How to get here

Getting to the Yorkshire Dales National Park

The Yorkshire Dales National Park is found in the north of England.

It is nestled between four other National Parks – Northumberland National Park (north), North York Moors National Park (east), Peak District National Park (south) and Lake District National Park (west) - making it an excellent central point from which to explore Britain’s northern breathing spaces.

Cities surrounding the National Park include York, Harrogate, Bradford and Leeds in the south, Lancaster and Preston to the west and Darlington and Middlesbrough to the north east. All these cities are well-linked for national and international travel including bus, rail and air.

Coach and bus

Bus and coach links to the Dales are excellent with nearby towns such as Lancaster, Skipton, Leeds, Harrogate, York, Ripon, Northallerton and Darlington all being well served by National Express or Megabus coaches, and a range of local bus services. There are many bus services within the National Park which run throughout the year, providing links between the main towns and villages and the surrounding area.

Train

The two National Rail services covering the Yorkshire Dales area are the Leeds-Morecambe line and the famous Leeds-Settle-Carlisle line. Other local stations not on these lines include Darlington, Northallerton, Ilkley and Oxenholme. Look at the National Rail Enquiries website to plan your journey.

Ferry ports

• Hull

• Heysham

• Liverpool

• Newcastle

Air

• Leeds Bradford International Airport
  Tel: 0113 2509696 (frequent bus links to Leeds, Bradford and Harrogate)

• Manchester Airport
  Tel: 0161 4893000 (frequent trains to Lancaster, Leeds & York)

• Durham Tees Valley Airport
  Tel: 01325 332811 (frequent bus & metro/train links to Darlington and Richmond)

• Newcastle International Airport
  Tel: 0191 2860966 (frequent bus & metro/train links to Darlington and Richmond)

Road

The Yorkshire Dales National Park is very accesible by road - the area is bordered by major trunk roads with the M6 skirting the west, the A66 to the north, the A1 to the east and the A65, A59, A629, M62 and M65 to the south. However, one 50 mile car trip into the Dales produces about 10kg of carbon dioxide. That’s equivalent to 10 bags of sugar. Travelling by bus or train you could reduce the amount by over a quarter. Travel by bike and there’s none at all – there are plenty of B and minor roads that can take you into and around the National Park and avoid most traffic.