It is steeped in history with The York Minster, the Shambles, the Viking history, the Jorvik Museum, fantastic shopping and the famous Betty’s Tea Rooms.
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city was founded by the Romans in 71 AD and from its Roman beginnings York has seen occupation by both Viking and Norman invaders.
York is well served with sports facilities. The city also has one of the finest racecourses in the country and there is a championship-quality golf course only minutes from the University.
Today, York is a vibrant university city, packed with restaurants, cafes, English pubs, bars and shops, all a short walk or an even shorter bus ride from the College. For entertainment, there are theatres and cinemas, nightclubs and live music.
York is full of interesting specialist shops, from arts and crafts to famous high street fashion stores. For the more active, York offers golf and tennis, horse-riding and rowing, swimming pools and sports centres.
Beyond York lies some of Britain’s most attractive and impressive countryside with a great many places of natural beauty and historic interest.
Bridlington – 21 Miles
Brid provides a fun family day out, with the amusements, the fish and chips and of course the sand, the sea and if you’re really lucky the sun.
Beautiful sandy beaches and a clean, sparkling sea? Lots of entertainment for all the family? Great nights out? Perhaps you like a place with character and charm, or somewhere with lots more to explore when you need a change from the beach.
Bridlington is a town in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It has a population of over 32,000. The climate is temperate with warm summers and cool, wet winters. The hottest months of the year are from June to September.
Bridlington is a seaside resort and minor seaport on the North Sea. It lies just south of the promontory of Flamborough Head. It is served by Bridlington railway station which is on the Yorkshire Coast Line that runs between Hull and Scarborough.
Bridlington has two award-winning beaches of golden sands stretched out on either side of a historic harbour bustling with activity.
Shops, attractions, restaurants and the historic Old Town of Bridlington offer a fascinating contrast to life on the beach.
Further afield are the picturesque villages and scenery of the Yorkshire Wolds, the neighbouring resorts of Hornsea and Withernsea, and the spectacular Heritage Coastline.
Scarborough – 45 Miles
Scarborough also provides a good family day out with its lovely beaches, arcades, the Sealife Center and for the little ones Kinder Land, also provides good high street shopping facilities.
Cycle routes
The local area is perfect for cyclists staying at our caravan site. The quiet country lanes that criss-cross the rolling chalk hills on the Yorkshire Wolds are a cycling treat, leading to wonderful views, wildlife, historic places and pretty villages. Beverley is a gem of a market town. Home to thousands of seabirds, Bempton’s white cliffs are the Wolds rising impressively out of the North Sea. Bridlington’s beach backed promenades are now open for cycling.
Linking all this together is the new 146 mile Yorkshire Wolds Cycle Route, probably best ridden in a clockwise direction. Big Skies day ride routes are also available.
East of the Wolds is the low-lying and agriculturally rich Holderness plain. Small seaside places and the unique Spurn Head peninsula lead round into the Humber estuary, on which sits the port of Hull – a high-cycling city with The Deep aquarium and free museums to visit. Arriving under the iconic Humber Bridge, the Trans Pennine Trail traverses the centre on its way to Hornsea.
West of the Wolds sits the walled city of York, another of Britain’s top cycling cities with a wealth of historic attractions and events. Coming all the way from the Lancashire coast at Morcambe, the Way of the Roses cycle route runs right by the towering Minster en-route across the Wolds to Bridlington.
Malton market town sits in the north-west corner of the Wolds and at the eastern end the Howardian Hills, not far from Castle Howard.
http://www.mapmyride.com/gb/beverley-eng/
Burton Agnes Hall
Built between 1598 and 1610 by Sir Henry Griffith, Burton Agnes Hall is an Elizabethan stately home that has stayed within our family for more than four hundred years. Fifteen generations have filled the Hall with treasures, from magnificent carvings commissioned when the Hall was built to French Impressionist paintings, contemporary furniture, tapestries and other modern artwork in recent years.
Simon Jenkins, author of England’s Thousand Best Houses, described Burton Agnes Hall as ‘the perfect English house’ and as one of the twenty best English houses alongside Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace and Chatsworth House.
http://www.burtonagnes.com/Home.html
Sledmere House
East Yorkshire’s Finest Country House
Bringing the best of Art, History, Architecture & Gardens to Life
There is something about the charm of Sledmere which has captivated visitors for over 200 years. Whether you just want a relaxing day looking around the gardens enjoying lunch in the Terrace Café, a family day out exploring the various outdoor spaces including the playground and horse stables or you just simply want to look at fine examples of art and architecture, there is something for everyone at Sledmere.
Located amongst some of East Yorkshires most beautiful countryside, Sledmere is within touching distance of Driffield (8 miles), Bridlington (17 miles), Scarborough (20 miles), York (25 miles) and Hull (27 miles) making it an ideal destination for both locals and visitors who are passing through Yorkshire.
Yorkshire Wolds Railway (Fimber)
The Yorkshire Wolds Railway Restoration Project was formed in October 2008, exactly 50 years after closure of the Malton to Driffield line.
Our aim is to restore at least part of the railway as a heritage attraction, working with all interested parties to enhance tourism in the area. This will be the only Heritage Railway in the East Riding of Yorkshire. We know the real benefits that similar projects (both small and large) bring to areas in other parts of the country and hope our region will be able to see these benefits too.
http://www.yorkshirewoldsrailway.
Barmston Beach
Watton Abbey
Watton Priory was a priory of the Gilbertine Order at Watton in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The double monastery was founded in 1150 by Eustace fitz John.[1]
The present building dates mainly from the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. A house was added in the nineteenth century. It is a Grade I listed building.[2][3] The priory was dissolved in 1539 by Henry VIII.
The Nun of Watton was the protagonist of events, recorded by St Ailred of Rievaulx in De Sanctimoniali de Wattun. The nun had been admitted to the holy life as a toddler but the young woman was unsuited to the enforced celibacy of the life of a nun and became pregnant by a lay brother in the attached male community.