Lying in a sheltered corner of Upper Ryedale, on the southern edge of the North York Moors National Park, Helmsley is a prestigious market town with a spacious market square surrounded by houses, hotels and shops. The area is important historically – Helmsley has its own 12th century castle and English Heritage’s Rievaulx Abbey and Castle Howard are close by. Helmsley also boasts an arts centre showing films and plays, and an outdoor swimming pool, which is open during the summer. There is excellent walking on the doorstep – indeed the Cleveland Way starts in Helmsley – and the surrounding North York Moors with their hidden dales and villages are pretty in all seasons. York is less than an hour’s drive south, as is Scarborough, Whitby and the east coast, whilst Pickering and the beginning of the famous steam railway line (North Yorkshire Moors Railway) are a little over 20 minutes’ drive.
